If you are a fan of the classic salty-sweet candy bar, this Payday Pie is about to become your new favorite dessert. This recipe features a crisp, golden crust filled with a velvety peanut butter and marshmallow center, topped off with a mountain of crunchy peanuts and a rich, homemade caramel drizzle.
It is the ultimate treat for peanut butter lovers, offering a perfect balance of salty crunch and sweet, creamy indulgence in every single slice.
Recipe Details
- Flavor Profile: A bold combination of salty dry-roasted peanuts and rich peanut butter, balanced by the sweetness of marshmallows and a buttery amber caramel.
- Textures: A multi-layered experience featuring a flaky pastry crust, a smooth and gooey filling, and a crunch-filled topping finished with a sticky caramel glaze.
- Time: Approximately 45 minutes of active prep and baking, plus a 4 hour chill time to allow the pie to set.
- Difficulty: Intermediate. While the filling is simple, making the homemade caramel and blind-baking the crust require careful attention to detail.
What You’ll Need
This pie relies on a combination of pantry staples and specialty treats. You will need a standard unbaked pie crust as your base. The creamy filling is constructed from peanut butter chips, sweetened condensed milk, and miniature marshmallows. For the signature topping, you will prepare a quick homemade caramel using granulated sugar, heavy cream, and butter to coat a generous layer of dry-roasted peanuts.
Ingredient Notes
- Unbaked Pie Crust – You can use a high-quality store-bought refrigerated crust or your favorite homemade recipe.
- Peanut Butter Chips – These provide the concentrated peanut flavor for the base filling without making it too oily.
- Sweetened Condensed Milk – This acts as the binder for the filling, creating a fudge-like consistency when combined with the chips.
- Miniature Marshmallows – These add a light, airy sweetness and help the filling achieve that signature gooey candy bar texture.
- Dry Roasted Unsalted Peanuts – Using unsalted peanuts allows you to control the saltiness of the pie through the added kosher salt in the caramel.
- Heavy Cream – Essential for turning melted sugar into a smooth, pourable caramel sauce.
Add-ins and Substitutions
- Chocolate Drizzle – If you want to lean into a snickers vibe, you can add a drizzle of melted chocolate alongside the caramel.
- Salt Preference – While the recipe calls for kosher salt in the caramel, you can use sea salt flakes on top of the peanuts for a more visual salty pop.
- Crust Variety – While a traditional pastry crust is used here, a graham cracker or chocolate cookie crust could also support these flavors, though the baking times would need to be adjusted accordingly.
How to Make Payday Pie
Creating this pie involves three main stages: preparing the crust, melting the creamy peanut butter filling, and finishing with a scratch-made caramel topping.
- Blind Bake the Crust: Preheat your oven to 400°F. Roll out your crust and transfer it to a 9-inch pie plate. Crimp the edges and prick the bottom with a fork. Line the crust with parchment paper and fill with weights. Bake for 15 minutes, remove the weights and paper, then bake for another 15 minutes until the crust is golden brown.
- Prepare the Filling: In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the peanut butter chips, sweetened condensed milk, and 3 tablespoons of salted butter. Stir constantly until melted. Once smooth, stir in the miniature marshmallows until they are fully incorporated.
- Assemble the Base: Pour that creamy peanut butter mixture into your pre-baked crust and spread it evenly. Immediately sprinkle the peanuts over the top so they adhere to the filling.
- Make the Caramel Topping: In a small saucepan, melt the sugar over medium heat, stirring constantly until it turns a deep amber color. Stir in the butter cubes until melted, then add the heavy cream. Let the mixture boil for exactly 1 minute.
- Final Touch: Remove the caramel from the heat and stir in the vanilla and salt. Let it cool for 5 minutes, then drizzle it evenly over the peanuts.
- Set: Refrigerate the pie for at least 4 hours before slicing.
Pro Tip: When melting the sugar for your caramel, do not walk away from the stove. Sugar can transition from a beautiful amber color to burnt and bitter in just a few seconds.
Recipe Tips
- Prick the Crust: Don’t skip pricking the bottom and sides of the crust with a fork (docking). This prevents the crust from puffing up and creating air bubbles during the blind-baking process.
- Marshmallow Melting: Make sure the peanut butter chip mixture is hot enough to fully melt the marshmallows so you don’t end up with lumps in your filling.
