GROWN-UP PEANUT BUTTER CUPS
BECAUSE THERE'S STILL A LITTLE KID IN ALL OF US!
Did I mention yet that I'm not a Reese's peanut butter cup lady? Or a Kit Kat lady? And, pretty much after I found out Snickers (my all-time fav candy bar as a little girl) is just an assembly line of peanuts disguised in caramel sauce and chocolate, I'm not really a Snickers lady now either? I've always been a heavily-opinionated chocolate purist; only interested in the darkest of dark, accented by bits of orange or espresso here and there, but never, NOT EVER down with adding peanut butter to the mix. I know I know, I must have some of you up in arms now, wanting to fight me down after sharing that last thought. But it's too late. It is out there, and maybe you have to absorb it to appreciate what I'm about to admit next. What's interesting is, I'm not a peanut butter lover at all. The flavor is too prominent, and I don't know, maybe something traumatic happened to me as a little girl regarding peanut butter and bullies? No clue, but the point is, I opt for almond butter usually, and I snack on cashews and pistachios, and basically any other nut. And OH! I never get a trail mix with peanuts, because basically it's just a big bag of peanut-marinated.
It dominates EVERYTHING, relentlessly. And why would I pay for expensive macadamias If I want them to taste like salty peanuts? I'm too much of a control freak to let someone or something else monopolize my taste buds!Eric, on the other hand is one of those classic, peanut-butter-with-his-chocolate people. In fact, for him, it's the exact opposite. He'd prefer to keep the chocolate to a minimum, maybe even absent altogether. Which I'll never understand, along with his hatred for mayonnaise. As a little boy, he was obsessed with Reese's Pieces. I had remembered last year, around his birthday, we walked into a breakfast/bakery shop in Dallas, and at the front of the cafe was a glass case filled with an assortment of baked goodies. One was a Reese's Peanut Butter Cheesecake. His eyes lit up like a fluorescent sign, and I took note. That year, however, I ended up making him a Raw Vegan Key Lime Pie for his birthday. He absolutely went wild for it, and I figured I'd save the Homemade Reese's treat for another birthday celebration.
Which in fact was yesterday. No I didn't make my health-conscious guy a Raw Vegan Peanut Butter and Chocolate Tart like I had initially planned, I made mini treats so he wouldn't be tempted to eat the entire cake like he did last year.
These were peanut butter cups larger than the store-bought versions, filled with ground espresso, chia seeds, and flax seeds, and made with bittersweet dark chocolate chunks. The thing is, and every peanut-butter-with-their-chocolate person might appreciate this, I could NOT stop eating them. And now I believe I understand why they are a classic pair.
Things you'll need:
Makes 9 EXTRA large Peanut Butter Cups
1.5 cups of Trader Joe's Flax and Chia Seed Peanut Butter
1 heaping cup of powdered sugar
1 10oz bag of bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chips
Your favorite Ground espresso or coffee for sprinkling
9 Aluminum Cupcake tins
Melt the chocolate chunks in the microwave using a microwave-safe bowl (it should only take around 90 seconds. Careful not to burn the chocolate.
In a separate bowl, mix together the peanut butter and the powdered sugar.
YUM YUM YUMMMMM
Then separate the peanut butter dough into nine equal balls, and flatten them in your palm.
Place them on top of the bottom layer of chocolate inside the tin cups.
It's ok if the patties touch the sides of the tin. This will make the cups looks more homemade and beautiful because once you unravel them, you'll get to see bits of peanut butter oozing through the sides!!
Cover them each with the remaining melted chocolate, sprinkle them with freshly ground coffee or espresso beans, and then let them sit at room temperature to harden.
I couldn't wait though, I placed my guys in the freezer.
The chocolate police might come and get me!!!
But they just hardened so fast, away from Boston's humidity. And because I only left them in there for roughly 45 minutes, they were the perfect texture.
My teeth slid through the chocolate and the gooey peanut butter effortlessly!
ENJOY!
