Chocolate Peanut Butter Layer Dessert
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This chocolate peanut butter layer dessert is packed full of flavor! There’s a sweet and salty pretzel crust, a creamy peanut butter cheesecake filling, silky chocolate pudding, ribbons of hot fudge, and whipped cream. Add a drizzle of peanut butter on top with some chocolate curls! Peanut butter desserts don’t get tastier than this one!
Peanut Butter Desserts
So I feel like people love layered desserts and I want to make what people like. That’s why for this month’s peanut butter dessert treat, I made a chocolate peanut butter layer dessert with loads of layers.
This is the kind of dessert that disappears fast at potlucks, holidays, and summer parties because the layers work so well together. The crunchy pretzel crust adds texture, the peanut butter layer is light and fluffy, and the chocolate pudding keeps everything rich and creamy.
The best part? It can be made ahead of time which somehow makes it taste even better after chilling for a few hours.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- The salty pretzel crust balances the sweet layers perfectly.
- The peanut butter cheesecake filling is light and fluffy instead of dense.
- It’s an easy make-ahead dessert for parties and holidays.
- No complicated decorating required.
- Uses instant pudding for a quick shortcut that still tastes amazing
- The layers hold beautifully once chilled
Ingredients
See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for all ingredients and quantities.
Pretzels – You can use pretzel sticks or mini pretzel twists for this recipe. The finer you crush up the pretzels, the butter the crust holds together.
Butter – Use salted or unsalted butter for this recipe. Since there is already a lot of salt on the pretzels, you may want to skip the salted butter.
Cream Cheese – Make sure your cream cheese is at room temperature so it blends into a smooth no bake cheesecake filling. I like to use full-fat cream cheese for all of my recipes.
Peanut Butter – I don’t recommend using natural peanut butter for this peanut butter dessert. I do however want you to use your favorite peanut butter. Mine is Jif.
Hot Fudge Topping – You can use store-bought or homemade hot fudge topping. I like the Smucker’s brand.
Instant Chocolate Pudding – Grab a family size instant chocolate pudding. Don’t follow the amount of milk that’s on the box, instead follow the 2 cups that I used.
Substitutions and Variations
- Substitute the crushed pretzels for crushed Oreo cookies, vanilla wafers, shortbread cookies, etc. You can omit the sugar and reduce the butter if you’re using cookies.
- You can substitute the heavy whipping cream in the peanut butter cheesecake for whipped topping.
- You can substitute the hot fudge for homemade chocolate ganache.
- You can substitute the whipped topping for the top with heavy whipping cream and powdered sugar whipped into homemade whipped cream.
NOTE: This recipe has not been tested with other substitutions or variations
How to Make Chocolate Peanut Butter Layer Dessert
Step 1: First layer up is the pretzel crust with finely crushed pretzels, butter, and sugar. Mix them right in the 9×13 pan and firmly press the pan. Bake for 10 minutes and then let cool.
Step 2: Second layer is a peanut butter cheesecake mousse. Beat together the cream cheese, peanut butter, and room temperature butter until smooth.
Step 3: Beat in the sugar and vanilla extract until combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and begin folding in the thawed whipped topping until fully combined. Spread the mixture evenly on top of the cooled pretzel crust.
Step 4: Third layer is chocolate pudding. Beat together the instant pudding mix and milk until incorporated and then let thicken for 5 minutes before spreading it on top of the peanut butter cheesecake filling. Add the hot fudge topping on top of the pudding.
Step 5: Spread the whipped topping on top of the chocolate fudge topping. You may want to wait until you’re close to serving because the chocolate can sometimes bleed into the white whipped topping.
Step 6: Decorate the top of the layer dessert with a drizzle of peanut butter and chocolate curls.
Tips for Best Results
- Don’t skip baking the prezel crust. Bake the crust for 10 minutes helps it stay crisp longer and prevents it from turning soft underneath the filling.
- Seal the edges with the cheesecake layer. This helps keep the pudding layer from seeping down into the crust.
- Let the pudding thicken first. If the pudding is too thin when spread on top, it can mix into the peanut butter layer instead of sitting in clean layers.
- Chill before slicing. This dessert cuts much cleaner after several hours in the refrigerator. Overnight is even better.
How to Store and Freeze
Make this dessert the day before you plan on serving it! Store it in the refrigerator covered with plastic wrap or in an airtight container for up to 4 to 5 days.
You can freeze this layer dessert, though the chocolate pudding may soften more after thawing. Place the dessert in a freezer-safe container or wrapped tightly in two layers of plastic wrap and a layer of aluminum foil. Freeze for up to 2 months.
Thaw overnight in the fridge before serving it.
I was inspired to make the pretzel crust because of pretzel salad. I LOVE strawberry pretzel salad. It’s sweet, salty, creamy, fruity, jiggly and basically perfection.
This post was published March 2, 2017 but has been updated with new information and photos.
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Chocolate Peanut Butter Layer Dessert
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Ingredients
Pretzel Crust
- 2 1/2 cups pretzels, crushed
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup butter, melted
Peanut Butter Cheesecake Filling
- 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1 tablespoon butter, room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream, whipped to stiff peaks
Chocolate Pudding
- 5.85 ounce box instant chocolate pudding, family size
- 2 cups whole milk
- 11.75 ounce jar hot fudge topping
- 8 ounces whipped topping, thawed
- 1 1/2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
Instructions
Crust
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a 9×13 pan, add in the crushed 2 1/2 cups pretzels, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, and melted 3/4 cup butter. Stir to coat all the pretzels in the melted butter.
