These Homemade Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls taste just like Reese's cups...Yum! I love to make these to have on hand for snacking or for dessert. I always crave something sweet after dinner and just one of these does the job. Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls are pretty easy to make and are a great food gift IF you don't eat them all yourself that is!
I love making and giving food gifts for holidays, host or hostess gifts or just because. When I make something my kids like, and they say something positive to me about it, I always reply "MWL" aka made with love. I say that's why it tastes good.
The same could be said about making and gifting these homemade Chocolate and Peanut Butter Balls or any food gift for that matter.
It takes just 4-5 ingredients to make these and in my opinion, they are a great recipe to get the kids involved with making. They can mix and roll then later you do the dipping.
Do Homemade Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls Taste Like A Reese's Cup?
I think they do! I've been making these 4 Ingredient Chocolate and Peanut Butter Squares forever, and they taste like a Reese's Cup however these Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls taste even more like them in my opinion.
How Do You Make Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls?
To make Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls gather the following ingredients: ¾ cup creamy peanut butter, ¼ cup butter (room temperature) and 1 ½ cups powdered sugar. Next, combine the ingredients and mix them together until smooth.
Place mixture into the refrigerator for 30 minutes (or more) or to place on the quick freeze shelf for 15-20 minutes. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and roll the mixture into balls, placing them on the prepared baking sheet. (Chilling the batter makes it easier and less messy to roll).
Once you have all the balls rolled. Place them into the freezer for 20-30 minutes.
Prepare the chocolate by setting a bowl over a small pot of water and placing 12 ounces of chocolate into a large metal bowl. When ready to dip the peanut butter balls, bring water to a boil and set a metal bowl over the pot with the chocolate. Whisk chocolate until melted. This will only take a couple of minutes. Watch out for steam escaping from the put. I tilt my metal bowl on an angle and allow the steam to escape out the back.
Whisk firmly and quickly until smooth. Then quickly coat the balls one by one in the chocolate. I place a ball in with a small spoon, spoon chocolate over it and then using a thin metal icing spatula like this one (less than $4), quickly lift it out from the chocolate and place it on your parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
Once all balls are coated, chill until chocolate is firm. This simple tool is the most efficient way to lift most things I dip out efficiently without taking too much chocolate with them.
What Is The Best Way To Melt Chocolate For Dipping?
Sure popping chocolate in a microwave to melt it sounds easy and fast, however for best results, simply heat water to a boil in a small pot and place a larger metal bowl on top of it, whisking until the chocolate is melted and smooth. This will take less than 3 minutes. For the smoothest silkiest chocolate, I like to add 1 teaspoon of shortening for every 1 cup of chocolate. You could also substitute melted butter for the shortening.
Tip: Water is your enemy when melting chocolate, so be sure your bowl is dry.
What's your favorite homemade boozy gift or sweet or savory treat to make and gift?
If you enjoy making food gifts, check out this post of 40+ Homemade Food Gift Ideas.
Homemade Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls
Ingredients
- ¾ cup creamy peanut butter
- ¼ cup butter room temperature.
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 12 ounces chocolate such as semi-sweet chocolate chips or chocolate melting bars
- Optional 1 ½ teaspoons shortening
Instructions
- Mix the peanut butter, butter and powdered sugar together until smooth. For this you can do it by hand using a spatula or via a mixer.
- Place mixture into the refrigerator for 30 minutes (or more) or place on the quick freeze shelf of your freezer or 15-20 minutes.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and roll the mixture into balls, placing them on the prepared baking sheet. (Chilling the batter makes it easier and less messy to roll).
- Once you have all the balls rolled. Place them into the freezer for 20-30 minutes.
- When ready to dip the peanut butter balls, fill a small pot ¼ of the way with water and bring it to a boil.
- Carefully set a large metal bowl over the pot with the chocolate in it. Whisk chocolate until melted. This will only take a couple of minutes. Watch out for steam escaping from the put. I tilt my metal bowl on an angle and allow the steam to escape out the back.
- Whisk firmly and quickly until smooth.
- Then quickly coat the balls one by one in the chocolate. I place a ball in with a small spoon, spoon chocolate over it and then using athin metal icing spatula like this one (less than $4), quickly lift it out from the chocolate and place it on your parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
- Once all balls are coated, chill until chocolate is firm. This simple tool is the most efficient way to lift most things I dip out efficiently without taking too much chocolate with them.
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