Peanut Butter Cottage Cheese Pie

May 22, 2025

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This no-bake Peanut Butter Cottage Cheese Pie is the ultimate summer treat! A creamy peanut butter and cottage cheese filling is layered over a pretzel crust to give you the most decadent salty, sweet, and creamy bites.

a slice of peanut butter cottage cheese pie on a plate with a bite cut off with a fork

This Frozen Peanut Butter Pie Recipe has got you covered for the summer. It’s cool, creamy, and brings salty and sweet together in the best way. More importantly, it’s an easy no-bake dessert that’ll always save you from melting in the heat.

Here’s the kicker: the peanut butter filling is made with cottage cheese instead of cream cheese. Hear me out… Just like in my cottage cheese pancakes and cottage cheese lasagna recipes, the cottage cheese gives the pie an incredible tangy flavor, a nice creamy richness, and a bonus: extra protein! You won’t even notice it’s there, trust me.

I know this pie looks seriously impressive, but I promise it’s a breeze to make. Just press the buttery pretzel crust into a pie pan, whip up the salty-sweet peanut butter filling, and spread it over the crust. The hardest part of all? Waiting to treat yourself to a slice while the pie chills in the freezer!

Recipe features

A no-bake pie that layers a cool, smooth, and creamy peanut butter and cottage cheese filling in a homemade pretzel crust.
Mouthwatering salty-sweet flavors in every bite!
Just like my no bake cottage cheese cheesecake, it’s a sweet treat with a little extra protein.
After chilling in the freezer for 4 hours, this cool and refreshing dessert is ready for your summer celebrations.

Ingredients

Pretzels – Use either salted or unsalted pretzels for the no-bake pie crust. I like using salted pretzels because they give the pie the perfect balance of salty and sweet flavors.

Sugar – You need cane sugar or white sugar to sweeten the pie crust and the peanut butter filling.

Butter – Use unsalted butter if your pretzels are salted or salted butter if the pretzels are unsalted. Melted coconut oil should also work.

Heavy cream – A 1:1 mix of heavy cream and cottage cheese keeps the pie filling silky smooth and sturdy.

Cottage cheese – A lot of frozen peanut butter pie recipes are made with cream cheese in the filling, but I opted for small curd cottage cheese instead. Just like in my healthy-ish cottage cheese cheesecake, it gives the filling a tangy flavor and some sneaky protein!

Peanut butter – The star of the filling! Use natural peanut butter with only peanuts (and maybe salt) listed in the ingredients. If you use peanut butter with added sugar, you’ll need to reduce the cane or white sugar in the filling.

Instructions

Step 1: Make the crust. Pulse the pretzels and sugar in a food processor. With the motor running, stream in the melted butter until the mixture is sandy and stays together when you pinch it between your fingers.

2 images: the left image shows pretzels added to a food processor and the right image shows pretzels blended together in a food processor

Step 2: Press the crust. Dump the pretzel crust into a greased pie pan and press it down evenly with your hands. Transfer it to the freezer.

Step 3: Whip the filling. Whip the heavy cream and sugar together in a large bowl until stiff peaks form. Add the cottage cheese and peanut butter and whisk until combined.

2 images: the left image shows heavy cream and sugar whipped together and the right image shows cottage cheese folded into the mixture

Step 4: Assemble. Transfer the filling to the pie pan with the pretzel crust and smooth it out with a spatula. Sprinkle the chocolate chips on top.

Step 5: Freeze, then serve. Freeze the cottage cheese pie before slicing and serving.

overview of peanut butter cottage cheese pie with pieces sliced

Tips and FAQs

You can make this pie in a 9-inch pie pan or cake pan.
Open a fresh jar of peanut butter for this no-bake peanut butter pie. It’s smoother, creamier, and easier to combine with the rest of the ingredients.
The pie should set after about 2 hours in the freezer, but for the very best texture and presentation, let it chill for at least 4 hours.

Tip

If you don’t have a food processor, crush the pretzels by hand (add them to a ziplock bag and whack them with a rolling pin) before combining them with the sugar and melted butter in a bowl.

Variations

From mouthwatering toppings to allergen-friendly substitutions, there are all kinds of ways to play with this no-bake dessert:

Pretzel crust substitute: Instead of a pretzel crust, make the pie with a store-bought or homemade graham cracker crust.
Chocolate peanut butter pie: Turn this into a chocolate peanut butter pie by swapping the crust for an Oreo cookie crust and the chocolate chips for crushed Oreo cookies. Before serving, add a drizzle of melted chocolate, ganache, or homemade Nutella on top.
Gluten-free option: Make the crust with gluten-free pretzels if you need it to be gluten-free. You can find these in most grocery stores these days, or check online or at your local health food store.
Topping ideas: Decorate your pie with chocolate chips, coconut flakes, pretzel pieces, peanuts, chopped peanut butter cups, cookie crumbles, whipped cream, or a drizzle of chocolate sauce.

Serving suggestions

Because this frozen peanut butter and cottage cheese pie is so sweet and refreshing, I highly recommend serving it in the summertime! From Memorial Day to the Fourth of July to birthday parties, all of your party guests will love the combination of salty and sweet flavors.

If you’re going all out, make sure to pair every slice with more summer treats, like my fluffy one-layer blueberry cake and these super fun indoor pumpkin s’mores.

Do I need to bake the pretzel crust?

You do not need to bake the pretzel crust since it will harden in the freezer. However, baking the crust in a 350ºF oven for 10 minutes will caramelize the sugars and make the crust even sturdier. Let the crust cool completely before adding the filling.

Can I make peanut butter pie ahead of time?

This pie is pretty much a perfect make-ahead dessert. It can stay in the freezer for as little as 4 hours or up to 4 months. To prevent freezer burn, wrap the pie in the pie plate with plastic wrap and then in a light layer of aluminum foil.

The crust can also be frozen on its own if you’d like. Once it’s frozen solid, cover the crust with a layer of plastic wrap and foil, then freeze for up to 4 months.

Storage

Freezer: Store the pie in the freezer for up to 1 week uncovered; then, if you want to store it for longer, wrap it in plastic wrap for up to 4 months.

a slice of peanut butter cottage cheese pie on a plate with a fork

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If you made this recipe, be sure to leave a comment and star rating below. Thanks!