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La Belle Cuisine
Peanut Butter Pie with Fudge Topping
Classic Home Desserts: a Treasury of Heirloom and Contemporary Recipes from Around the World
(winner of both a James Beard Award and
a Julia Child Award!)
by Richard Sax, 1994, Chapters Publishing, Ltd./2000
Houghton Mifflin Company
“Peanut butter and chocolate are an immortal
combination; the
archetype
is
Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. This is an easy pie to
make, with kids’
flavors
that adults never outgrow.
Peanut butter, that staple of every American pantry, is a fairly recent
invention, having just celebrated its 100th birthday in 1990. According
to
author John
Egerton (his lively, affectionate Southern Food is a must
for anyone who
loves
food), peanuts originated in South America at
least 3,500 years ago.
Eventually,
they were brought to Asia and Africa,
and then to North America by African
slaves. But until late in the 19th
century, peanuts were strictly a local
crop. It was George Washington
Carver who was responsible for the peanut’s
domestication – and for
peanut butter.”
Makes one
9-inch pie; serves about 8
Graham
Cracker Crust
1 cup
graham cracker crumbs
(about 15 individual crackers)
1/4 cup
sugar
1/4 cup
(1/2 stick) unsalted butter,
cut into pieces, softened
Filling
8 ounces
cream cheese, softened
1 cup
creamy peanut butter (do not use
old-fashioned or freshly ground)
1 cup
confectioner’s sugar
2
tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1
tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup
heavy cream, well chilled
Fudge
Topping
1/2 cup
heavy cream
6 ounces
semisweet chocolate, chopped
1. Graham
Cracker Crust: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, with a
rack in the lower
third. In a medium bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar and butter
until well blended. Press evenly into a buttered
9-inch pie pan, reaching up
to but not over the rim. Bake until lightly
browned, about
10 minutes. Cool
the crust completely on a wire rack.
2. Filling:
Beat the cream cheese and peanut butter with an electric
mixer
at medium
speed until well blended. Add the confectioners’
sugar, butter
and vanilla
and continue beating until fluffy.
3. Whip the
cream until not quite stiff. Fold a large spoonful of the
whipped cream into
the peanut butter mixture to lighten it; gently
fold in the remainder.
Carefully spoon the filling into the cooled
crust, spreading evenly. Loosely
cover the pie and refrigerate until
firm, about 3 hours. (You can put it in
the freezer, if you’d like to
speed it up.)
4. Fudge
Topping: Bring the cream to a simmer in a small, heavy
saucepan. Add the
chocolate and stir until smooth. Set aside to
cool to lukewarm. Gently spread
the topping over the cooled pie.
Refrigerate until firm, about 3 hours. (This
pie can be made 1
day ahead; cover it loosely with wax paper or plastic wrap
and refrigerate.)
5. Cut the
pie into wedges and serve cold.
Featured Archive Recipes:
Did somebody say
Reese's?!?!?
Old-Fashioned Peanut Butter Cake Topped with Chocolate
Peanut Butter Cookies with Ganache!
Peanut Butter Sandwiches
Pecan Truffle Tart
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