Peanut Butter Cups
on Mar 08, 2013, Updated Jun 17, 2021
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There’s nothing wrong with the store-bought, but homemade peanut butter cups are even better because you can use a higher quality chocolate and make these in a muffin pan.
My sweet tooth has a tendency to play favorites. Chocolate will always be my number one. Anything nutty ranks a close second.
It’s a test of sheer willpower for me to say no to dessert when it involves chocolate, and paired with peanut butter, chocolate is impossible to refuse. They are pure magic together.
Nothing compares to the ultimate match of chocolate and peanut butter.
That addictive balance of salty and sweet is what gets me.
When I’m daydreaming glazing longingly at the rows of candy at the grocery store checkout, peanut butter cups are always calling my name.
There is nothing wrong with the classic mass-produced peanut butter cups packaged neatly in pairs.
But homemade are even better!
You can use higher quality chocolate like a nice, rich dark. And the filling can be a sweet peanut butter made from scratch.
How To Make Peanut Butter Cups
I start by toasting the peanuts the oven. Don’t skip this step because it intensifies the flavor of the peanut butter centers.
Then I chop the nuts finely in the food processor with honey, oil, confectioner’s sugar, vanilla extract and salt.
After that I roll the peanut butter into balls and flatten them into disks to fit inside the muffin cups.
Carefully, I melt the dark chocolate over a pot of simmering water on the stove and spoon a slick of chocolate to coat the bottoms of the cups in a muffin pan.
Next I place a peanut butter disk on top and pour the remaining chocolate over the peanut butter until it’s completely disguised.
The hours waiting for them to set are agonizing, but totally worth it.
The silky chocolate coating the peanut butter makes the most wonderful audible snap when broken in half.
One of these is enough to satisfy a craving, but it’s tough not to start nibbling on a second peanut butter cup.
More Peanut Butter Recipes
Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Cookies
Peanut Butter M&M Cookies
Crunchy Peanut Butter Banana Bread
Homemade Peanut Butter
Peanut Butter Cups
Ingredients
- 1-1/3 cups roasted salted peanuts
- 2 teaspoons honey
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 12 ounces dark chocolate finely chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Toast the peanuts on a foil-lined sheet pan until they are lightly browned and fragrant, about 7 minutes.
- Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper inserts.
- Allow the peanuts to cool. Then transfer to a food processor, and process for 3 minutes until the peanuts are the consistency of fine breadcrumbs scraping down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as necessary. Add the honey, oil, sugar, vanilla extract and salt, and process until fully incorporated.
- Divide the peanut filling into 12 balls about 2 teaspoons each. Flatten the balls into disks that will fit inside the muffin cups without touching the sides.
- In a medium saucepan bring 1 inch of water to a low simmer. Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over the saucepan without the water touching the bottom of the bowl. Stir frequently until the chocolate is glossy, smooth and fully melted. (Alternatively, melt the chocolate in the microwave in 30-second blasts stirring to distribute the heat.)
- Place about 2 teaspoons of chocolate in the bottom of each muffin cup. Top with a peanut butter disk gently pressing it, so chocolate partially coats the sides. Cover the peanut butter with about 1 teaspoon of chocolate smoothing it out with the back of a spoon.
- Let the peanut butter cups sit at room temperature for at least 4 hours until they harden. Store in an airtight container, but do not refrigerate.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
OMG, Paige! These look amazing.
Paige, I made these this weekend. Mine aren’t as pretty as yours, but wow, are they tasty!
Who needs pretty when they are delicious!?
Why is kosher salt required? What difference does it make? Can sea salt be used instead?
I tend to use kosher salt when I cook. You could absolutely use sea salt instead.
These look amazing, I can’t wait to try them! Thanks for posting. Any idea of the calorie/carb/protein content?
I don’t track the nutritional information. Everything in moderation!
You call for dark chocolate, is that just a block of semi sweet? Tell me if you can use chips or candy bars or what dark choco do you suggest?
.
I would recommend using the unsweetened chocolate bars in the baking aisle. Make sure it has around 60%-70% cacao. Brands I like are Ghirardelli, Callebaut, Scharffen Berger and Valrhona.
These look delicious! I can’t wait to make these for my honey. He loves peanut butter cups but I am trying to get him to choose all-natural versions of snacks and candies. Can I use another oil besides canola?
Instead of canola, you could use another neutral oil–corn, peanut or grapeseed.
I can’t believe you would go to that much work to make peanut butter cups! All you really need is a good recipe for buckeyes, use crunchy peanut butter, if you feel the need, instead of smooth in the recipe, and use good dipping chocolate instead of cutting up the chocolate. The neat thing about dipping chocolate is you can use dark, milk, or, if you are in a really funky mood, colored chocolate.
omg I made these and they look and taste great but instead of canolia can I use veggie oil