Excellent Peanut Butter Pie

For peanut butter pies, it doesn't get much better than this—a chocolate crumb crust with a fluffy peanut butter and cream cheese filling. Excellent, indeed!

Recipe Ingredients:

Crust:
1 1/4 cups chocolate cookie crumbs (20 cookies)
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted

Filling:
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup heavy cream, whipped
Grated chocolate for garnish (optional)

Cooking Directions:

1. Combine crust ingredients; press into a 9-inch pie plate. Bake in a preheated oven at 375°F (190°C) for 10 minutes. Cool.
2. In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, peanut butter, sugar, butter and vanilla until smooth. Fold in whipped cream. Spoon into crust. Garnish with grated chocolate, if desired. Refrigerate for 2 hours before serving.

Makes 8 servings.