Chocolate and peanut butter are a match made in dessert heaven. These Peanut Butter Balls (Buckeye Balls) are easy, delicious and PERFECT for the holidays!
Chocolate and peanut butter are a match made in dessert heaven! Everyone knows that. But you know what’s even better? When that delicious combo comes in bite-sized Peanut Butter Balls (Buckeye Balls) – they are so easy and quick to put together! These buckeye balls are an excellent treat for the holidays. You could make them along with these pretzel turtles, that would make for a lovely food gift for the holidays!
PEANUT BUTTER BALLS (BUCKEYE BALLS)
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Peanut butter balls are a favorite in my home. Peanut butter and chocolate is a combination that I love and have used in my baking for as long as I can remember, so it’s no surprise, that these buckeye balls are a regular come holidays. I love this combination so much, I even made peanut butter and chocolate cheesecake (buckeye brownie cheesecake) for my Secret Layer Cakes cookbook (and is pictured on the cover page too!).
These no-bake peanut butter balls come together in minutes, and you can make it more fun by getting your kids involved when you’re ready to dip the peanut butter balls in the chocolate.
How to make Peanut Butter Balls
All the ingredients are placed in one bowl and mixed until you have a wet mixture that forms into smooth balls of dough. You can increase the amount of confectioner’s sugar to make the peanut butter dough a little stiffer, but I prefer them a little softer. I even added more peanut butter, because why not? 🙂
Insert toothpicks into the balls, and let them chill in the fridge. Once chilled, it’s time to dip in the melted chocolate. That’s it!
What’s the best type of chocolate to use for dipping?
You can use any chocolate that you like to eat. I prefer semi-sweet chocolate, but you’re welcome to use milk chocolate, bittersweet chocolate, or even white chocolate. You can add shortening, or coconut oil to make it easier to dip the peanut butter balls in chocolate, though I prefer not to add shortening because then the chocolate shell softens very quickly at room temperature.
But by using chocolate chips or chocolate almond bark, the dipped chocolate peanut butter balls won’t melt quickly at room temp and can be stored well in the fridge.
These buckeye balls travel well too. You could pair them with these delicious Oreo balls and gift them to your friends and family for the holidays! 🙂
Can I use crunchy peanut butter?
I prefer to use smooth peanut butter, but if you do like the added crunch and texture of crunchy peanut butter, then go for it! Just be mindful that the peanut butter balls won’t be as smooth.
How can I remove the toothpick hole from these buckeye balls?
It’s not a big deal, but if you prefer to cover the toothpick holes, there’s an easy solution. Use an offset spatula, or the flat side of a knife, and gently smooth over the peanut butter balls to remove the toothpick hole. Alternatively, you can use a tiny bit of remaining peanut butter to plug this hole and then smoothen it over with a spatula or butter knife.
You can store these easy peanut butter balls in an air-tight container at room temp for a few days, or in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. They can be eaten chilled or at room temp.
If you like peanut butter, then you’ll love these recipes too!
- Pumpkin Spice Peanut Butter
- Peanut Butter and White chocolate Chip Cookies
- Peanut Butter Cookies
- Double Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars
- No Bake Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Bars
- More desserts…
Tools used to make this Peanut Butter Balls recipe
2 tbsp Cookie Scoop – These are the perfect sized cookie scoop to make these peanut butter balls. This scoop is great for making cookies and truffles too. You’ll always get perfect portions with this scoop.
Mixing Spoon – A handy silicone mixing spoon to mix all the ingredients together to form the peanut butter dough.
Hand-held Mixer – If you want to make this recipe even easier, you can use a hand-held mixer to mix all the ingredients together, instead of the mixing spoon.
Microwavable glass bowl – To melt the chocolate.
Parchment paper –Â I ALWAYS use parchment paper to put the peanut butter balls on. This is especially helpful after they’ve been dipped in the chocolate. They will peel off the parchment paper easily without sticking.
Offset Spatula –Â This little spatula makes frosting cakes and cookies a breeze!
Ingredients
Peanut Butter Mix
- 1 ¾ cup smooth peanut butter (16 ounces)
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened (4 ounces)
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 4 cups powdered sugar sifted (1 lb)
For Dipping
Instructions
- Place the peanut butter, unsalted butter, salt and vanilla in a bowl. Use a mixing spoon or a hand-held mixer to mix the ingredients to form a smooth paste.
- Add the confectioner’s sugar - a little at a time, and mix it into the peanut butter, until well mixed. (The mix will get stiffer as you add confectioner’s sugar. If you need to, use clean, dry hands to knead the mix to make sure everything is well combined).
- If you find the peanut butter mix to be too soft, add some extra confectioner's sugar (up to an additional 1/2 cup) to get the consistency you like.
- Using a 2 tbsp cookie scoop - portion out the peanut butter mixture. Roll each piece into a smooth ball and keep it on a parchment paper-lined baking tray. Repeat with all of the peanut butter mix.
- Insert a toothpick into each peanut butter ball. Refrigerate for about 2 hours (or longer), until chilled.
- Once the peanut butter balls are chilled and are ready to be dipped, prepare the chocolate dip.
- Place the chocolate in a dry, clean, microwave-safe glass bowl. Microwave in 20-second intervals, stirring in between until most of the chocolate chips have melted, but some lumps are remaining. Then stir the chocolate until all of the chocolate has melted, and is completely smooth. This melting technique prevents the chocolate from getting too hot.
- Using a toothpick, dip each peanut butter ball into the chocolate, and swirl to coat evenly. Make sure NOT to cover the top of the peanut butter ball, so that some of the peanut butter peeks through the top.
- To get rid of excess chocolate - hold up the dipped peanut butter ball by the toothpick, and gently rotate it. Place the dipped peanut butter ball back on the parchment paper-lined baking tray. Repeat with the remaining peanut butter balls. Then, remove the toothpicks, and use an offset spatula or the flat part of a butter knife to smooth the toothpick holes over. Return the peanut butter balls to the fridge for a few minutes to set.
- Serve.
Nutrition
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