Peanut Butter Cup Cupcakes
The Inspiration…
I think I’ve mentioned before how my husband has quite the sweet tooth. At any given time, you might look in his pockets or the back seat of his truck and find candy wrappers. Not just any candy though. 98% of the time they are Reese Cup wrappers. There is just something about the combination of chocolate and peanut butter that he can’t resist. Last year when his birthday came around, I decided I wanted to make him a cake with those flavors. Boy, was it a hit! I envisioned a light, fluffy cake with a rich chocolate flavor. What brings out the flavor of chocolate? According to The Barefoot Contessa, coffee! She was right! Don’t let the coffee scare you away from this recipe. I promise you don’t taste it. It truly just enhances the chocolate flavor. If you are sensitive to caffeine, you can always use a decaffeinated version.
There is a donut shop here in Buffalo called Paula’s that is famous for their gigantic donuts and variety of flavors. My favorite donut there is one stuffed with a peanut butter angel cream and topped with a thick chocolate ganache. I wanted the icing for this cupcake to mimic that angel cream. They call it angel cream because it is heavenly!!! I think I got pretty darn close! The flavor combo is a classic and anytime I bring these cupcakes to a party, they are gone in a flash!
The batter is very quick to pull together. Note that this is a very loose batter, but it creates the lightest and fluffiest cupcakes. Don’t second guess it, just go with it! Combine all of your dry ingredients and mix thoroughly. Then you can add in your buttermilk, egg, and vanilla. The last step is to dissolve some instant espresso powder in half a cup of hot water and stir that in gently. This will think out your batter quite a bit.
Now you can fill your cupcake liners. I use a small measuring cup for this job. Fill your liners about 3/4 of the way up. This recipe makes 16 cupcakes.
Pop those in the oven for 18-20 minutes at 350 degrees. While they bake you can mix up your Peanut Butter Angel Cream. Mix all the ingredients with a hand mixer until light and fluffy. I like to use a piping bag to apply the frosting, but you can always just spread it on with a knife. There is no wrong way to apply frosting! Make sure to allow your cupcakes to cool completely before frosting them, though! Top with half a fun-size Reese Cup and you’re ready to dig in!
Peanut Butter Cup Cupcakes
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 6 TBSP unsweetened cocoa powder
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup buttermilk*
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 cup hot water
- 1 tsp instant espresso powder
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter**
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 3 TBSP heavy whipping cream
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 8 fun-sized Reese cups, halved (for garnishing)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin pans with 16 cupcake liners.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix in the granulated and brown sugars until combined. Add in the oil, buttermilk, egg, and vanilla until just combined. If you do not have buttermilk, you can combine 2 TBSP lemon juice with 6 TBSP milk.
- Mix the hot water and instant espresso until it is dissolved. Add into the batter and mix well.
- Evenly distribute the batter between the cupcake liners. Fill approximately 3/4 full.
- Bake at 350 for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and let sit for 5 minutes. Remove cupcakes from tins and let cool completely on a wire rack.
- Beat the butter in a large bowl with a hand mixer for about a minute until it is fluffy.
- Add in the peanut butter and mix until it is well combined with the butter.
- Add in your powdered sugar, heavy cream, and vanilla and beat for another minute until the frosting is thick and creamy.
- Wait until cupcakes are completely cooled and then frost them. I like to pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes, but you can also frost with a knife.
- Optional: Top each cupcake with half of a fun-sized Reese Cup.
Notes
*If you do not have buttermilk, you can combine 2 TBSP lemon juice with 6 TBSP milk.
**I like to use Jif brand peanut butter. Please note that natural peanut butters do not work very well in this recipe as there is more oil and it can separate out.
Nutrition Facts
Calories
393.19Fat
23.07Sat. Fat
7.93Carbs
44.02Fiber
2.04Net carbs
41.97Sugar
33.86Protein
6.5Sodium
251.54Cholesterol
31.39Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.