- Firmly press the crushed pretzels into the pan.
- 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
- In a medium bowl, add in the 8 ounces cream cheese, 1 cup creamy peanut butter, and 1 tablespoon butter Beat on medium/high until light and fluffy.
- Add in the 1 cup granulated sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Beat until incorporated.
- 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.
- Add in the remaining whipped cream and carefully fold it in.
- 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
- In a mixing bowl, add in the 5.85 ounce box instant chocolate pudding mix and 2 cups whole milk. Using a handmixer, beat on medium until incorporated. Let thicken about 5 minutes before spreading on top of the cheesecake layer.
- Spread the pudding evenly over top of the peanut butter cream cheese layer. Be sure to get to the edges.
- Remove the lid from the 11.75 ounce jar hot fudge topping and microwave for 45 seconds. Stir well.
- Scoop all of the fudge topping into a sandwich bag. Cut a small hole out of the corner of the sandwich bag.
- 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.
- Spread the thawed 8 ounces whipped topping all over the top of the dessert. Again, make sure to take the topping all the way over to the edges.
- Add the 1 1/2 tablespoons creamy 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.
- 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.
Notes
Nutrition
(Nutrition facts are an estimate and not guaranteed to be accurate. Please see a registered dietitian for special diet advice.)
This is a “Jimmy Carter Pie”. Our family has been making these for 30 years. Try being original.
Yes! I have heard of this name before. It is always great to recreate the classics.
This recipe was really easy to follow & make over all. But did not know what to do at the end / what you should do before you serve it. I know it’s a no bake dessert. So I assumed that you just leave it in the fridge till it sets up or until you are ready to serve it. I just thought that should be an extra step added to the recipe for others who may not know what to do with the last step.
Thank you for this tip! I appreciate your help and will adjust the directions 🙂 Glad you liked the dessert!
This is what I call a step zero recipe. There’s lots of prep work (#0!), not included in the instructions, but noted in the ingredients list. I find them to be very deceitful and lengthen my prep time significantly. I was able to taste test this as I made it, licking all the spoons that is, and I think it’s going to turn out great! I wish I had trusted my instinct in several places. The chocolate pudding portion was too stiff after waiting five minutes. I think I would have been better off putting it on almost immediately. After applying the hot fudge, there is no note to let this cool before adding whipped topping. Again, I thought of this, but for a recipe that instructs you to spread everything to the edges, I assumed she was being thorough and I didn’t want to tamper with the outcome. In hindsight, I wish I had waited. I also found the peanut butter filling to be a little gritty with the sugar. I will be making this again, but with some adaptations for sure.
I thought I would comment on this since I actually made it. This is something I wouldn’t make often – way too rich! But it tasted fabulous. The only thing I need advice on: I crushed the pretzels in a food chopper real fine, and because I needed so much, the butter didn’t cover them all the way and the crust came out just a bunch of crumbles that stayed in the pan when I sliced the pieces. Kind of embarrassing in front of my guests. What kind of pretzels should I have used (I used little sticks) and what is the best way to crush them? Thanks for the recipe.
I’m glad you liked the flavor of this dessert! I love it too but agree it is rich haha. I also use the stick pretzels. I put them in a small ziplock bag and use a rolling pin to smash them. I don’t break them enough to be powdery but just enough to be smaller pieces. You may have just crushed them a little too much. YOu can also try putting a piece of parchment paper in the bottom of the pan before layering in the ingredients. Parchment will help the dessert lift out of the pan easily. I hope this helps for next time!
Should the dessert be refrigerated before eating?
You can eat this dessert right away but I do like to refrigerate it for a few hours to let it set up and get a little more solid.
Do you measure the pretzels before or after crushing to get 2 1/2 cups?
Hi Tammy! After I crush them.
Do you mix the whipping cream until peaks appear or just add it as it is?
I first whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form and then fold it in with the peanut butter cream cheese mixture just until incorporated. Once it’s incorporated, the pb cream cheese mixture should have a mousse consistency.
is this dessert 723,000 calories for the whole thing? what are kcals?
Hi Catherine- It is definitely not a low-calorie dessert! I haven’t calculated the actual calorie count but if I do, I will be sure to post here. Save it for a special occasion dessert and enjoy every, calorie filled bite!
Is this intended for freezer? I made this for husband for a Father’s Day treat. He was pleased but I’m not too happy with the liquidy part of chocolate missing/hot fudge. It is strange. I thought the hot fudge would be gooey. Now I’m wondering if it was supposed to be frozen
You can put it in the freezer, but I never have.
I put it in the freezer to set it up and then returned to the freezer. We loved the consistency of the dessert. So yummy and rich. A once in awhile treat for sure.
So wonderful to hear!
This is stupid, but do you make the pudding according to the box or just beat and mix and let thicken..then add on top of the cheescake?
Don’t make it according to the box. Beat together a family size box of instant pudding mix and 2 cups of milk. Let thicken and then add that as a layer on top of the peanut butter cheesecake.
I mixed the pudding mix with 2 cups milk and it didn’t thicken at all. Suggestions?
Did you use the family size box of instant pudding? Did you use fat-free milk? The things that come to mind are that you accidentally used the pudding that needs cooked or maybe the wrong size box of pudding. If you use fat free milk, the pudding typically sets up but is quite soft. Otherwise, it should have set up when it was mixed.