Better Together: Peanut Butter Cup Pocket Pies

True or False: 

1. Everything's cuter in miniature form.
2. Pie is so hot right now.
3. Peanut butter cups are delicious.

Well, I think we all know the answer to all three, and it's certainly not "false". But when these three truths come together in one adorable pocket pie form, they go beyond TRUE to TRUE LOVE.

That's right: Peanut Butter Cup Pocket Pies!

These sweet morsels are the perfect two-bite treat, and tasty as can be with the can't-lose combo of peanut butter and chocolate, all blanketed between two discs of rich, buttery pie crust. 

They'd be cute as pops too, but I think I actually prefer the stick-less version, because they're easier to "pop" in your mouth. 

Here's how you make them.

Peanut Butter Cup Pocket Pies

Makes 12 2-inch pocket pies

• 1 9-inch pie crust, unbaked
• 12 teaspoons (approx.) creamy peanut butter
• about 36-40 chocolate chips (milk, semisweet or dark chocolate, your choice)
• 1 egg, beaten (for egg wash)

You also need: a 2-inch (or so) round cookie cutter, small pastry brush

1. Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with parchment; set to the side. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Roll out your pie crust on a flat, floured surface.
3. Using a 2-inch (or so) round cookie cutter, cut out as many rounds as you can. It's fine to use other shaped cookie cutters too, but keep it fairly simple (hearts, squares, flower shapes, etc) so that you'll be able to easily seal the pies later. Clump the remaining dough, re-roll, and try to get some more cutouts. If they're kind of ugly, it's ok--use these for the bottom layer of your pocket pies.
4. Lay out half of the pies on your prepared baking sheet. Place a teaspoon of peanut butter in the center of each, leaving room on the perimeter so you can seal the second half of pie crust on top. Add 3-4 chocolate chips to each, pressing into the peanut butter. 
5. Using a small pastry brush, brush a small amount of egg wash along the perimeter of each of the peanut butter-filled pie bottoms.
6. Place the top cutouts on top of each of the peanut buttered and egg washed bottom pieces. Press gently down, and use the tines of a fork to "seal" the pies. I did not vent these on the top. If you want, egg wash the top of the pies too (I didn't, because I forgot. I will be honest.)
7. Place in the preheated oven; bake for 8-12 minutes, or until golden. 

Mixing it Up: Inside Out Peanut Butter Cups for Serious Eats

Chocolate peanut butter cups are undoubtedly one of the finer things in life.

But I have my reservations about the construction: the chocolate gets your hands messy and there never seems to be enough peanut butter.

So what would happen if you turned a peanut butter cup inside-out? To find out, I started by using a peanut butter bar cookie crust recipe for the outer shell, then filled them with a peanut butter fudge mixture, thus increasing the peanut butter-to-chocolate ratio dramatically.

While the crumbly nature of the crust doesn't make them much neater to eat, taste-wise, it's a whole new ballgame. It's like the fudgy center is getting a big peanut butter bear hug from the cookie coating. And it's delicious.

For the full entry and recipe, visit Serious Eats!