needs more sugar

I keep a draft email in my inbox at work called BIRTHDAYS. It’s my go-to so I can make sure I don’t miss an occasion to bake a sweet treat for my dear work friends.

After being here for just over a year, they know it’s coming.. so rather than risk picking a flavour or treat they don’t like, I just ask “what would you like me to make?”

The latest birthday (Happy Birthday Sexy Steve!) request was for…. Reece’s Peanut Butter Cups Cupcakes.

Of course I was more than happy to oblige, and I knew exactly where to go to for a recipe.

Do you know how hard it is to resist the temptation of all these sitting in my kitchen? About six hards, that’s how many!

Ingredients:
(Makes 12)

Cupcakes:
1 cup plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
Pinch of cinnamon
85g unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup peanut butter (I used smooth)
1 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
1/2 cup full cream (or whole) milk

Ganache:
3/4 cup chocolate chips (I used dark to offset the saltiness of the peanut flavour)
1/4 cup heavy cream (double cream)

Frosting:
1 cup peanut butter
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups confectioners sugar
8 tablespoons milk

Method:

For the cupcakes:

1. Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F)
2. Mix the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl
3. In a separate bowl cream the butter, peanut butter and brown sugar until smooth
4. Add the vanilla and the egg, mix until combined
5. Add the mik and the flour mixture from step 1 alternately while still mixing
6. Pour into cupcake cases until about 2/3 full
7. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean

For the ganache:

1. Put the chocolate chips into a bowl
2. Bring the cream to a boil in a small saucepan, then remove from heat
3. Pour the boiled cream over the chocolate and let stand for 1-2 minutes
4. Gently fold the cream and chocolate into itself until smooth, being careful not to incoporate any air (this will ensure you get a silky, glossy ganache)
5. Set aside to cool

For the peanut butter frosting:

1. Beat the peanut butter and vanilla until blended
2. Add 3 tablespoons of the milk and sugar while beating
3. Add 4 more tablespoons of the milk and the rest of the sugar and beat until smooth (add more milk bit by bit if the mix is too dry)
   Note: If you’re preparing your frosting a little ahead of time you might need to add a drop more milk and re-mix it, the peanut butter tends to set the frosting

To decorate:

1. Pipe the peanut butter frosting ontop of the cooled cupcakes
2. Drizzle the chocolate ganache across the tops of cupcakes – use your creative licence as I did. SO MANY STYLZZZ
3. Top with a bit of a Reece’s Peanut Butter Cup

I’ll leave you with a little parting note.. it’s written in ganache, so it must be true. OBEY THE CHOCOLATE!

..although based on this penmanship, I’m not going to be the first to get my chocolate writing licence.

Tags: chocolate, nuts, peanut butter

This entry was posted on April 15, 2011 at 10:11 am and is filed under cupcakes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.