It’s no secret that I love Reese’s.  If “Reese’s” was a real man, he would need a restraining order against me.

What is a lesser-known thing about me, is that I hate Reese’s pieces.  To me, they are the bastard child of the Reese’s corporation.  It’s weird, I know, because I love peanut butter so much (along with just about every other item that Reese’s makes), but these pieces… they just don’t do it for me.  I think it’s because they lack the flavor contrast provided by the chocolate, nor do they have the saltiness that gives peanut butter such a special place in my heart.

They’re just… bland.  Or something.

I don’t know what it is but I just don’t like them.  (Give me a bag of peanut butter M&Ms, however, and I will eat it until I’m sick to my stomach)

But the BF, he loves Reese’s pieces.  With a passion.  They are pretty much his most favorite thing ever.  Clearly if the person I love could love something so much, it can’t be all bad, right?

So, I tried to make something that would satisfy both his love of Reese’s pieces, and my love of everything else that is peanut butter in the world.

Turns out that he’s onto something, because this pie is pretty awesome.

This pie makes up for everything those poor pieces lack on their own, like chocolate.  The pieces even help the pie out a bit, too, by offering a nice crunch to complement the otherwise creamy texture.  In fact, I think that without the pieces, the pie might even be a little too creamy… if that’s really a thing?

I mean, you don’t want your mouth to get bored when you’re eating dessert.  “Too creamy” will do that.  Bore your mouth.

A little salty, a little sweet, a little creamy and a little crunch.  Yeah, this pie has pretty much the best of everything… no boredom here.

And, if you’re not too fancy for a store-bought Oreo crust, you don’t even need to turn on the oven!  Which is going to be a popular thing around here this month, since we are battling an excruciating heat wave.

It was 119 over the weekend.

So yeah… I’m not trying to turn the oven on anytime soon.

In fact, it’s been so hot that I’ve been thinking about testing that whole “baking cookies in your car” thing to see if it really works.  I mean, if it works, what better place to test it?  Put the cookies in my car on my lunch break, let them bake in the sun, get into a car that smells like fresh-baked cookies after work… I don’t see any way that this could possibly go wrong.

I’ve made this dessert in another way, once upon a time ago.  I’m pretty sure all the pictures were taken with my old-school cell phone a million years ago.  But this, this is a faster, easier version.  If you want to make it the hard way, feel free to make every ounce of it from scratch following the directions here.

But since it’s summer, and it’s hot, and this is all about takin’ it easy, I recommend you follow this one below:

Reese’s Pieces No-Bake Peanut Butter Pie

Printable Recipe

Makes 1 9-inch pie

• 1 9-inch Oreo pie crust (homemade or store bought)

• 1 cup chopped Reese’s Pieces, I chopped mine, but I’m sure that’s not really necessary

• ½ cup mini chocolate chips

• ¼ teaspoon salt

• 2 cups whipped topping (like Cool Whip), thawed (freshly-whipped cream works, but ya know, we’re being lazy)

• ½ cup powdered sugar

• 6 ounces cream cheese, room temp

• 1 cup peanut butter (I always use Jif Creamy)

• 2 Tbsp whole milk (I used 2% and the world did not collapse)

• ½ cup heavy cream

• 4 oz bittersweet (I used leftover semisweet mini chips) chocolate, chopped

1.  Toss chopped Reese’s Pieces, mini chocolate chips, and salt in a small bowl; set aside.

2.  In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat cream cheese with powdered sugar. Start slow, once incorporated mix at medium speed until cream cheese is smooth. Beat in peanut butter, milk, and ¼ cup of the “crunch”.

3. Stir in ¼ of the whipped cream to lighten the mixture.  Once incorporated, stir in the rest of the “crunch” mixture (I left some aside to sprinkle on top). Then gently fold in the remaining whipped cream, being sure to scrape the bottom.

4. Pour peanut butter mixture into the crust and smooth the top. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours. Cover with plastic wrap once the mousse firms.

5. To finish, heat heavy cream in the microwave until almost boiling (about 2 – 3 minutes).  Add the chopped chocolate (I used leftover mini chocolate chips) and stir vigorously with a fork until it’s smooth and shiny. Pour the “ganache” over the pie, and smooth (or tilt the pie) to cover the top. Sprinkle with reserved crunch (if you saved some) and place the pie back in the refrigerator to set for at least 20 minutes.