PEANUT BUTTER FRUIT DIP

Hi friends! Today, I’m sharing the simplest, most delicious peanut butter fruit dip with you.

HOW TO MAKE PEANUT BUTTER FRUIT DIP

You’re going to need peanut butter, obviously. Next, you’ll need Cool Whip.

And that’s it. Seriously.

Just peanut butter and Cool Whip.

STEP 1: WARM THE PEANUT BUTTER

• Measure out one cup peanut butter into a bowl. MICROWAVE THE BOWL FOR 15 TO 20 SECONDS. Check on it, it should be warm and pourable, not SCORCHING and bubbling. If it’s not quite pourable, microwave for 10 more seconds.

STEP 2: ADD THE COOL WHIP

• Spoon thawed Cool Whip into the bowl of warm peanut butter.
• Using a rubber spatula, GENTLY fold the Cool Whip and peanut butter together. Go around the edges of the bowl, scooping under, rotating the bowl as you fold. Don’t beat the air out of it.

STEP 3: CHECK THE TEXTURE

• If it’s well-combined, there won’t be any streaks of peanut butter left, it will be the texture of a thick, creamy mousse. If you can still see peanut butter, keep on folding. If you happen to overmix it and deflate it, it’s not a big deal, it will still taste amazing.

STEP 4: CHILL OR SERVE

• At this point, the dip is ready to serve, just spoon it into a bowl and place in the middle of all that yummy fruit. But if you’re serving it at a party, or need it to hold together better for dipping, cover and chill for 30 minutes before serving.

WHAT TO SERVE IT WITH

I can’t even tell you how often my kids ask for PB fruit dip. It’s such an easy recipe for me to pull together and it takes less than 5 minutes, plus 30 minutes chilling time if you choose to serve it chilled, to prepare.

You’ll be hard-pressed to find an easier dip to prepare than Peanut Butter Fruit Dip. It’s perfect to serve alongside sliced apples at snack time, trust me, once you serve this recipe at your house, you’ll hear about it again and again!

Sliced Honeycrisp or Fuji apples are my favorite to use with this dip. They are slightly tart and slightly sweet which goes great with the richness of the peanut butter dip.

They are also nice and crunchy and don’t brown as quickly as others when sliced ahead of time.

Other apples that go well are:

• Honeycrisp: sweet-tart balance
• Cortland: sweeter, especially nice with the cinnamon PB dip option below
• Fuji: sweet-tart balance
• Granny Smith: tart apples provide a nice contrast to nut butters

Other Ideas:

• sliced pear: a bit softer than apples
• strawberries: PB & J.
• bananas: super sweet combo that kids love
• graham crackers: makes it more of a dessert
• pretzels: the salt balances the sweet dip
• celery: the bitterness of the celery balances this sweet dip nicely and adds another element of crunch

VARIATIONS WORTH TRYING

CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER DIP

Add about 2-3 Tbsp of chocolate syrup or Nutella to the peanut butter while it’s being warmed. Follow recipe directions for warming PB, then add Nutella/chocolate syrup at this point, stir, then remove from heat and proceed to Cool Whip stage.

Fold in whipped topping as directed. This tastes like a liquidy version of Reese’s, except it’s not as calorie laden.

HONEY PEANUT BUTTER DIP

Stir about 2 Tbsp of honey into the peanut butter while it’s warming and proceed with recipe. Honey PB Cool Whip dip would be great with grapefruit sections.

CINNAMON PEANUT BUTTER DIP

During the fall months I love this dip with Cortland or Honeycrisp apples. Just add some cinnamon to the warming PB.

ALMOND BUTTER VERSION

I’d recommend using almond butter rather than peanut butter. This dip will be slightly less sweet and more neutral in flavor.

You’ll warm and fold it just as before.

HELPFUL TIPS

Heat up the peanut butter first. This makes it easier to combine with the whipped topping and helps prevent little bits of peanut butter showing up later.

Place peanut butter in the microwave and heat for about 15 to 20 seconds. You can stir it a couple of times to make sure it heats up evenly.

You’ll be surprised how much difference this makes.

Gently fold together ingredients, do not stir. This will help to preserve the air that is whipped into the topping and keep the dip light and fluffy.

Cool Whip is much better when thawed in the fridge, not on the counter. When you leave it on the counter, the defrosting Cool Whip tends to release lots of liquid, which can lead to a soupy dip.

