Fluffy Peanut Butter Pie

No oven required. This peanut butter pie sits on a crust made from melted chocolate chips and crisp rice cereal pressed into a pie plate. It snaps and crunches under every forkful of the creamy filling above it.

The filling is rich: cream cheese beaten fluffy, then blended with sweetened condensed milk and peanut butter until smooth. A few tablespoons of lemon juice might seem odd in a peanut butter pie, but it does real work here. The acid cuts the sweetness, brightens the flavor, and helps the filling set up firmer in the fridge. Whipped cream folded in at the end is what gives it that light, mousse-like texture instead of being dense like a cheesecake.

Four hours in the fridge is the minimum. The filling needs that time to firm up enough to slice cleanly. Overnight is even better. A drizzle of chocolate syrup on top finishes it off.

Kitchen Tips

• Beat the cream cheese until truly fluffy before adding anything else. Lumps in the base mean lumps in the pie
• Fold the whipped cream gently with a spatula. Stirring deflates it and you lose the fluffiness
• Press the cereal crust firmly and evenly, pushing it up the sides of the pie plate. It crumbles if it’s too loose
• Chill the pie at least 4 hours, but overnight gives you the cleanest slices

Variations

• Chocolate peanut butter: Add two tablespoons of cocoa powder to the filling for a chocolate-PB combo
• Banana layer: Line the bottom of the crust with sliced bananas before pouring the filling
• Pretzel crust: Swap the rice cereal for crushed pretzels for a salty-sweet base