Peanut Butter Cupcakes
Tender, supersoft peanut butter cupcakes made in one bowl topped with a chocolate peanut butter icing.
Somehow I, a self-declared obsessive buttercream lover, decided against it for these peanut butter cupcakes. I wanted the cupcake portion to really take front and center here as it has been a recipe I’ve worked on very tediously for the better part of the first half of this year. I wanted the cake to be predominately peanut butter tasting but also wanting to get the texture *just* so: incredibly tender and fluffy.
Of course, should you decide to use a buttercream I won’t object (and have suggestions) but do know that topped with just a thin layer of chocolate peanut butter icing, these are truly a treat.
Ingredients for Peanut Butter Cupcakes
Peanut butter: Creamy, standard commercial peanut butter.
Butter: Unsalted (this is important! If you are using salted butter omit the salt from the recipe, considering that your peanut butter will also already be salted) and softened.
Brown sugar: Either light or dark will do.
Buttermilk or kefir: The tang and creaminess of either of these will give the cupcakes a lovely, softer texture. If you need to substitute, thin out some yogurt with water.
Eggs: One whole and one yolk. With the leftover egg white you can make these cookies.
Cake Flour: This gives the cupcakes a much more tender, softer crumb because of the fine mill of cake flour and the added starch. If you need to sub, after you measure the flour remove 1 tablespoon of it and add in cornstarch or tapioca starch.
Salt: Fine sea salt. If you are using coarse kosher salt, make the teaspoon scant.
How to make Peanut Butter Cupcakes
- Soften the butter to room temperature
- Prep your pan and oven
- Beat the sugar and butter
- Add remaining ingredients one by one, beating after each
- Sift in the flour & beat to just combine
- Bake & let cool
- Top with icing
What’s the best peanut butter to use in baking?
Most recipes are designed around your standard commercial peanut butter like a creamy Skippy’s or JIF. This peanut butter cupcake recipe is no exception. Whatever brand you have it’s best if it isn’t the natural kind that has separated with a layer of oil on top.
Can I use crunchy peanut butter to make these cupcakes?
Those little nuts can take up the space of some of the oil we want in the batter so instead I’d use creamy but add chopped peanuts if you want that addition.
Can I double this peanut butter cupcake recipe?
Yeup!
Can I bake this peanut butter cupcake recipe into a peanut butter cake?
Yes it will make one 9” round cake or a snacking cake made in a 8 or 9” square pan.
I don’t want to use an icing, what buttercream should I top these peanut butter cupcakes with?
- Brown butter peanut butter buttercream
- Chocolate mascarpone buttercream
- Brown Butter Milk Chocolate Buttercream
- Or any buttercream really, here’s a bunch of ideas
Can I make these with another nut butter?
Cashew butter, the kind that hasn’t separated much in the jar will work well. So would a sun butter. Almond butter is trickier but if you have a variety that is well mixed and has the consistency of standard store-bought peanut butter it could work as well.
Peanut Butter Cupcakes Recipe
Peanut Butter Cupcakes
Ingredients
Peanut Butter Cupcakes
- 113 g or ½ cup butter softened
- 57 g or ¼ cup creamy peanut butter
- 150 g or ¾ cups brown sugar
- 1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
- 112 g or ½ cup buttermilk
- 60 g or ¼ cup water
- 1 ¼ cups or 150g cake flour
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Chocolate Peanut Butter Icing
- 1 cup powdered sugar preferably made with tapioca starch
- ¼ cup dutch process cocoa
- Pinch fine sea salt
- 1 tablespoon peanut butter it’s fine to eyeball this
- Dash of pure vanilla extract
- ¼ cup milk more or less as needed to make a thick but pourable icing
Method
- Preheat the oven to 375 F. Line one cupcake tin with 12 liners.
- In a bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy adding the salt and vanilla as you do.
- Add the peanut butter, egg yolk and egg and beat to combine.
- Add the buttermilk and water and beat. Then sift the cake flour over the batter and add the baking powder and soda. Beat to *just* combine.
- Scoop into muffin pan, dividing equally (each cup should be about ¾ filled).
- Bake for about 18 minutes - checking at 15 for doneness by pressing the top to see if it springs back.
- Let the cupcakes cool completely then make the icing by whisking together all the ingredients in a bowl. Spoon icing on top of the cooled cupcakes, using the back of the spoon to cover the dome. Add chopped up pb cups if desired.
Did you make this recipe?
Share & tag me on instagram @buttermilkbysam
Pretty much anybody who knows me knows that I love chocolate peanut butter cupcakes, but I’ve only ever made them with the classic chocolate cake base and peanut butter buttercream. After tasting these, I think I’ve been missing out. These are super fluffy and light, not super moist but not dry either, with just the perfect level of peanut butter flavor without being overpowering. I would say to keep a close eye on them, as any longer in the oven would have made them overly dry. The idea of a simple chocolate ganache was alluring, but I decided to whip mine up instead to make a pipeable whipped ganache. The creamy, not-too-sweet chocolate ganache paired perfectly. Despite the decadence of both the flavors, these were surprisingly light and almost refreshing to eat! Given the simplicity of the recipe, this might become my new “simple but impressive” dessert 🙂