Tip for apples: To prevent browning, dip apple slices in water mixed with a small amount of lemon or pineapple juice. Just a tiny amount of juice goes a long way, and you don’t want your apples to be too sour.

You can also make this recipe with other kinds of fruit, whether it is whatever’s in season or what’s available.

A TOOL WORTH HAVING

If you’ve been looking for a tool that makes apple peeling easy, check out the Victorio VKP1010 Apple Peeler, Corer & Slicer. This nifty tool peels, cores, and slices apples as you turn the handle.

It’s a must-have tool during apple season. The base of the peeler even has a suction cup to keep it in place.

MAKE-AHEAD AND STORAGE

REFRIGERATOR: Cover tightly with plastic wrap if the dip is in a bowl or transfer to an air-tight container. Store in the refrigerator.

Dip should keep for up to 3 days in the refrigerator. Dip might get a bit stiff after chilling, and you can simply stir before serving.

MAKE-AHEAD: Peanut butter fruit dip can be made 1 day ahead. In fact, it’s easier to scoop after chilling.

FREEZING: It is not recommended because texture changes upon thawing and becomes a bit separated and grainy. Since this is such an easy recipe, I would simply recommend making a new batch as necessary.

LEFTOVER IDEAS

Have your children dip celery, carrots, raisins, etc. You could also spoon this dip into a small squeeze bottle so children can easily help themselves without dipping all of their friends’ fingers into the serving dish 🙂

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

WHAT DO I DO WITH LEFTOVER DIP?

Spread it on toast or make crepes out of it. Or thin it out a bit with some milk and use as a drizzle over pancakes.

Basically, this recipe tastes a lot like a light peanut butter mousse, so use it pretty much any way that you’d use PB mousse!

CAN I USE HOMEMADE WHIPPED CREAM INSTEAD OF COOL WHIP?

I recommend Cool Whip. Homemade whipped cream isn’t as stable, meaning that it will deflate and start to get a little weepy within a couple of hours, which will change the texture of your dip.

That said, I’ve used fresh whipped cream in this recipe, and it’s delicious. But I’ve done it on days when the dip will be consumed the same day it was made.

Make sure that your homemade whipped cream has been whipped to stiff peaks before folding in the warm PB.

WHY DID MY DIP TURN OUT LUMPY?

Most likely, the peanut butter wasn’t warm enough or was even at room temp, which led to lumpy PB when it got folded into the cool whip. You want the PB to be pretty much in a liquid state when folding.

If your dip turns out a bit lumpy, pop it in the microwave for 10 seconds and fold again. It may not be as fluffy, but should come out ok.

CAN I USE CRUNCHY PEANUT BUTTER?

You can, as long as you make sure to melt it down until it’s nice and runny before folding into the cool whip. It will add small pieces of peanuts into the mix, which is great for texture.

IS THIS SAFE FOR PEOPLE WITH NUT ALLERGIES?

Unfortunately not. Peanut butter is a main ingredient in this recipe, so it’s definitely not suitable for those with peanut/tree nut allergies.

If you’re looking for a nut-free PB alternative, sunflower seed butter is the best. However, it will taste a LOT different than traditional PB.

Follow the same process for sunflower butter that you would PB.

HOW LONG CAN THE DIP SIT OUT AT A PARTY?

The dip contains cool whip, which is a dairy product, so it should be treated like any other dairy product; take out of fridge when serving, then back into the fridge when not. It should not be out longer than 2 hours at room temperature.

If you know that it’ll be sitting out longer than 2 hours, prepare multiple dips and rotate them out as needed, making sure to keep extra ones refrigerated until serving.

CAN I DOUBLE THE RECIPE?

Definitely. It’s a very easy recipe to increase/decrease as needed.

All you’re going to need is a 8 oz container of Cool Whip and 1 cup of peanut butter. It’s as simple as making a single batch: Melt the peanut butter (either all of it in one larger bowl or in two batches), and fold in the Cool Whip the same way.

It will have the same ratio/texture/taste.

RELATED RECIPES

• 3-Ingredient Strawberry Fruit Dip: This is another easy fruit dip I make every spring.

PEANUT BUTTER FRUIT DIP RECIPE

A rich and creamy dip that’s ready to serve in 5 minutes. Perfect for apple slices, strawberries, bananas, and more.