Friendly’s Peanut Butter Sauce

If you have not tried Friendly’s Peanut Butter Sauce, you have not enjoyed ice cream in an amazing way. I will show you how to make a copycat Friendly’s Peanut Butter Sauce at home.

a bowl of cookies and cream ice cream with peanut butter sauce on top


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Peanut Butter Sauce for Ice Cream

Sure, we have all tried hot fudge and caramel sauce, but you have not enjoyed peanut butter in such a new and unique way. At Friendly’s, the menu is broad and the food is good. Friendly’s revived my love of ice cream.

I worked at a Dairy Queen in high school and college and had too much contact with ice cream. I flew too close to the sun, and my love of ice cream burned away after coming home wearing ice cream every day for a couple of years.

A friend encouraged me to go to Friendly’s, and I was game. I ordered the peanut butter sauce on ice cream – let me tell you it was magical, and I fell in love with ice cream again.

This recipe is my version of Friendly’s Peanut Butter Sauce. So if you aren’t close to a Friendly’s restaurant (they are mainly up north and in Florida) you don’t have to make a special trip for this wonderful taste treat.

Ingredients for Peanut Butter Sauce

  • Butter
  • Heavy Whipping Cream
  • Corn Syrup
  • Sugar
  • Salt
  • Peanut Butter
  • Vanilla

If you don’t want to use corn syrup, I recommend Golden Syrup – it’s just like corn syrup, but it is made with sugar cane.

Friendly's peanut butter sauce ingredients

How to Make Friendly’s Peanut Butter Sauce

  1. Melt butter in a medium-sized pan over medium heat.
  2. Add cream, corn syrup, sugar, salt, and peanut butter. Stir until sauce is uniform in color.
peanut butter sauce in a pan
  1. Cool sauce to room temperature.
  2. Stir in vanilla.

Enjoy this delicious peanut butter ice cream topping.

How Do You Thin Peanut Butter to Drizzle It?

There are three ways you can do thin out peanut butter for drizzling:

The fastest and easiest way is to use your microwave. Place the peanut butter in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave on high at intervals as follows. Heat for 30 seconds, remove from the microwave and stir. Repeat until the peanut butter reaches your desired consistency. (You might want to cover the bowl with a microwave-suitable lid or paper towel to avoid messy splatters.)

To use your stove, place the peanut butter in a saucepan. Using low heat, gradually heat the peanut butter stirring gently and constantly to prevent the peanut butter from sticking to the pan and heating through unevenly. It takes approximately five minutes for the peanut butter to melt sufficiently.

You can also thin peanut butter in your food processor or blender. Add two tablespoons of water for each tablespoon of peanut butter. If you want a creamier consistency, you can use milk in place of water. Blend on low speed for 30 seconds then use a higher speed until the peanut butter is thin enough.

CopyKat Tip: Spraying your measuring cup with cooking spray before you begin gets the peanut butter out more easily.

peanut butter sauce on top of ice cream in a bowl

What is Meant by Natural Peanut Butter

Natural peanut butter makes the best peanut butter drizzle. When peanut butter is not natural, this means that stabilizers have been added to prevent the peanut butter from being its natural oily and runny self.

These stabilizers may include various oils like coconut oil, hydrogenated oil, palm oil, or vegetable oil. Crunchy peanut butter, although delightful to eat, will not drizzle as well as the smooth and silky kind.

You might also want to read more on how to get the perfect peanut butter drizzle from the National Peanut Board.

How to Store and Reheat Peanut Butter Sauce

My copycat recipe makes about a pint and a half of sauce. I store mine in a canning jar in the refrigerator where it will stay fresh for a couple of weeks.

It hardens back up in the fridge so you will need to heat it for a moment or two before serving. You can reheat peanut butter sauce in the microwave or on the stovetop.

Best Ice Cream Peanut Butter Sauce

You can’t get this famous peanut butter sauce anywhere but at Friendly’s Restaurant. But, you can make it at home, and it’s very easy.

