Reese's "Jingle Bell Rock"-y Road Pie

Thanksgiving has come and gone and Christmas music is all over the radio! I finally feel ready for the holidays and this month's Pies With That theme- Holiday Songs. I had a ton of fun picking a theme but in all the mayhem I nearly missed making my own pie! It came to me, though, while I was driving one day- those chocolate bells could totally make a "Jingle Bell Rock" pie.

From there, I decided on Reese's chocolate bells and a rendition of my Aunt's wonderful peanut butter pie. For the rocky road portion, I mixed in toasted walnuts, marshmallows, and chopped chocolate (I opened my last bar of Greek chocolate I smuggled in my suitcase!). I also had to fight every urge to drizzle the whole thing with caramel or chocolate. It would have been beautiful but there was already PLENTY going on here without adding any more sugar!

That piece was cut out for the photo and stolen instantly! So much for a solo shot!

I intended to make a regular graham cracker crust but happened to run out of grahams before I got enough, so I threw some pretzels into the food processor to make up the difference. The crust ended up pleasantly salty and complimented the rest of the pie. I did make it in the spring form pan to hold more pie since I had a big crew eating it. Thankfully, this is one rich pie- so one 9 inch spring form covered about 16 people (plus toddlers- we don't usually count them for food but with desserts, they are starting to eat their share!). The end result reminded me a bit of Dorie's Peanut Butter Torte, but I liked it a bit more without the chocolate crust. But honestly... with peanut butter, chocolate, and more, "how bad can that be?!" Don't forget to enter the giveaway here if you haven't yet!

Previous Pie's With That entries:
Nie's Vintage Cherry Apple Pie and Galette
Emma Hearts Knightley Pie

Reese's "Jingle Bell Rock"-y Road Pie
from Anne Strawberry

Pretzel Graham Cracker Crust:
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 cup pretzel crumbs
3/4 stick melted butter
3 Tablespoons sugar

Preheat the oven to 375.

Combine all ingredients with a fork and press into butter, 9 inch spring form pan. Bake for 10 minutes and set aside to cool.

Peanut Butter Rocky Road Filling:
2 packages of Neufchatel cheese (or cream cheese), softened
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar (sifted if necessary)
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 ounces chopped chocolate (not too fine)
1/2 cup toasted walnuts, chopped
1/2 cup mini marshmallows
1 bag Reese's peanut butter cup Christmas bells

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or a hand mixer), combine cream cheese, powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Gently fold in chocolate, walnuts, and marshmallows. Dump into cooled pie crust and smooth.

Using a thin serrated nice, slice the Reese's bells in half and position in a pattern on top of the pie.

Refrigerate until firm (at least 4 hours) and serve. Top with chocolate sauce or caramel (if you can handle it!)