Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes

Wow, that's pretty. And the beauty of this cupcake is I had the whole thing put together in about three hours! Impressive, right? I had a few things going for me, of course. I always have peanut butter and chocolate in my house. And I happened to have some ganache in the fridge from something...what, I don't remember. I scarcely ever use all of the ganache called for in a recipe, so I just stow the leftover in the fridge and pull it out later. And the stuff is impressive, right? So there is my tip of the day - never toss your leftover ganache.

I made these for a friend who was having a barbecue for a group of guys (Hi, Craig!) - he didn't ask for a specific flavor, but unless there are allergies, peanut butter and chocolate are good for men and women alike. I've actually never heard anyone say, "You know, I just don't care for peanut butter cups." There is a reason for that - they are fantastic! Dark chocolate, milk chocolate, homemade, off-brand - I love them all. And if you don't like them, pass 'em over my way.

I recreated that with a not-too-sweet dark chocolate cake, filled with what is basically a loose buckeye candy filling (what is a buckeye candy? Make friends with me around Christmastime or otherwise, look it up) spiked with ganache, and then topped with a fluffy peanut butter buttercream. Then I drizzled them with more ganache and topped them with mini peanut butter cups. These definitely call for a glass of milk - and then it's straight to being a six-year-old again. And that is really not a bad place to be.

So shall we get cooking? Let's go!

Starting with the ganache, so you have that ready and out of the way...

~ Chocolate ganache ~

1/2 cup heavy cream

8 ounces bittersweet chocolate chips

1 teaspoon instant espresso powder

In the top of a double boiler over simmering water, cook the heavy cream, chocolate chips, and espresso until smooth and warm, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and keep at room temperature until ready to use (if you chill it, it will become a solid mass - if that happens, just heat it gently until it is the consistency you need). There. Ganache.

~ Chocolate Cupcakes ~

4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2/3 cup dark cocoa powder
1 tablespoon espresso powder
3/4 cup hot coffee
3/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
6 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Grease and flour a 12-cup muffin tin or line with baking liners.
Combine chocolate, cocoa, espresso powder in a medium mixing bowl and pour hot coffee over. Let sit until chocolate is melted. Stir to combine; set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt. To chocolate mixture add vinegar, oil, eggs, and vanilla; mix well with fork to combine. Pour over flour mixture and stir well.

Pour the batter into the lined muffin tin (filling about 3/4 full) - the batter will be thin. Bake at 350 for 15 - 18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let cool for about 10 minutes in pan and then cool completely on a wire rack.

~ Chocolate Peanut Butter Filling ~

3/4 cup creamy peanut butter (not natural)
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 cups confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup ganache

With an electric mixer, beat the peanut butter and butter at medium speed until creamy and combined. Reduce the mixer speed to low and mix in the confectioners’ sugar, vanilla, and salt. Add in the ganache and beat the filling until smooth.

Once the cupcakes have cooled, cut out a cone-shaped portion out of the top of each cake. Slice off the excess cake from the cone (leaving the flat cap) and reserve the top. Fill the resulting hole with about a tablespoon of the peanut butter filling (or however much you need). Replace the cap. Repeat with the remaining cupcakes, and then put in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes to chill and set the filling (once cool, it will become very thick and hold the caps in place).

~ Peanut Butter Buttercream ~

1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup creamy peanut butter (not natural)
3 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup milk or cream
pinch of salt

In the bowl of your stand mixer, cream together the peanut butter and butter for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy. Reduce the speed of the mixer to low, add the powdered sugar, scrape the sides of the bowl and mix until combined. Pour in the milk or cream and beat until smooth. Scrape the bowl again and mix in the salt. Beat on high for 3-4 minutes or until the buttercream has become light and fluffy. You are looking for a consistency that will be easy to pipe onto the cupcakes.


~ Garnish ~

Additional ganache, warmed
mini peanut butter cups

Pipe the peanut butter buttercream onto the cupcakes using a pastry bag fitted with a large tip. Pour the warmed (liquid) ganache into a recloseable sandwich bag. Seal the bag and snip off the tip. Drizzle the ganache over each of the frosted cupcakes. Top each cupcake with two mini peanut butter cups and refrigerate briefly to let the cupcakes set. Let the cupcakes come to room temperature before serving.

Makes about a dozen cupcakes

Welcome to Weight Watchers' nightmare! You don't really have to eat all of them, you know.