Chocolate Peanut Butter Torte

When we stumbled upon an empty space at Lubbock's Cactus Alley in February 2006, formerly home to La Cumbre Mexican restaurant, we knew instantly it was perfect for Manna Bread & Wine. We spent the next five months obtaining a liquor license (yes it took us that long!), doing minor renovations, buying furniture, decorating, and getting city inspections. The decor in the cozy, eclectic little dining room at Manna was cobbled together mostly with thrifted items. The bentwood chairs, for example, we purchased when Triple J bought Hub City Brewery and sold off their furnishings.

Cactus Alley is an old shopping center, built in 1967. When we took over the restaurant space, it had issues— tiny bathrooms and a tiny kitchen to name a few. Little did we know the space was “blessed,” and not because I had a few Catholic relics hanging about. When you walked in the front door, if you veered to the far left corner booth and sat facing the dining room, with your back to the brick wall, you would have been sitting with Jesus looking over your shoulder: about four feet up was a brick that sported a splotchy but unmistakable representation of the bust of Jesus complete with a crown of thorns.

We weren’t the ones to first notice the Jesus brick. A regular customer, a graduate student at Texas Tech, pointed it out to us while eating his dessert one evening (very likely this chocolate peanut butter torte). From that point on, the northwest corner table became known as The Jesus Table.

In 2015, after Manna’s new owner “forgot” to pay his taxes and was shut down, Cocina De La Sirena moved into that space, expanded it, and painted over the Jesus brick. I’m not sure they knew it existed. Not gonna lie—I held my breath for a few months, waiting for an earthquake or famine or pestilence to descend upon them/us.

They/I live to tell about it. Maybe Brick Jesus is still watching over La Sirena patrons behind the veil of paint.

 For TWO pie-sized tortes (each serves 6 - 8):

Make the crusts: preheat the oven to 325°. In a large bowl, mix together until well blended. Divide, press into two pie pans, and bake until brown on the bottom but still soft, 20 - 30 minutes . . . . . . . . . Make the chocolate filling: in a saucepan, bring to a boil and remove immediately . . .   Add in and stir until smooth . . . . . . . . . . . .

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2 c. peanut butter 2 c. sugar 3 eggs 2 c. heavy cream 3 c. choc. chips, semi-sweet or milk

Pour the warm filling into the two baked pie crusts. Refrigerate. To serve, top with sweetened whipped cream and chopped peanuts, and thank Jesus for all your good fortune in life.