Peanut Pie

I'm sure you're wondering why in the world I'd take a picture when there's barely any pie left. I did it because it was the only choice I had! Either that or bake another pie! That's how fast this pie went. The description that it's a cross between a chewy cookie, peanut brittle, and pie is completely accurate. And completely delicious. When you have a hankering for pecan pie, I'd recommend you try this Peanut Pie at least once.

Peanut Pie
by Sandra Simmons
adapted from Chris Epperson of Virginia Diner

1 pre-baked pie crust (I used Alexis' dough recipe here.)
8 ounces salted Virginia peanuts (I ordered mine from the Virginia Diner. They are also available in various sizes and packaging options on Amazon.)
3 large eggs, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/3 cups light corn syrup
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

Make your crust. You can use any recipe you like, including a pre-made one from the grocery store freezer already shaped in the pan and ready to bake. Willie likes this Perfect Pie Crust and I do too but I wanted to try Thomas Keller's and since Alexis had just used his in her Red and Black Plum Galette and raved about it, I decided to try it out. I'm glad I did. It rolled out like a dream! I liked it so much that I even went a little crazy and tried a decorative edge! That is so not me! But I recently pinned some some fairly simple looking ones on my Pinterest, so I thought, why not? It looked so pretty uncooked! But I'll admit to you right now that after blind baking, the decorative edge had all but disappeared. I'll have to work on that and get back to you! 

For the pie:
Preheat oven to 350º. Put the peanuts in a Ziploc and crush them by smacking them a few times with a meat mallet. You can use a rolling pin, but the meat mallet was actually kind of fun! In a medium bowl, lightly beat the eggs and then whisk in the sugar and flour until well combined. Add the corn syrup, peanuts, and melted butter. Stir well with a spoon. You can use the whisk but the peanuts will get caught up in it so I'd recommend a spoon. Pour the filling into the baked crust.

The Virginia Diner says to bake for 45-50 minutes, or until the pie is a rich golden brown, set around the edges, but still a little loose in the center. I baked it about 10 minutes longer because it took my pie a bit longer to set to what I considered "a little loose in the center." So my recommendation to you is to start checking your pie and jiggling it at 45 minutes and then continue to cook in 5 minute increments til it's done. 

Cool to room temperature and then refrigerate. The original pie recipe doesn't call for refrigeration. This is a personal preference that we do with pecan pie so I just went ahead and did the same with the Peanut Pie. Glad I did. You can try yours at room temperature and then try it refrigerated and see what you think. If you do, please come back and tell me what you think!