If you love the combination of chocolate and peanut butter, you will adore these Reese's chocolate peanut butter cup cupcakes! They feature both Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and Reese's Pieces peanut butter candies along with a soft and fluffy chocolate cupcake, and super creamy peanut butter buttercream frosting.
(This recipe was originally published in January 2013, but was updated with new photos and content in 2021).
These Reese's chocolate peanut butter cup cupcakes encompass one of the greatest flavor combinations: chocolate and peanut butter. It's just layer upon layer of delicious chocolate and peanut butter, creating a symphony of flavor and texture.
The base of the cupcake is a traditional Reese's Peanut Butter Cup. Nothing fancy, just everyone's favorite peanut butter confection. A fluffy chocolate cake batter wraps around the peanut butter cup. To top it off, a luscious and creamy peanut butter frosting. Not too sweet, but perfectly peanut buttery. And the final touch? A few colorful and crunchy Reese's Pieces candies.
These are the ultimate chocolate peanut butter cup cupcakes. They will please any chocolate and peanut butter lover in your life. I guarantee it.
Ingredient notes
- Cocoa Powder: Use regular (not Dutch process) unsweetened cocoa powder for this recipe.
- Peanut Butter Cups: Use regular (full size) Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. You can also use miniature sized peanut butter cups if that's what you have on hand, but the full size ones span the entire diameter of the cupcake, which is pretty nice. This should go without saying, but obviously don't forget to peel the wrappers off before putting them in the cupcakes!
- Peanut Butter: Use whichever brand of creamy peanut butter you prefer or have on hand for the peanut butter frosting.
- Reese's Pieces: This is optional, but I love garnishing these chocolate peanut butter cup cupcakes with a few Reese's Pieces peanut butter candies. They add a bit of crunch and color, and of course more peanut butter flavor.
How to make it
Line 12 standard muffin cups with paper liners. Grease the insides of the liners and set aside.
Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, and baking powder in a bowl.
In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter and sugar. Add an egg and mix until smooth.
Stir in half of the dry ingredients on low speed. Then mix in the milk until combined. Finally stir in the other half of the dry ingredients and mix just until smooth but don't overmix.
Add about 1 ½ to 2 tablespoons of batter to each cup and top with a peanut butter cup (do not press it down).
Cover with the remaining batter and carefully smooth it out to cover the entire cup to the edges of the liner.
Bake the cupcakes for about 20 to 22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool cupcakes completely.
Next, make the peanut butter buttercream. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter, peanut butter, and salt until smooth and creamy, about a minute.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the confectioners’ sugar. Beat together until on low speed until just combined, then scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat again on medium-high speed for a few more minutes until light and fluffy.
Fill a pastry bag fitted with whatever large piping tip you prefer (I recommend a large closed star tip) and frost the cupcakes. Decorate each cupcake with a few Reese’s Pieces candies, if desired. I like using one of each color per cupcake.
Please scroll to the bottom of the post for the full recipe (in a printable recipe card) including ingredient amounts and detailed instructions.
Expert tips
This batter rises quite a bit. It may not look like a lot especially when you split it beneath and on top of the peanut butter cups but it will rise all the way to the rim of the pan when baked.
I like the ribbony look of using a large closed star tip to frost these chocolate peanut butter cup cupcakes, and then tucking a few Reese’s Pieces in between the frosting ribbons.
You definitely want to sift the confectioners' sugar so you don't have lumps in your frosting. Especially when using a closed star tip to decorate, lumps can get stuck in there and make a big mess when trying to pipe evenly.
If the peanut butter cup sinks to the bottom of the cupcakes it can get stuck to the liner and be very difficult to peel off. Here are some tips to avoid that happening:
- Lightly grease the cupcake liners with pan spray.
- Be generous in how much batter you put in the bottom, using a minimum of 1 ½ tablespoons but up to 2 tablespoons is fine too.
- Do NOT press the peanut butter cups down into the batter.
- When you cover with the remaining batter, gently smooth it out without pressing down more.
- Do not rap the pan down on your counter to even out the batter. It can cause the cups to sink down.
- Even if your peanut butter cups sink or get pushed down and stick (hey it happens to the best of us sometimes) it's just the bottom layer of chocolate, and the rest of the cupcakes are still delicious!
Other recipes you may like
- Chocolate Cupcakes with Red Wine Buttercream Frosting
- Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes with Bailey's Frosting and Irish Whiskey Ganache Filling
- Boston Cream Pie Cupcakes
- Margarita Cupcakes
- Pink Lemonade Cupcakes
- Chocolate Soufflés
- Honey and Peanut Butter Swirl Marshmallows
Tried this recipe? Please leave a star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating in the recipe card below and/or a review in the comments section further down the page. You can also follow me on social media on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
Reese's Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cupcakes
Ingredients
Cupcakes:
- ¾ cup (95 grams) all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup (20 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ⅛ teaspoon baking powder
- 4 tablespoons (2 ounces / 56 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
- ¾ cup (150 grams) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- ½ cup milk
- 12 Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, wrappers removed
Buttercream:
- 8 tablespoons (4 ounces / 113 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
- ¾ cup (180 grams) creamy peanut butter
- Pinch kosher salt
- 1 cup (115 grams) confectioners’ (powdered) sugar, sifted
Decoration:
- Reese’s Pieces candies, as needed (optional)
Instructions
- Adjust the oven rack to the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Line 12 standard muffin cups with paper liners. Grease the insides of the liners and set aside.
- To make the cupcakes: Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, and baking powder in a bowl.
- In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter and sugar about 5 minutes until smooth. Add the egg and mix until smooth. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Stir in half of the dry ingredients on low speed. Then mix in the milk until combined. Finally stir in the other half of the dry ingredients and mix just until smooth but don't overmix.
- Add about 1 ½ to 2 tablespoons of batter to each cup and top with a peanut butter cup (do not press it down). Cover with the remaining batter and carefully smooth it out to cover the entire cup to the edges of the liner. Bake the cupcakes for about 20 to 22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool cupcakes completely.
- To make the buttercream: In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter, peanut butter, and salt until smooth and creamy, about a minute.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the confectioners’ sugar. Beat together until on low speed until just combined, then scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat again on medium-high speed for a few more minutes until light and fluffy.
- Fill a pastry bag fitted with whatever large piping tip you prefer (I recommend a large closed star tip) and frost the cupcakes. Decorate each cupcake with a few Reese’s Pieces candies, if desired. I like using one of each color per cupcake.
Notes
- This batter rises quite a bit. It may not look like a lot especially when you split it beneath and on top of the peanut butter cups but it will rise all the way to the rim of the pan when baked.
- You definitely want to sift the confectioners' sugar so you don't have lumps in your frosting. Especially when using a closed star tip to decorate, lumps can get stuck in there and make a big mess when trying to pipe evenly.
- If the peanut butter cup sinks or gets pushed to the bottom of the cupcakes it can get stuck to the liner and be very difficult to peel off. Here are some tips to avoid that happening:
- Lightly grease the cupcake liners with pan spray.
- Be generous in how much batter you put in the bottom, using a minimum of 1 ½ tablespoons but up to 2 tablespoons is fine too.
- Do NOT press the peanut butter cups down into the batter.
- When you cover with the remaining batter, gently smooth it out without pressing down more.
- Do not rap the pan down on your counter to even out the batter. It can cause the cups to sink down.
- Even if your peanut butter cups sink and stick (hey it happens to the best of us sometimes) it's just the bottom layer of chocolate, and the rest of the cupcakes are still delicious!
Nutrition
*All nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.*
Tammy says
Made these and they came out great-was a hit for my son’s birthday.