No Bake Peanut Butter Pie

This No Bake Peanut Butter Pie recipe is an easy frozen pie recipe and uses only 6 ingredients and is easy to whip up. The peanut butter pie base is a deliciously smooth and creamy texture with cream cheese, peanut butter and whipped topping — topped with chopped Reese’s peanut butter cups and hot fudge, this is the best frozen peanut butter pie!

You can’t really go wrong with peanut butter for dessert! I recently made my chocolate peanut butter chip cookies and my chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting recipes and it got me dreaming about this smooth peanut butter no bake pie!

Why This Recipe Works

• No-bake dessert. This is definitely a feature to celebrate. No need to worry about baking or anything — not even the pie crust needs to be baked! It’s chill, chill, chill for this pie!
• Easy make ahead pie recipe. Because this recipe is a chilled pie, it is the perfect pie recipe to make in advance! Store in the fridge for a day or two or in the freezer for a few months! You can eat the pie straight out of the freezer for a delicious frozen Reese’s peanut butter pie or let it thaw slightly so that it’s chilled with a slightly firm, yet creamy texture. I like it both ways!
• Few ingredients and easy to make. This creamy peanut butter pie requires only 6 ingredients and takes a solid 5 minutes to assemble, making it the most hassle-free pie!
• Smooth Reese’s peanut butter pie. Instead of using granulated sugar, the powdered sugar helps the peanut butter pie filling be sweet and smooth.

Ingredient Notes

• Cream Cheese: You’ll need 4 oz of softened cream cheese. The cream cheese gives this pie depth and flavor so it isn’t just peanut butter, sugar and whipped topping.
• Powdered Sugar: No need to sift the powdered sugar. The powdered sugar provides a sweet element that pairs with the salty peanut butter flavor.
• Peanut Butter: Use creamy peanut butter. I haven’t tried making this easy peanut butter pie with a natural peanut butter. I’m guessing it will turn out just fine. The only issue with natural peanut butters is that the oil can separate. If using a natural PB just make sure you stir it well before adding it in the recipe.
• Frozen Whipped Topping: AKA Cool Whip. You’ll need 8 oz., thawed. The Cool Whip is an important part of this recipe because it helps the pie have a lighter texture. Don’t use homemade whipped cream. Cool Whip has a better structure so it will hold its whipped texture better. Homemade whipped cream falls lax a lot quicker.
• Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups: This isn’t absolutely necessary because we aren’t using any of the Reese’s in the pie directly, but it makes for great decoration on the pie, and it is a yummy topping for the pie!
• 9-Inch Graham Cracker Crust: To make this a true “no-bake” dessert, you can follow the instructions in my graham cracker crust recipe and just chill the crust rather than bake it.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Make a graham cracker pie crust. To make the crust (and dessert) a true no-bake pie, chill the pie crust rather than bake it. 
2. Make the peanut butter filling. In the bowl of an electric mixer (fitted with the whisk attachment) beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the powdered sugar and mix until combined. Add the peanut butter and milk and beat until smooth.

3. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the (thawed) whipped topping. 

3. Place in the pie crust. Spoon the mixture into the graham cracker crust. Using an off set spatula smooth the mixture into an even layer. 

4. Freeze the pie. Cover the pie and place in the freezer until firm, about 4 hours. 
5. Top & serve. When ready to serve, remove the pie from the freezer and top with chopped Reese’s peanut butter cups and fudge sauce if desired.

Recipe Tips

You can also swap out the graham cracker pie crust for my Oreo pie crust for a chocolate peanut butter pie!

Prefer a nuttier texture? Use chopped peanuts as a topping instead of chopped Reese’s peanut butter cups.

Making dessert for a big group? Double the recipe and make it in a 9×13 baking dish lined with parchment paper for easy cutting and serving.

For clean slices, clean your knife in between each cut as some of the peanut butter filling can stick to the knife. If serving frozen, you won’t have that problem.

Be sure to use Cool Whip and not homemade whipping cream. Homemade whipped cream falls lax a lot quicker than Cool Whip, so this will help keep the pie texture light for longer.

Make Ahead, Storing, and Freezing

This is a perfect make ahead pie recipe since it stores so well in the freezer and fridge. Make in advance and freeze (up to 3 months) or make in advance and store in the fridge for 1-2 days prior to serving.

Store any leftovers in the fridge (covered) for 3-4 days or in the freezer (wrapped) for up to 3 months.

To freeze, wrap the pie (without any of the toppings) in plastic wrap and then in aluminum foil (this prevents freezer burn and condensation upon thawing). Store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Remove from the freezer and store in the fridge (still covered) overnight. Remove from the fridge the next morning and remove the wrappings and store in the fridge until ready to serve. Top with toppings prior to serving.

If you want to serve frozen, remove from the freezer and store at room temperature until the pie has thawed enough to cut but is still frozen.

FAQs

Related Recipes

• Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup S’mores Skillet
• No-Bake Cookies
• Small Batch Muddy Buddies
• No-Bake Chocolate Eclair Cake
• Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies

This recipe was originally published on Jan. 24, 2020. It was updated on Dec. 13, 2021, to include additional information and photos.