Chocolate Peanut Butter Layer Dessert

This chocolate peanut butter layer dessert is packed full of flavor! There’s a sweet and salty pretzel crust, a peanut butter cheesecake layer, chocolate pudding, hot fudge, and whipped cream. Add a drizzle of peanut butter on top with some chocolate curls!

So I feel like people love layer desserts and I want to make what people like. That’s why for this month’s peanut butter bash I did a chocolate peanut butter layer dessert with loads of layers.

The theme is month was peanut butter and pretzels. Of course I can’t help but add chocolate into most peanut butter desserts. It’s a habit that I have that I’m not anxious to change. They belong together.

This recipe doesn’t take long to throw together. I’ll admit it does dirty a couple of dishes, but really it’s not bad at all. I would say two bowls if you reuse the bowls for the next steps. I’m known to do that because I hate washing dishes. Even with a dishwasher. Hate it.

So I wanted to tell you about all of these layers in this dessert. First layer up is the pretzel crust with butter and sugar. Second layer is a peanut butter cheesecake mousse. Third is a chocolate pudding. Fourth is a jar of hot fudge drizzled all over that pudding. Fifth layer is whipped topping. Then you can add some garnishes.. or not. I’m cool with either.

I was inspired to make the pretzel crust because of the pretzel salad. I LOVE pretzel salad. It’s sweet, salty, creamy, jiggly and basically perfection.

Have you noticed that either people really love the pretzel salad or really hate it? It makes me giggle. I personally could eat it every day but my dad about tosses his groceries just looking at it.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Layer Dessert

 Course Dessert

 Prep Time 45 minutes

 Cook Time 10 minutes

 Total Time 55 minutes

 Servings 12 people

 Author Miranda

Ingredients

Pretzel Crust

• 2 + 1/2 cups pretzels, crushed
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup (1 + 1/2 sticks) butter, melted

Peanut Butter Cheesecake Filling

• 1 8 oz. brick cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 cup smooth peanut butter
• 1 T. butter, room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 cup heavy cream, whipped to stiff peaks

Chocolate Pudding

• 1 5.85 oz. box chocolate pudding, family size
• 2 cups milk
• 1 11.75 oz. jar hot fudge topping
• 8 oz. whipped topping, thawed
• 1 + 1/2 T. smooth peanut butter

Instructions

Crust

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
2. In a 9x13 pan, add in the crushed pretzels, granulated sugars, and melted butter. Stir to coat all the pretzels in the melted butter. 
3. Firmly press the crushed pretzels into the pan. 
4. Place into the oven and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool. Begin working on the cheesecake filling. 

Peanut Butter Cheesecake Filling

1. In a medium bowl, add in the cream cheese, peanut butter and butter. Beat on medium/high until light and fluffy.
2. Add in the sugar and vanilla and beat until incorporated.
3. Add in a quarter of the whipped cream and fold it into the cream cheese mixture. This will lighten up the mixture before adding the remaining whipped cream and deflating it all.
4. Add in the remaining whipped cream and carefully fold it in.
5. Spread the filling into the cooled crust. Be sure to get to all of the edges of the crust. Seal off any holes on the edges to prevent the pudding from seeping through and making our pretzel crust soggy.

Chocolate Pudding

1. In a mixing bowl, add in the chocolate pudding mix and 2 cups of milk. Using a handmixer, beat on medium until incorporated. Let thicken about 5 minutes before spreading on top of the cheesecake layer. 
2. Spread the pudding evenly over top of the peanut butter cream cheese layer. Be sure to get to the edges.
3. Remove the lid from the hot fudge topping and microwave for 45 seconds. 
4. Scoop all of the fudge topping into a sandwich bag. Cut a small hole out of the corner of the sandwich bag.
5. Drizzle the hot fudge topping all over the top of the pudding. I started from the corner and drizzled back and forth until everything was covered.
6. Spread the whipped topping all over the top of the dessert. Again, make sure to take the topping all the way over to the edges. 
7. Add the 1 1/2 tablespoons of peanut butter into a sandwich bag. Place into the microwave for about 20 seconds. Squish it around in your hand to make sure it's all runny.
8. Cut a small hole in the corner of the sandwich bag. Drizzle peanut butter on top of the dessert. I drizzled one direction all the way across the dessert and then drizzled in the opposite direction all the way across. 

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