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Introducing my Homemade Peanut Butter Cups – seriously the easiest treat you could make at home! These delicious desserts are dairy free, gluten-free, and only have 2 ingredients! They are the perfect balance of chocolate and peanut butter. As a bonus, the total time to make them is under 30 minutes!

peanut butter cups stacked.

Recipe Difficulty – Very Easy

Why this recipe works

Often, when people try to recreate popular candy recipes, they can get quite complicated. Not these vegan chocolate peanut butter cups! It is simply peanut butter in the center of the chocolate base! You can’t go wrong with a combination of peanut butter and chocolate!

These peanut butter cups are the perfect homemade, healthy option to replace your love of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups! Even though the Hershey company does a great job, this peanut butter cup recipe will let you enjoy Reese’s cups but made much healthier.

Ingredients to make Peanut Butter Cups

Ingredients to make Peanut Butter Cups.
  1. Dark Chocolate – Makes for a rich and decadent treat.
  2. Crunchy Peanut Butter – Is my go-to when I make my own peanut butter cups as that extra crunch just steps it up!
  3. Flakey Salt (optional) – Is optional, but will really make each peanut butter cup pop when you sprinkle it on top of the chocolate.

See recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

Substitutions

  • Dark Chocolate – You could use milk chocolate if you’d like, but it will be much sweeter. I’d recommend a mixture if the dark is too much for you. You can also add a bit of coconut oil to the chocolate to make it easier to work with.
  • Crunchy Peanut Butter – If you don’t like the texture of crunchy peanut butter, you could use smooth peanut butter. If you have a peanut allergy or dislike the peanut butter flavor, try cashew butter, almond butter, or another nut butter.

Variations

  • Deluxe – Definitely don’t skip out on the flakey salt if you want to go deluxe! You could also drizzle white chocolate or another type of chocolate over the top for a nice effect.
  • Kid friendly – To sweeten the taste up a little bit, you can stir some maple syrup in to make a sweeter peanut butter mixture.

How to make Peanut Butter Cups

melted chocolate in a bain marrie.

Step 1: Add the chopped chocolate to a bain-marie and simmer until the chocolate is completely melted.

melted chocolate in cupcake liners.

Step 2: Add 6 paper cupcake liners or silicone liners into a muffin tin and pour in about 1/2 inch of chocolate into the base of each liner. Place in the freezer for 10 minutes to firm up.

a peanut butter layer over a melted chocolate.

Step 3: Remove from the tray from the freezer, spoon in a tsp of peanut butter into each, and then pour over the remaining chocolate to cover the peanut butter layer. Place the pan back in the freezer for 10-15 minutes until the cups are solid.

peanut butter cups in the cupcake liners.

Step 4: Finally, sprinkle over some flakey sea salt (optional) and tuck in.

Hint: If you don’t have room in your freezer, you could use the refrigerator to cool them down, but you would need to keep them in longer. Either way, the trick is to make sure they harden sufficiently before moving on to the next step.

Leftovers

You can store leftovers at room temperature for up to two days or in the fridge for up to two weeks. Either way, keep in an airtight container.

To Freeze: These will freeze in an airtight container for up to six months. Thaw in the fridge or on the counter.

Recipe FAQs

What is a bain-marie?

A bain-marie is a way to heat chocolate slowly. It is also called a double boiler. You use two bowls, one inside the other. The lower one has water that is boiled, heating the upper one without getting it past the boiling point.

Can you freeze homemade peanut butter cups?

Yes! These treats freeze very well. Store in an airtight container for up to six months. If you want to batch make these treats, you can stack them in freezer containers with layers of baking paper in between.

More Peanut Butter recipes

chocolate peanut butter cups close up.

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Rate it…

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5 from 2 votes

Peanut Butter Cups

These Peanut Butter Cups are what I class as heaven in one bite! They are simple and fun to make.
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cooling Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 6 cups
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Ingredients 

  • 270 g dark chocolate
  • 6 tsp crunchy peanut butter
  • flakey salt, optional

Instructions 

  • Add the chopped chocolate to a bain-marie and simmer until the chocolate is completely melted.
  • Add 6 cupcake liners into a cupcake tray and pour in about 1/2 inch of chocolate into the base of each liner. Place in the freezer for 10 minutes to firm up.
  • Remove from the freeze, add in a tsp of peanut butter into each liner.
  • Now pour over the remaining chocolate into each liner to cover the peanut butter. Place back in the freezer for 10-15 minutes until the cups are solid.
  • Finally, sprinkle over some flakey sea salt (optional) and tuck in.

Notes

Step-by-Step Photos: My blog post includes helpful step-by-step photos to help guide you through making this recipe.
Substitutions & Variations: I have included a list of these in the post above.
To Store: Store in an airtight container on the counter for up to two days or in the fridge for up to two weeks.
To Freeze: These will freeze in an airtight container for up to six months. Thaw in the fridge or on the counter.
Tip 1: If you don’t want to use a bain-marie, you can heat chocolate in the microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring in between.
Tip 2: If you don’t have chunks of chocolate, you can also use melted chocolate chips for this recipe.
Tip 3: You could vary the size of these treats. Use a mini cupcake tray for mini peanut butter cups or a bigger one for big cups. You could even skip the muffin tin and lay it out in a baking dish for peanut butter chocolate bars.

Nutrition

Calories: 298kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 11g
Did you make this recipe? Tag me Today!Tag @HealthyLivingJames on Instagram and use #HealthyLivingJames!

About James Wythe

Hey, I'm James! A fully qualified health coach, cookbook author, full time food blogger and new dad with over 1 million followers. I started this journey after a sudden illness left me bed bound for 2 years and housebound for 4 years! I’m here to help you make healthy and delicious food for you and your family in less time!

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6 Comments

  1. Hey Karen,

    That is strange, as this hasn’t every happened to me! Sorry that this happened for you 🙁

    The cacao butter needs to be melted first over a bain marie then add the maple syrup and then slowly add the cacao powder whilst whisking it in. I will change the method as this isn’t explained very well!

    I hope it works next time for you.

    James

  2. Hi James, after whisking for quite a while, the chocolate still wouldn’t combine, its separated??? I let the cacao butter sit until room temp and the maple was at room temp, the cacao powder just wouldn’t mix in properly….