- The Amber Stage: For the caramel, wait until the sugar is a true amber color (like a copper penny) before adding the butter. This provides the best depth of flavor.
- Clean Slices: For perfectly clean slices, dip your knife in hot water and wipe it dry between each cut.
FAQs
Why do I need to bake the crust with weights? Blind baking with weights ensures the sides of the crust don’t slump down during the initial bake and keeps the bottom flat so there is plenty of room for your filling.
Can I use salted peanuts? The recipe calls for unsalted peanuts because there is salted butter and kosher salt in the caramel. If you use salted peanuts, the pie may become overly salty; if you must use them, consider reducing the salt in the caramel.
Does the pie have to be refrigerated? Yes, the filling is quite soft when warm. Refrigerating for 4 hours allows the marshmallows and peanut butter chips to firm up so the pie holds its shape when sliced.
Serving Suggestions
- Whipped Cream – A dollop of unsweetened whipped cream helps cut through the richness of the peanut butter and caramel.
- Hot Coffee – The salty-sweet profile of this pie is the perfect companion to a strong cup of black coffee or an espresso.
- Ice Cream – Serve a slice alongside a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream for a truly decadent “a la mode” experience.
Make This Recipe in Advance
You can easily prepare the crust a day in advance and keep it at room temperature. The entire pie is actually a great make-ahead dessert because it requires at least 4 hours in the fridge to set, meaning you can make it the morning of your event or even the night before.
Print
Payday Pie
- Total Time: 4 hours 45 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
If you are a fan of the classic salty-sweet candy bar, this Payday Pie is about to become your new favorite dessert. This recipe features a crisp, golden crust filled with a velvety peanut butter and marshmallow center, topped off with a mountain of crunchy peanuts and a rich, homemade caramel drizzle. It is the ultimate treat for peanut butter lovers, offering a perfect balance of salty crunch and sweet, creamy indulgence in every single slice.
Ingredients
For the Crust
- 1 unbaked pie crust (store-bought or homemade)
For the Filling
- 10 ounces peanut butter chips
- 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
- 3 tablespoons salted butter
- 2 cups miniature marshmallows
For the Caramel Topping
- 1 1/2 cups dry roasted unsalted peanuts
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons salted butter, cubed
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
Step 1: Blind Bake the Crust
Preheat your oven to 400°F. Roll out your crust and transfer it to a 9-inch pie plate. Crimp the edges and prick the bottom with a fork. Line the crust with parchment paper and fill with weights. Bake for 15 minutes, remove the weights and paper, then bake for another 15 minutes until the crust is golden brown.
Step 2: Prepare the Filling
In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the peanut butter chips, sweetened condensed milk, and 3 tablespoons of salted butter. Stir constantly until melted. Once smooth, stir in the miniature marshmallows until they are fully incorporated and the mixture is gooey.
Step 3: Assemble the Base
Pour the creamy peanut butter mixture into your pre-baked crust and spread it evenly. Immediately sprinkle the peanuts over the top so they adhere to the warm filling.
Step 4: Make the Caramel Topping
In a small saucepan, melt the granulated sugar over medium heat, stirring constantly until it turns a deep amber color. Stir in the butter cubes until melted, then add the heavy cream. Let the mixture boil for exactly 1 minute.
Step 5: Final Touch
Remove the caramel from the heat and stir in the vanilla and salt. Let it cool for 5 minutes, then drizzle it evenly over the peanuts.
Step 6: Set
Refrigerate the pie for at least 4 hours before slicing. This is essential for the filling to firm up properly.
Notes
Storage Instructions: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Due to the dairy and marshmallow content, the pie should not be left at room temperature for extended periods.
The Amber Stage: When making the caramel, wait until the sugar is a true amber color similar to a copper penny. This ensures a deep, toasted flavor rather than just sweet melted sugar.
Peanut Variety: If you only have salted peanuts on hand, omit the kosher salt from the caramel topping recipe to prevent the pie from becoming overly salty.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 540
- Sugar: 42g
- Sodium: 380mg
- Fat: 32g
- Saturated Fat: 15g
- Unsaturated Fat: 17g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 56g
- Fiber: 3g
- Protein: 12g
- Cholesterol: 45mg
Keywords: payday pie, peanut butter pie recipe, candy bar dessert, homemade caramel pie, peanut butter marshmallow filling, salty sweet dessert
