Peanut Butter Buckeyes are dangerously addictive. These chocolate covered peanut butter balls take advantage of a well loved flavor combination—peanut butter and chocolate.
This is definitely a crowd pleaser. For more salty peanut butter goodness try The Best Peanut Butter Cookies, Peanut Butter Blossoms, and Homemade Creamy Peanut Butter Cups.
Peanut Butter + Chocolate Treat
This one goes out to all of my fellow peanut butter lovers out there! Peanut butter and chocolate is such a classic and delicious flavor combo.
Really though, if you love peanut butter, you’ve gotta make a batch of buckeyes this holiday season. This simple recipe can be halved, doubled or even tripled. Pop them in the fridge and they’ll stay fresh for weeks… of course, they probably won’t last that long!
My mother-in-law’s recipe calls for 5 simple ingredients: powdered sugar, butter, peanut butter, chocolate chips, and paraffin. I decided to add a bit of vanilla extract and a pinch of kosher sea salt to the truffle-like filling to help round the flavors out. It’s totally optional, but extra delicious in my opinion.
How to Make Buckeyes
FILLING. In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the butter, peanut butter, salt and vanilla until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute. With mixing speed on low, gradually add the powdered sugar and mix until combined.
PREP. Using a ½ teaspoon or ¾ teaspoon create balls of dough (round with hands), set on parchment lined baking sheets.
COATING. For the chocolate chips or melting wafers, melt over double boiler (add wax or shortening). When smooth and melted, dip each ball into the chocolate (you can use a fork to remove the balls or a toothpick).
REFRIGERATE. Once the balls are dipped, return them to the parchment lined sheets. Place in the refrigerator to set for 30 minutes, then store in an airtight container for up to three weeks.
Dipping Tips:
- If your peanut butter mixture is too sticky, add more powdered sugar; if it’s too dry, add some more peanut butter.
- To help the dipping process go smoothly, you can let the peanut butter filling set up in the freezer for about 30 minutes.
- Insert a toothpick into each PB ball to make dipping easy! This way you don’t risk the PB balls falling into the chocolate.
When it comes to dipping the balls, you have a few options: 1.) chocolate chips + paraffin 2.) chocolate chips + vegetable shortening 3.) chocolate melting wafers 4.) tempered chocolate. The first three are definitely the easiest. The fourth is the most technical. I’m going to leave it up to you.
Variations, & Storing
Peanut Butter: A lot of people wonder about variations and substitutions for the peanut butter. I highly recommend sticking with regular creamy peanut butter.
- Other nut butters? Typically other nut butters are thinner and not as sturdy as peanut butter. If you need to switch up this recipe for allergy reasons, I recommend incorporating more powdered sugar to help the filling thicken up.
- Chunky peanut butter? Chunky peanut butter won’t change the recipe much, but it will obviously change the texture of the buckeyes. The bit of crunch could be a great addition! Just make sure the filling doesn’t end up being too crumbly.
- Natural peanut butter? Natural PB is too oily for a recipe like this in which the peanut butter really needs to be thick and “sturdy” for the recipe.
Chocolate Coating: Swap out the semisweet chocolate for milk, white, or dark chocolate.
Other additions: If you wanted to add any toppings you need to top or roll the balls in the toppings while the chocolate is still “wet”.
- Try topping these buckeyes with chocolate sprinkles, coconut flakes
- Drizzle melted peanut butter over the top of the buckeyes
- Add crushed reeses pieces to the top of them
Storing: These should be stored in the fridge in an airtight container. Place them on a paper towel to soak up any extra moisture that they form. They’ll last for about 2 weeks.
Freezing: If you want to freeze them, let the buckeyes set up in the fridge until solid. Then, place them in an airtight ziploc bag and everytime you pull some of them out make sure that you continue to remove the air. They will last in the freezer for several months.
For more homemade candies, try:
- Homemade Peanut Brittle
- Salted Caramel Peanut Clusters
- Cookie Butter Cups
- Chocolate Covered Strawberries
- Microwave Toffee
Peanut Butter Buckeyes Recipe
Ingredients
For the Buckeyes
- 8 tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter - room temperature
- 1 (16 oz) jar creamy peanut butter
- 1/4-1/2 tsp kosher sea salt - to taste
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 lb powdered sugar
For the Coating
- 1 (10 oz) bag semisweet chocolate chips
- 2 tbsp vegetable shortening
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the butter, peanut butter, salt and vanilla until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute. With mixing speed on low, gradually add the powdered sugar and mix until combined.
- Using a ½ teaspoon or ¾ teaspoon create balls of dough (round with hands), set on parchment lined baking sheets.
- For the chocolate chips or melting wafers, melt over double boiler (add wax or shortening). When smooth and melted, dip each ball into the chocolate (you can use a fork to remove the balls or a toothpick).
- Once the balls are dipped, return them to the parchment lined sheets. Place in the refrigerator to set for 30 minutes, then store in an airtight container for up to three weeks.
NOTES
- 1 (10 oz.) bag semisweet chocolate chips + ¼ bar paraffin wax OR 2 (12 oz.) bags dark chocolate melting wafers OR 16 oz. 60%-70% chocolate (Guittard, Callebaut, or Valrhona)
Oh my gosh! I love having these at Christmas time. But when I saw this recipe today I thought… why not have it now. It’s perfect for any time of year. Such a classic flavor combo and can be made in practically minutes!
These are dangerously good. I’m so glad you made them “just because”!