Peanut butter and jelly pie

This homemade peanut butter is made from scratch with just a few steps and will have everyone coming back for more. An oreo crumb crust is topped with a layer of raspberry jam, a rich peanut butter filling, topped with a decadent white chocolate and peanut butter ganache. This is my modern take on the classic peanut butter and jelly sandwich and will appeal to the young and the young at heart.

I am a big peanut butter fanatic, I mean I can eat the stuff by the spoonful. Especially when it’s combined with white chocolate and raspberry jam… in PIE form. Life doesn’t get much better than a Peanut Butter and jelly pie. I’ve included step-step pictures to help you along the process.

Tips for the peanut butter and jelly pie

Bake the oreo crust base:  A lot of no-bake recipes out there will tell you not to bake the base for convenience. The reality is if you don’t bake the base your crust will most likely crumble and you will end up with not a very neat pie.

Use whipping instead of double cream: Whipping cream has around 36% fat content allowing air to be trapped when whipped. If you cannot get hold of whipping you can of course use double cream, the result will just be slightly fattier in texture.

Ingredients for the peanut butter and jelly pie

Oreo biscuits: Oreos make the perfect crunchy base and their chocolatey flavour combined with peanut butter is truly a match made in heaven.

Peanut butter: You can use any smooth or crunchy peanut butter of your choice. 

White chocolate: Since ganache has only a few ingredients, be sure to use the highest quality chocolate for the best flavour.

Raspberry jam: You can use any raspberry jam you can get your hands on and even use strawberry jam if you prefer.

Glucose: I know what you are thinking! Do I have to?! Yes, you do! Glucose is very cheap, found in most big supermarkets and it is a pantry essential if you want to learn how to bake like a pro! Glucose when added to ganache helps to reduce available water by chemically bonding with the water making for a more stable and shiny ganache.

Full fat cream: Full fat cream cheese is ideal for the filling as the lighter version tend to have a higher water content resulting in a runnier filling.

For the peanut ganache

• 150g white chocolate
• 66g whipping cream
• 45g smooth or crunchy peanut butter
• 40g butter
• 10g glucose
• 10g whipping cold cream

For the oreo crust base

• 220g oreo biscuits
  
• 75g unsalted butter

FOR THE PEANUT BUTTER FILLING

• 120g whipping cream
  
• 146g full-fat cream cheese
  
• 200g smooth or crunchy peanut butter
  
• 56g icing sugar
  
• 50g raspberry jam
  
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

How to make the peanut ganache

1. In a heatproof bowl melt the chocolate in the microwave being careful not to overheat. In a separate bowl warm the peanut butter until soft. Once the chocolate is melted, add the glucose, peanut butter, mix slightly and aside ( Your mix might look slightly split but don’t worry it will come back to looking smooth once you add the cold cream).
2. Boil the cream (you can do this in the microwave as well) and pour over the chocolate mix and stir well. Add the soft butter and cold cream (* see Notes).
3. Place the mix in a blender and whiz the ganache until smooth.
4. Place the ganache in a clean bowl, cover with some cling film to touch and leave at room temperature ideally overnight to crystallize (*see Notes)

How to make the oreo crust base

1. Preheat the oven at 160C/fan.
2. In the bowl of a food processor process the oreo cookies until finely ground. Add the butter and pulse until moistened. Spray a 9-inch quiche tin(ideally with a removable base) with some non-stick spray. Use the bottom of a measuring cup, glass, or simply your hands to press the crust mixture into the bottom and up the sides of the tin. Bake until firm, about 12 minutes. 
3. Cool completely on a wire rack. 

How to make the peanut butter filling

1. In a large bowl, use a handheld electric mixer to beat the cream cheese, icing sugar, peanut butter and vanilla until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
2. Add the whipping cream slowly to the bowl and keep whisking until you achieve a firm consistency.
3. Add 50g raspberry jam to the bottom of the cooled base and spread evenly using a cranked palette knife or the back of a spoon.
4. Pour the peanut butter filling on top of the jam and spread. Freeze for 3 hours or chill in the fridge for at least 6 hours.
5. Once the pie is set, top the pie with the ganache, more raspberry jam and some salted peanuts(optional). If your ganache is too firm you can slightly warm it in the microwave to make it more pliable.
6. Store in the fridge, covered, for up to 3 days, or in the freezer for up to 1 month.
7. Enjoy! 

Notes

• This particular ganache is pretty high in oil because of the nuts. By adding cold cream (meaning fat) into the broken ganache and emulsifying with a blender, your ganache will be smooth and glossy.
• By leaving the ganache at room temperature you allow time for the cocoa butter to fully crystallize into the correct form, allowing the ganache to mature and stabilize. If you don’t have all that time to wait you can let the ganache to rest in the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours.

Meringue kisses,
Athina xx