Peanut Butter Cheesecake Over Peanut Butter Cups Sitting on a Graham Cracker Crust and then Topped with Peanut Butter Ganache and a Chocolate Drizzle

Peanut Butter Cheesecake Over Peanut Butter Cups Sitting on a Graham Cracker Crust and then Topped with Peanut Butter Ganache and a Chocolate Drizzle. It sounds like a mouthful. And it is. An absolutely delightful mouthful of peanut butter, cheesecake, graham cracker and chocolate. This peanut butter dessert should come with the warning label 'caution; you won't be able to eat just one' (unless that 'one' is one whole dish?). Seriously, you have to try these!

Anyone who knows me knows that peanut butter is my most favorite food ever! I can't get enough of it. While George Washington Carver is often mistakenly credited as the inventor of peanut butter, due to his work in cultivating peanut crops and publicising recipes, Marcellus Gilmore Edson, of Montreal, Canada, first patented peanut butter in 1884. According to his patent, his product had �a consistency like that of butter, lard, or ointment� (sounds appealing, doesn't it?). Edson, who was a chemist (pharmacist), developed 'peanut paste' as both a nutritious and delicious food for people who had trouble chewing solid foods (which wasn't uncommon in the 1800's). Changing the recipe from roasted to boiled peanuts, John Harvey Kellogg was issued a patent for a �Process of Producing Alimentary Products� in 1898. He served peanut butter to patients at his Battle Creek Sanitarium. Known as �monkey butter� during WWII, in the U.S. peanut butter must contain a minimum of 90% peanuts, otherwise it is called �peanut spread.� Peanut butter-based food �Plumpy-nut� is a product used to fight malnutrition in famine-stricken countries. A single pouch contains 500 calories and can be stored unrefrigerated for up to 2 years. (Peanut butter really is as nutritious as it is delicious!)

These delightful peanut butter 'squares' utilize peanut butter three ways: regular, spreadable peanut butter, peanut butter chips (like chocolate chips, but made from peanut butter) and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. Reese's Cups are a milk chocolate confection made of chocolate-coated peanut butter and are marketed by The Hershey Company, who were created in 1928 by H. B. Reese. In the 1990's the product's slogan was: �There's no wrong way to eat a Reese's�, which is still very true. Added to this delicious peanut butter squares recipe, they're �perfect�.

This recipe is a recipe of three parts. The crust, made from Graham Crackers, the peanut butter cheesecake and the peanut butter ganache. There is a lot going on, and you'll want to allow yourself ample time to create this recipe. It's best to start with the crust, since that is your base and doing this first will allow the mixture to cool and harden and will be easier to work with. Your next layer is simple: line the crust with Reese's Cups. Then you will have time to focus on the peanut butter cheesecake and the peanut butter ganache (which is a glaze, icing, sauce or filling typically made from chocolate and cream � but for this recipe the chocolate is replaced with... you guessed it... peanut butter!). The finishing touches are chocolate drizzle and maybe even a small piece of Reese's Cup for each square (if there are any peanut butter cups left).

Danielle of food blog 'Hugs and Cookies' is the mastermind behind this delectable delight. She is a wife, mother of two and a first grade teacher. If she can find the time to whip up this delicious dish, so can you. And it is so, so worth it!