Peanut Butter Mousse Pie with Chocolate Ganache

Light, airy, peanut butter chocolatety deliciousness. This recipe does generate a lot of dishes, but the techniques are simple and it is WORTH it. Trust me.

Peanut Butter Mousse Pie with Chocolate Ganache

adapted from Pinch Me I'm Eating

Ingredients:

crust

10 graham crackers (~1.25 cup graham cracker crumbs)

6 Tbs butter, melted

1/4 cup granulated sugar

peanut butter mousse

1 tsp unflavored gelatin

1.5 cups heavy cream, divided

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

8 oz mascarpone cheese

chocolate ganache

3.5 oz dark chocolate >60%

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 Tbs butter, melted

garnish

2-3 Tbs honey roasted peanuts, crushed

1 pinch flaky sea salt

2 Tbs honey

Instructions:

crust

1. In a food processor, place graham crackers and run until a fine crumb without chunks.

2. Add melted butter and sugar, and pulse until just combined.

3. Dump crumbs into a pie or tart pan, and press evenly around edges with the bottom of a glass or back of a spoon. Refrigerate crust until needed.

peanut butter mousse

1. In a microwave-safe dish, combine 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream with the gelatin & whisk with a fork to combine.

2. Set aside for 5 minutes to allow the gelatin to bloom.

3. In a large bowl, combine peanut butter, mascarpone cheese, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Whish together using an electric mixer until smooth.

4. Heat the gelatin cream mixture in the microwave for 10-15 seconds to melt the gelatin, but do NOT boil. Add to the peanut butter mixture and whisk in to combine.

5. In a medium bowl, add remaining 1.25 cups cream and whip using an electric mixer until stiff peaks form.

6. Fold 1/3 of the whipped cream into the peanut butter mixture to lighten it. In two more batches, fold in the remaining whipped cream, keeping as much air in as possible.

7. In a piping bag (or ziplock fitted with a star tip) set aside 1/2 cup peanut butter mousse to decorate. Note: you can do this without a tip if you simply have a ziplock bag.

8. Spread the remaining filling into the graham cracker crust evenly. Refrigerate again until needed.

chocolate ganache

1. Finely chop the dark chocolate and add to a small bowl.

2. In a microwave-safe bowl, microwave the cream for 10-15 seconds, or until hot but not boiling.

3. Pour cream over chocolate and let sit for 5 minutes. Then, gently stir together using a fork or spatula to combine.

4. Add melted better and stir in until ganache is smooth.

5. Pour the ganache over top of the pie and smooth over with a spoon, making sure to cover the whole top evenly up to the edges. 

garnishes

1. Pipe remaining mousse in rosettes, or smooth swirls if not using a tip, around the edges of the pie.

2. Roughly chop the honey-roasted peanuts and sprinkle across the top of the pie.

3. Just before serving, drizzle honey over pie & enjoy!

Chocolate Wine Pie

 

This is one of those viral recipes I had to see to believe. It's actually quite nice! A rich chocolate flavor with the red wine backbone. not overly sweet, and texture is like a cross between pudding and mousse. It's fun to serve alongside a glass of the same wine just to compare flavor profiles, so pick-up 2 bottles of the same! I used a bottle of Trader Joe's Chianti and I think that was a perfect pick for this recipe.

Note: this recipe makes about 2 cups more filling than can actually go into the pie, so try to get a deep crust pie if you can, a mini pie crust, or be prepares to save/throw out the extra.

Chocolate Wine Pie

adapted from Food Network

Ingredients:

1 chocolate pie crust (cookie, wafer, or graham)

1-750 mL bottle good dry red wine

1/2 cup corn starch

1.25 cup sugar

12 oz. bittersweet chocolate bars, chopped small (optional: save off a few chocolate curls to top the pie)

2 Tbs. butter

pinch of salt 

Whipped topping:

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

1 Tbs. sugar

Instructions:

1. In a medium sauce pan, whisk together the cornstarch and 1.25 cups sugar. Over medium heat, slowly whisk in wine to prevent lumps from forming. Cook until mixture has come to a simmer and is very thick, about 8 minutes, whisking constantly. 

2. Remove from the heat and stir in the chocolate, butter and pinch of salt until smooth.

3. Pour the filling into the crust and refrigerate until chilled and set, about 4 hours and up to overnight.  

4. For the whipped topping, beat together cream and remaining 1 Tbs. of sugar until stiff peaks form. Spread over cooled and set pie, and top with chocolate curls if desired.

No-Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Bars

I have been buying groceries from Hy-vee online and then just picking up. It's amazing, it's so much easier to get the sale items because someone else is shopping way before I'd be in the store to shop myself, and I *generally* get exactly what I ordered, no more. However, I got a couple bags of pretzels to make chocolate covered pretzels, and both bags were almost entirely broken. I had to use both bags to make one batch of chocolate covered pretzels. But then... what else to do with the basically 2 full bags of broken pretzels?! I found this recipe recipe in search of that answer. Easy, simple, 5-ingredient no-bake bars.

No-Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Bars

from Live Well Bake Often

makes 12 big bars (or more smaller)

Ingredients:

Peanut Butter Pretzel Layer:

1.5 sticks (170 g.) butter, melted

1.5 cups (180 g.) powdered sugar

1 cup (250 g.) creamy peanut butter

2 cups (200 g.) crushed* pretzels

Chocolate layer:

1-12 oz. bag semisweet chocolate chips

1/4 cup (65 g.) creamy peanut butter

*Measure pretzel after crushing if measuring by volume. To crush pretzels, use a food processor and pulse until mostly ground but some small pieces remain.

Instructions:

1. Line a 9"x13"  baking pan with aluminum foil or parchment. Make sure to leave some overhang for easy removal, and set aside.

2. In a large mixing bowl, add the melted butter, powdered sugar, 1 cup peanut butter, and crushed pretzels and mix until fully combined. Dump the mixture into the prepared baking pan and press it down into an even layer.

3. In a medium microwaveable bowl, add chocolate chips and remaining 1/4 cup peanut butter. Microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring between intervals until fully melted. Pour over peanut butter pretzel layer and use a spatula to distribute into an even layer.

4. Cover pan tightly and refrigerate for at least 1 hour until chocolate layer has hardened. Then remove from the pan, and slice into bars. You can slice into 12 big bars, but they are pretty rich. I'd recommend making them smaller.

Classic Chocolate Ganache

 I've never been a fan of normal confectioners sugar and butter based frostings. Don't even get me started on fondant... Why, why ruin a perfectly good cake when you could do something like a rich creamy chocolate ganache?? Or a cream cheese frosting? My best friend in high school, her British mother taught me the English way: poke some holes in the top of a cake with a fork and pour over a can of sweetened condensed milk, then dust with powdered sugar. Give me a nice citrus glaze, or brulee the top. Put a paper doily on the cake and dust cocoa powder, then carefully remove the doily on a light cake to reveal a lacey pattern. Spread some peanut butter whipped cream topping over the cake, anything but your run-of-the-mill Royal icing.

Classic Chocolate Ganache

Ingredients:

8 oz. dark chocolate bar, chopped small

1 cup heavy whipping cream

Instructions:

1. Place chopped chocolate in a thick walled bowl.

2. In a double-boiler or in the microwave, heat cream until just steaming. Keep a careful eye on it up until that point then immediately remove from heat and pour over chocolate.

3. Let sit for 2 minutes without stirring.

4. Gently stir chocolate and cream together with a fork until just combined. 

5. Spread ganache across cake, or pour into a bowl to let cool.