Chocolate Peanut Butter Torte

It's no secret that chocolate and peanut butter are one of my favorite combinations, it's one of my hubby's too. In fact, it's a favorite combo of the majority of my family, I mean really, what's not to love? We had a special occasion a few weeks ago and I couldn't decide what to make. I knew I wanted to use chocolate and peanut butter because my uncle goes crazy over it but I just couldn't decide which recipe to go with. Finally, I settled on my own version of Brown Eyed Baker's Chocolate Peanut Butter Torte. Right away I knew I had to change it up because I don't have a spring form pan anymore because mine kept leaking and I tossed it. So first up I was making it in a deep dish pie pan. Second I wasn't really crazy about the idea of using nutmeg and cinnamon in a peanut butter pie so I created my own spin-off recipe based on hers.

The pie was a huge hit and as I thought my uncle went crazy over it, claiming his piece wasn't large enough. It was an all around win and I think I may have just found a new staple in my dessert repertoire.


Chocolate Peanut Butter Torte
Yield: 12 Servings
Prep Time: 20 minutes     I     Bake Time; 10 minutes     I     Inactive Prep Time; 2 hours

Ingredients

• 1 block of cream cheese softened
• 2 cups of peanut butter (any kind)
• 24 oreo cookies
• 4 tablespoons salted butter melted
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 tub of frozen whipped cream thawed (I used Trader Joe's version, Cool Whip will work too)
• 1 cup of confectioners sugar
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1/4 cup chopped honey roasted peanuts

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and begin to prepare your crust. Pulse the oreos until they are crumbs and stir in the melted butter. Press the cookie mixture into a greased pie or spring form pan and bake for 10 minutes.

In the meantime prepare the filling by whipping the cream cheese and peanut butter until it is light and smooth in a stand mixer. Add the confectioners sugar and salt and mix until all the ingredients are well blended. When the ingredients are well blended fold in the whipped cream and spoon into the baked pie crust. Let the pie set in the refrigerator for approximately 1 hour or until it gets nice and firm. 

After the pie has sat for a bit melt the chocolate and milk down in the microwave or a double boiler to form a ganache. Pour the ganache over the top of the pie and sprinkle the chopped peanuts on top. Put the pie back in the refrigerator for another hour or until the ganache has hardened.