Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie

I am still making and baking my way through Tate's Bakeshop Cookbook.  Now this recipe takes a few steps so be prepared and a little patient.  But it's oh so worth it.

The first step to this pie is to make the crust.  It's very simple.  All you need are Oreos and butter.

I used about 2 1/2 rows of Oreos and 6 tablespoons of butter for the crust.  Crush the Oreos by either smashing them in a large plastic bag or using a food processor.

Melt the butter and pour it in the cookie crumbs.  Stir until all the butter is incorporated.  Press down into a pie shell or cake pan.

The recipe doesn't necessarily call for pushing the cookie crust up on the edges. But do you really know anyone who would argue against extra Oreo crust?  Yeah, me neither.  Bake the crust for about 10 minutes at 350 degrees.  Let cool completely before adding in the filling.

For the filling, you will need the following:
12 ounces of cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups of creamy peanut butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla
1 cup heavy cream

Using a mixer, combine your cream cheese, PB, sugar, and vanilla in a bowl until light and fluffy.  In a separate bowl, whip the heavy cream until stiff.  Now take the whipped cream and fold it into the peanut butter mixture.  This will help lighten the peanut butter mixture.

Spoon onto your Oreo crust and try to make as level as possible.  I still need to work on the leveling part.  You will see why when you add the topping. 

Now if you need to catch up on dishes or brush the remaining Oreo crumbs off your chest, then throw the pie in the fridge until you can make your topping.

For the topping, you will need:
2 tablespoons of sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 ounces of bittersweet chocolate
4 tablespoons of butter
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla

Toss the heavy cream and sugar in a small saucepan and turn on medium heat.

Once the cream comes to a boil, pull the saucepan off the heat.  Add in the remaining ingredients. Stir until the chocolate is smooth and everything is combined.  Let the saucepan sit and cool for a bit. You want the chocolate to be pourable, but not too runny.  Once it reaches that consistency, carefully pour it on top of the peanut butter filling.  See why I still need to work on the leveling part?

Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight if possible.  The book suggests placing chopped peanuts on top. But you can always do more crushed Oreos, Reese Cups, or just leave it plain and simple.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie - Print Recipe

Tate's Chocolate Chip Cookies

These cookies are DE-licious.  There is lots of butter, tons of chocolate chips, and they are flat enough that you don't feel guilty eating 4 or 5 in one sitting.  Not that I did that or anything.

What you will need:
2 cups of all purpose flour
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup of salted butter (2 sticks)
3/4 cup of granulated sugar
3/4 cup of dark brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon of water
1 teaspoon of vanilla
2 eggs
2 cups of semisweet chocolate chips

Sift together your flour, baking soda, and salt.  Set the bowl aside for now.  With a mixer, cream your butter and sugars until light and fluffy.  Add the water and vanilla and mix real quick.  The key to these cookies is not to over mix.  If you do, you will incorporate air and it will make them fluffy.  You want flat cookies.

Add the eggs and mix until just combined.  Stir in the flour mixture and again...mix until just combined.  Fold in the chocolate chips.  Drop the cookies on a baking sheet and bake for 12 minutes at 350 degrees.    I should have baked mine longer because the recipe calls for brown edges and center.  So it all depends on how soft you like your cookies.  Have fun!

Tate's Chocolate Chip Cookies - Print Recipe

Can you guess what I am making?

Here's the first clue.

And here's the second clue.

Really?  Who just said lasagna?  Show your face.  Because this is so NOT lasagna.

So I know most of you do not have an ice cream machine at home, but they are really cool appliances that don't have to cost that much.

I got my Cuisinart 2-quart mixer here for about 60 bucks.

What you will need:
1 1/2 cups of whole milk
1 1/2 cups of heavy cream
6 ounces of of chopped semisweet chocolate, plus an extra 2 ounces chopped to throw in as a topping at the end
4 large egg yolks
1/2 cup of granulated sugar
pinch of salt
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1/4 cup fo chopped walnuts
1/4 cup of mini marshmallows

In a large saucepan, combine the whole milk and 1 cup of the heavy cream together.  Turn on medium heat and cook until small bubbles form around the edge.  Pour the hot milk over the chopped 6 ounces of chocolate and let sit for about 3 minutes to melt.  Whisk together until you have a smooth mix.

In a separate bowl, combine your egg yolks, remaining cream, sugar, and salt.

Now comes the tempering of the egg mixture.  Pour a little bit of the hot chocolate mix into your egg mix and stir.  Slowly add a little more.  You are trying to raise the temperature of the egg mixture slowly.  You don't want to cook the eggs.

Pour the warm egg mixture back into the large saucepan.  Now add the remaining hot chocolate mix stirring constantly.

Turn the heat back onto medium.  You do not want this mix to boil so you have to pay attention.  You are going to let the mix heat back up and start to get thick.  This may take a few minutes so be patient.  You know the mix is thickened to the right consistency when you can cover the back of the spoon and run your finger down and it leaves a clean line.

Once the mix has thickened, you are going to have to strain it through fine mesh.  This makes sure all the little bits and pieces come out so you have a nice smooth ice cream base.

Add in your vanilla at this point and stir.  Place the bowl in an ice bath to help the mix cool down faster.

Once the mix has cooled down to room temperature, place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the ice cream base.  This will help it from forming a skin or crust.

Throw the mix in the fridge anywhere from 3 to 24 hours.  I was impatient so my mix was only in the fridge for about 4 hours.  Add the mix to your ice cream machine according to the instructions and let the magic begin.

Throw the marshmallows, chopped nuts, and other what-nots into the mix about 5 minutes before the mixing is done.  Throw it in the freezer (in an airtight container of course) if you like it a thicker consistency.


Rocky Road Ice Cream - Print Recipe