If you’re like me, the hardest part about this week’s yummy recipe will be making extra chocolate chip cookies to set aside to crush and make into the crust…which we’ve begun calling a pie chrusht, btw. It’s worth the temporary deprivation, believe me! The other option, if you’re a true chocoholic who also loves peanut butter, is to use gluten-free oreo-like cookies for the crust. The creamy filling does divine things in a chrusht!

And on a hot day, this cool pie will make everything better. Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Cookie Pie

Chocolate Chip Cookie Crust Ingredients:

• 2 1/4 cups gluten-free chocolate chip cookie crumbs (approximately 10 large-ish cookies)*
• 2 Tbs. melted butter or Earth Balance® Buttery Sticks (non-dairy)

Chocolate Vanilla Creme Cookie Crust Ingredients:

• 2 cups gluten-free Chocolate Vanilla Creme Cookies (Glutino®) – 21 cookies
• 3 Tbs. melted butter or Earth Balance® Buttery Sticks (non-dairy)

Pie Crust Directions:

Preheat oven to 350° F (static) or 325° F (convection).

Be sure your cookies are crispy before trying to crush them into crumbs. If fresh baked, take several cookies at a time and place them in the freezer for 5-10 minutes (unwrapped). This will harden and dry them, making them easier to crush into crumbs.

To make the crust, use a gallon size zip-top bag (freezer bags are stronger) and fill it with approximately 2 1/4 cups of chocolate chip cookies. Remove the air from the bag and seal, then begin rolling over the cookies with a rolling pin, crushing the cookies to a very small crumb size. Once uniformly crushed, measure out to be sure you have enough crumbs – repeat if you need more crumbs. Note: this step is even easier using a food processor instead!

Pour the crumbs into a medium-sized bowl and stir in the slightly cooled, melted butter or Buttery Sticks, stirring with a fork until the crumbs begin to stick together when pressed. It is important that the mixture not be too wet, so if the crumbs are very wet at this point, crush more cookies to add to the mixture.

Pour the crumb-butter mixture into a pie pan and press with your fingers to create an even thickness along the bottom and sides of the pan.

For Chocolate Chip Cookie Crust, bake in preheated oven for 5 minutes. Remove and set aside to cool until the pie filling is prepared.

For Chocolate Vanilla Creme Cookie Crust, refrigerate for at least 1 hour prior to adding filling.

* The absolutely easiest way to make amazing gluten-free chocolate chip cookies is to use my Jules Gluten Free™ Cookie Mix. Follow the quick directions, refrigerate or freeze the dough until cold, and bake out at least 10 cookies for the crust, and eat the rest!

If you prefer to start from scratch, refer to my homemade chocolate chip cookie recipe.

Peanut Butter Pie Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
• 8 ounces cream cheese, dairy or non-dairy (Tofutti® Better than Cream Cheese; Follow Your Heart® Vegan Cream Cheese)
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter (Earth Balance® Natural Peanut Butter and Flaxseed)
• 1/2 cup liquid creamer or half-and-half (So Delicious® Vanilla Coconut Creamer)
• 1/4 cup milk, dairy or non-dairy (Earth Balance® Vanilla Soy Milk)
• 20 ounces whipped topping, thawed if frozen, dairy or non-dairy (Soyatoo!® Soy Whip™, Whippable Soy Topping – 10.14 fl oz, whipped to 20 oz)

Peanut Butter Pie Directions:

If using Soy Whip™ or another topping which must be mixed (like Dream Whip®), pour ingredients in a large mixing bowl and whip on the highest speed of an electric mixer for 3-5 minutes, or according to package directions. The whipped product should equal 20 ounces when prepared. Once prepared, or if using a pre-prepared whipped topping (like Cool Whip®), pour into a separate bowl and set aside.

In an other bowl, beat the cream cheese and confectioners’ sugar until smooth. Stir in peanut butter. Add the creamer or half-and-half. Test the consistency at this point – if it is thin, there is no need to add milk; if it is thick, add 1/4 cup milk, as per the directions. Particularly when using “natural” peanut butters, the consistency of the peanut butter itself can differ markedly, and you do not want this pie batter to be too thin to set up in the freezer. Fold in the prepared whipped topping until uniformly mixed.

Pour into the prepared pie pan; pour any extra into ramekins or a small casserole dish. Cover and freeze until set up. Remove from freezer 5-10 minutes before serving; cut with a sharp knife warmed in water first.