There are few lunch items in the world that can rival the perfection that is a PB&J sandwich. Something so simple and so beloved, almost every person on the planet has had one and loved one. Except for those born with a nut allergy – my condolences by the way. I count myself among that many that love this classic sandwich. But my reverence doesn’t stop me from messing with it. PB and J is a fun combo of the flavors that are compatible with most dishes. Particularly if those dishes are of the dessert persuasion. So without further ado, allow me to introduce what I believe to be the happiest home for peanut butter and jelly – the PB and J Silk Pie with Oreo Crumb Crust.
This recipe takes inspiration from the 1950s classic French Silk Pie. A delicious dessert in its own right, the French Silk Pie features a chocolate-flavored mousse-like filling served in a golden pastry shell. It’s typically garnished with a crown of whipped cream and chocolate curls. Now, obviously, I veered away from the original quite a bit. But what I didn’t lose was arguably the French Silk Pie’s best asset – it’s lighter than air texture.
Adapting the filling of a French Silk Pie proved to be exceptionally easy. I just swapped the melted chocolate for smooth peanut butter and followed the method as usual. Now, there are quite a few recipes on this blog that call for natural peanut butter because when it comes to savory recipes, the natural stuff is my go-to. But when it comes to desserts, it pays to buy the less-than-natural smooth stuff. We need that impossibly smooth emulsion to keep our peanut buttery treats from separating. Natural peanut butter is just too oily for the job.
The J to this PB&J is a layer of raspberry pate de fruit. It’s the same recipe I used to make the centers of my Raspberry Ricotta Mousse Cakes. I went with raspberry because it’s the only acceptable variety of jam for my PB&J. But you can swap the raspberry for strawberry if that is quite literally your jam.
And finally, we have the crust for the PB and J Silk Pie. As you can clearly see I did not go with the traditional pastry. And that was largely an aesthetic choice. I knew my peanut butter filling would come out a lightly tanned color and what color is pastry? Yeah, my pie would have been monochrome, which I wasn’t into. So instead I opted for an Oreo crumb crust, which happily tasted as good as it looked. Plus, chocolate and peanut butter? A winning combination. And chocolate and raspberry? A classic for a reason.
So that’s everything you need to know about this PB and J Silk Pie with Oreo Crumb Crust. A classic-in-the-making if there ever was one…at least in my house.
Enjoy!
PB and J Silk Pie with Oreo Crumb Crust
Equipment
- A deep 9" pie plate
- Candy Thermometer
- hand or stand mixer
Ingredients
Oreo Crumb Crust
- 2 cups Oreo Cookie Crumbs
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter melted
Raspberry Pate de Fruit
- 340g (12oz) fresh raspberries
- 1 cup granulated sugar divided
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1½ tbsp liquid pectin
Peanut Butter Silk Filling
- 3 large eggs
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 227g (8oz) smooth peanut butter not the natural stuff
- 1 tsp vanilla
- ½ tsp salt
- 10 tbsp unsalted butter softened
- 1 cup whipping cream
- 2 tbsp powdered sugar
- salted peanuts to garnish
- fresh raspberries to garnish
Instructions
For Oreo Crumb Crust
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Pour 2 cups of Oreo cookie crumbs into a large mixing bowl and whisk in 1/4 tsp of salt
- Pour the Oreo cookie crumbs into a large mixing bowl and whisk in the salt. Pour the butter over the crumbs and stir until the mixture resembles wet sand.
- Pile the crumb mixture into a deep 9” pie and press it into the base of pie plate and up the sides. Transfer the pie plate to the oven and bake for 15 minutes. The crust will puff up a little but it show deflate as it cools. Set the crust to side to cool slightly.
For the Raspberry Pate de Fruit
- Start by piling the raspberries into a food processor. Blitz until smooth. Pour the mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a small saucepan. Force the juice through using a rubber spatula until only seeds remain. Discard the solids and place the saucepan over medium heat.
- Add a 1/4 cup of granulated sugar and the lemon juice. Heat the mixture to 140°F. Once the mixture reaches this temperature, add the remaining sugar and the liquid pectin.
- Heat the mixture to 200°F and lower the heat in order to keep it at that temperature for 2-3 minutes. Once the 2-3 minutes have passed, increase the heat and bring the mixture up to 225°F. Once again lower the heat and keep the mixture at 225°F for another 2-3 minutes.
- Take the pate de fruit off of the heat and pour it in to a heat proof vessel. Pour the mixture into the cooled Oreo crust and rotate the pie plate to ensure the raspberry mixture coats the base evenly. You want to move fairly quickly through these steps as the pectic sets up quickly. Let the pie cool on the counter for 30 minutes before transferring the fridge. Chill for 1 hour.
For the Peanut Butter Filling
- Pour 2 inches of water into a saucepan and bring to a lively simmer over medium heat. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the eggs and sugar. Place the bowl on top of the saucepan, ensuring the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the surface of the water. While whisking constantly, heat the egg mixture to 160°F.
- Next whisk in the smooth peanut butter. Once the peanut butter is in, add the salt and the vanilla and stir until combined. Set aside.
- Place the softened unsalted butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. You can use a hand mixer for this or a wooden spoon and some elbow grease. Cream the butter until light and fluffy. Start adding the peanut butter mixture to the butter in thirds, scraping down the sides of the bowl frequently.
- Pour the whipping cream in a large mixing bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of powdered sugar and whisk with a hand mixer or a whisk until stiff peaks form. Once the cream is whipped, fold it into the peanut butter mixture a third at a time. Continue folding until no streaks remain.
To Assemble
- Pour the filling into the chilled crust and give it a pleasing swoop. Decorate the surface of the pie with salted peanuts and fresh raspberries before chilling for 2-3 hours or until set.
