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–+ servings
Wedge of chilled pie on a wooden board with candy pieces and a linen cloth behind

Peanut Butter Cream Pie with Honeycomb Candy

A graham cracker crust filled with a cornstarch pastry cream beaten smooth with a full cup of peanut butter, chilled until sliceable, then finished with homemade honeycomb, melted chocolate and salted peanuts.
Prep Time 45 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 4 hours 5 minutes
Servings 10 slices
Author Nayla

Ingredients
 

Graham Cracker Crust

  • 9 sheets graham crackers about 5 ounces
  • 1/4 cup light brown sugar packed
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg freshly grated
  • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter melted

Peanut Butter Pastry Cream

  • 2 cups whole milk
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 3 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 4 large egg yolks
  • 1 cup creamy peanut butter conventional and stabilized, not natural
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter cut into pieces
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Honeycomb Candy

  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
  • 3 tablespoons water
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda sifted

Chocolate Drizzle and Peanuts

  • 2 ounces semisweet chocolate 55 to 60 percent, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon neutral oil
  • 1/3 cup roasted salted peanuts roughly chopped

Instructions
 

Make the Honeycomb First

  1. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment and set it somewhere you can reach in a hurry. Sift the baking soda into a small dish so there are no lumps waiting to catch you out.
  2. Stir the sugar, honey, corn syrup and water together in a deep, heavy saucepan over medium-low heat until the sugar has completely dissolved and the syrup is clear.
  3. Raise the heat and boil without stirring, swirling the pan occasionally, until a candy thermometer clipped to the side reads 300F. This takes about 8 minutes and the color is not a reliable guide, because honey darkens long before the syrup is hot enough.
  4. Whisk in the sifted baking soda for no more than 3 seconds, then pour the foaming mass onto the parchment without spreading it. Leave it undisturbed for 20 minutes, crack it with a knife handle, and store it airtight straight away.

Bake the Crust

  1. Heat the oven to 350F. Grind the graham crackers with the brown sugar, kosher salt and nutmeg in a food processor or blender until they are fine, even crumbs.
  2. Tip the crumbs into a bowl, pour in the melted butter and stir until the mixture holds together when you squeeze it.
  3. Press the crumbs firmly across the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch pie pan, using the flat base of a measuring cup to compact them, then bake for 10 minutes and cool completely.

Cook the Peanut Butter Pastry Cream

  1. Whisk the milk, granulated sugar, cornstarch, kosher salt and egg yolks together in a cold saucepan until there is not a streak of yolk left. Starting everything together and cold means there is nothing to temper and nothing to scramble.
  2. Set the pan over medium heat and stir constantly with a flat whisk or a silicone spatula, working into the corners, until it thickens and large bubbles break the surface, 6 to 8 minutes.
  3. Boil hard for a full 60 seconds, still whisking. It will look far thicker than it should; that is correct, and the minute of boiling is what stops the filling thinning overnight.
  4. Take the pan off the heat and beat in the peanut butter, the butter and the vanilla until the cream is completely smooth. Pass it through a fine sieve if you want to be certain of the texture.

Fill, Chill and Finish

  1. Scrape the filling into the cooled crust and smooth the top, then press a sheet of plastic wrap directly onto the surface so no skin can form.
  2. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours, or overnight, until the filling is firm enough to hold a clean cut edge.
  3. Melt the chocolate with the neutral oil in a bowl set over barely simmering water, or in short bursts in the microwave, and stir until glossy.
  4. Pile the broken honeycomb into the center of the chilled pie, drizzle the warm chocolate over the top, scatter the chopped salted peanuts, and serve within 2 hours while the candy is still crisp.

Notes

Cook the honeycomb syrup to a measured 300F. Pale amber arrives around 280F and gives you candy that stays chewy and sticks to your teeth. Color is a poor guide because honey darkens early.
Boil the pastry cream hard for a full 60 seconds. Cornstarch only thickens fully at a rolling boil, and that minute also destroys the enzyme in the yolks that would otherwise thin the filling overnight.
Use conventional stabilized peanut butter, not natural. Loose oil separates out as the pie chills and leaves a slick under the topping.
Make-ahead: honeycomb 1 week airtight, baked crust 2 days at room temperature, filled pie 2 days refrigerated with plastic wrap pressed onto the surface. Add the topping within 2 hours of serving or the shards soften into the filling.
Storage: 3 days undressed, 24 hours once finished. The filling freezes badly; freeze only the baked crust.
Nutrition values are an estimate.

Nutrition

Serving: 1slice | Calories: 546kcal | Carbohydrates: 58g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 31g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 75mg | Sodium: 322mg | Potassium: 265mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 42g | Vitamin A: 540IU | Calcium: 105mg | Iron: 1mg
Nayla