Please let me know how much you enjoy this sauce and if you have tried it in other ways than on ice cream. One reader told me that the sauce is so good, it’s even great cold when you spread it on Oreos!

ice cream topped with homemade Friendly's peanut butter sauce

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a bowl of cookies and cream ice cream with peanut butter sauce on top

Copycat Friendly’s Peanut Butter Sauce

You can’t get this famous peanut butter sauce just anywhere.
4.83 from 29 votes
Print Pin Rate Add to Collection
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Copycat Friendly’s Peanut Butter Sauce, Peanut Butter Sauce for Ice Cream
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 10
Calories: 324kcal

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream ( you can use half and half)
  • 1/2 cup corn syrup
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup natural peanut butter smooth is recommended
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

  • In a medium sized saucepan over medium heat, melt butter, add heavy cream, corn syrup, sugar, salt, and natural peanut butter. Stir continually until the mixture is uniform. Cool off sauce, and then add vanilla. Store left over sauce in the refrigerator.

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 324kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Cholesterol: 38mg | Sodium: 295mg | Potassium: 190mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 25g | Vitamin A: 420IU | Vitamin C: 0.2mg | Calcium: 27mg | Iron: 0.5mg

About Stephanie Manley

I recreate your favorite restaurant recipes, so you can prepare these dishes at home. I help you cook dinner, and serve up dishes you know your family will love. You can find most of the ingredients for all of the recipes in your local grocery store.

Stephanie is the author of CopyKat.com's Dining Out in the Home, and CopyKat.com's Dining Out in the Home 2.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Cherie

    5 stars
    Great recipe. This sauce is so good! The picture is not flattering and looks gobby but the sauce isn’t at all. Creamy and delicious!

  2. Sandy

    1 star
    Really disappointed in this. I live near a Friendly’s and they once told me they just melt butter and peanut butter together. I made this hoping it was actually the peanut butter sauce. It is not. Way too sweet and thin. Friendly’s is not sweet at all. I just wasted a lot of peanut butter.

  3. Nava Viniar

    Hi,

    I am making an ice cream cake and want to drizzle some of this sauce inbetween ice cream layers. Does it harden when chilled?
    Thank you!

  4. Jen

    5 stars
    Never heard of Friendly’s, but my family loves getting peanut butter sauce at the local frozen custard spots. This was amazing! Super easy and every bit as delicious!

  5. Mark

    My second time making it and again it’s very good. I used half and half last time but used heavy cream this time, and I think it came out better…can I freeze this for future use? I made a double batch….

  6. Carissa

    Has anyone made this yet? I’m a little baffled because the picture looks like a very thick caramel sauce and absolutely nothing like any peanut butter sauce I’ve ever seen… nevermind what Friendly’s sauce looks like. Can anyone tell me if it at least tastes like it even if it is a very different texture?

    • DEB

      I thought it looked like pasta sauce, like red sauce! It doesn’t remind me of peanut butter, by the way, it looks at all. And I don’t know why but it looked extremely thick and chunky! I’m going to give it a shot because my son loves ANYTHING peanut butter. I am going to try it on a cheesecake.

  7. vexed

    4 stars
    So happy to have found this. I used to live up north, and I miss this peanut sauce. So good, it’s even great cold when you spread it on Oreos.

  8. Sarah

    Oh my goodness, I grew up eating ice cream at Friendly’s at least three times a month. I always ordered the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup sundae. And their hot dogs with the butter-grilled flat-bottom bread buns. My childhood just came rushing back. Now I’m diabetic and can’t eat any version of this sauce, but I will keep this recipe for when I serve ice cream! I’ve told people about this through the years but no one believes me. Thank you!

    • Katharine

      I would modify this recipe somehow so it is diabetic friendly. It may even be fun to.play with to get somthing you really like that you can have.

    • DEB

      I, too, am a diabetic. I take insulin 3-4 x day, and I count carbs to know how much to take. This makes it easier to splurge on occasion! I just figure the carbs in what I am eating and adjust my insulin accordingly. I do not have a weight issue so I can pretty much eat what I want, from a caloric point.

  9. Billie

    Friendly’s right up the road from where I live in south Florida!! And you are right, The food is awesome!! Can’t wait to make my own peanut butter sauce!

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