MoFo-ing to Motown: Gma L.'s Peanut Butter Pie

"Get ready, Get reeeaaaady...'cuz here it comes..."

Gma L.’s Peanut Butter Pie – Veganized and Revised!

I know that Grandma got this recipe from someone or some magazine years ago; the original was meant to be in a pre-made graham cracker crust (9”), which makes it ginormous.  Let’s be honest…this dessert is beyond decadent; there is NOTHING missing with a smaller portion.  Plus, my recipe includes chocolate…and where peanut butter is concerned, that is ALWAYS a good thing!  Notably, this recipe is a quarter of the original measurements for the 9” pie.

Servings: 3 x 5” silicone mini-loaf pan or 6 individual size servings (cupcake tin)

Base:

I had no prepared crust or the inclination to get/use one so…chocolate cookies!  This also enabled me to reduce recipe quantity.  If you have a sweet crust hanging about, use it and use 4x ingredient amount called for!  Crushed cookies work too.   I used the “Vegan Balsamic Fudge Drops” posted on Susan V’s FatFree Vegan Kitchen http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2007/02/valentines-treat-chocolate-cookies-two.html. Given what I had, I made some modifications (Bob’s Gluten Free All Purpose mix for flour, applesauce instead of soy yogurt and added 1 t. egg replacer and used a full t. of baking soda to account for adjustment, light brown sugar ,  omitted vanilla sugar).  Despite all the changes, the cookies turned out and have stayed soft, and the chocolate kick prompted by the balsamic vinegar inclusion is AMAZING!  FANTASTIC on their own…and with the pie!  You will have leftovers for general consumption – don’t worry!  I still have  8-10 left after initial taste testing (hehe) and 2 batches of the pie.

Filling:

2 oz. Vegan cream cheese

 ¼ c. Confectioner’s sugar

1/8 c. Peanut butter (I used Teddy’s unsalted natural – go for chunky!)

1/8 c. non-dairy milk

2 oz. whipped topping ( I used “Crazy Whipped Topping” from Carla Kelly’s upcoming Quick

                  and Easy Vegan Bakesale)

Optional Topping (as shown here):

Chocolate Ganache (Also from Carla’s upcoming Quick and Easy Vegan Bakesale)

Directions:

1) Make filling: Mix first three ingredients until blended.  Then add last two until blended.  Dump filling 2/3 of the way up in loaf pan (if not silicone, line with plastic wrap).  

2) For the base, use your homemade or store-bought cookies either in full or roughly crumbled to top the pie.  Gently press into pie, but don’t let filling go over what will become the crust.  Cover with plastic and put in freezer over night.  (Gma say that this pie will last in the freezer for quite some time, so it is a fantastic recipe to make ahead when company is coming or to just have in freezer for a random dessert drive-by.  You never know when you might need dessert!)

3) When you are ready to serve the pie, gently turn onto plate, so that the chocolate cookie is now the bottom crust.  Sprinkle with rogue crust pieces and/or top with chocolate ganache.  Go to chocolate/pb-induced food heaven.

As if this pie isn’t enough of a post offering, how about some follow-up goodies from previous posts?

The leftover Ham-peh made an amazing lunch with homemade roasted pepper hummus and broccoli slaw in a wrap.  The Hame-peh's smokiness really enhanced the red pepper flavor.  Yummy.

I had a bit of Leek-Chard and Mushroom-Pinot Sauce left from last night and was making some noodles anyway – hello lunch, you look fabulous.  Without the sweet potato, the chard took a more dominant role.  Too bad I didn’t have any cashew ricotta around  to sweeten and top it.

I’m testing new recipes for a “One-Pot” cookbook by Carla.  Since I’m leaving the hub on his own tonight, I’ve decided to surprise him with this cheezey goodness that Carla recently opened for testing.  Seriously…move over mac (and considering that my college survival largely depended on this dish, you know I mean business); “Creamy Leek and Almond Pasta” in da HOUSE!!!!!

"Are you going to share? How 'bout I get the empty bowl?"

All this and more… in the time it took to sing my own iPod-induced concert featuring some Motown, some Commitments soundtrack,  a little Sharon Jones, and, finally, some Prince.

Time to prep for my visitors, while the bread is baking.  Check out the recipe – it’s all about the banana. (http://www.food.com/recipe/vegan-whole-wheat-bread-for-bread-machine-427021)

Note:  Please feel free to share my recipes/blog info; I thank you in advance for appropriate credit where it is due, as I will also do my best to cite and reference accordingly. Contact me with any questions or concerns.  Thank you.