Peanut butter cups hold a special place in my heart – they were my Dad’s favorite candy. He used to have a bag of small peanut butter cups in the house – solely for him, unless we asked. My kids used to send him a few after their Halloween haul, and he happily received the package. This homemade version is even better than the store-bought one, and a recipe I’m positive Dad would approve. These are made with milk chocolate, but if you desire, choose your own favorite chocolate, and even experiment with add-ins to the peanut butter.
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- ¼ cup unsalted butter
- ¼ cup light brown sugar
- 1¼ cups powdered sugar
- 24 ounces milk chocolate (chips, or finely chopped)
- ¼ cup vegetable shortening
Line mini-muffin tin with paper liners, then line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Combine peanut butter, butter and brown sugar in a sauce pan. Over medium heat, stir constantly, until melted, and mixture begins to bubble.
Once heated, remove pot from heat and stir in the powdered sugar, ¼ cup at a time. Sir until combined completely before adding more powdered sugar. Once combined, set aside until cool.
Melt the chocolate chips and shortening together in a double boiler on the stove, or in the microwave (30-second increments), until completely melted. Stirring frequently.
Spoon the melted chocolate into the bottom of each lined muffin cup.
Use a heaping teaspoon, scoop out the peanut butter mixture, rRoll it into a ball, and then flatten it slightly into a disk that will fit in the tins. Place the peanut butter disks on the baking-sheet-lined parchment paper. Refrigerate both the chocolate in the tins and the peanut butter disks for about 30 minutes.
Once chilled, place a peanut butter disk on top of each chocolate-lined muffin tin. Then add more melted chocolate to the tin, ensuring it is covered on top and around the sides. Once chocolate is poured, tap the tin on the counter to help settle the chocolate within the tins. Refrigerate for 30 minutes
