Chocolate Cups with Peanut Butter and Marshmallows

Recently, I saw a video posted on Instagram by Pinch of Yum for really-easy-looking homemade chocolate cups with peanut butter. I was instantly intrigued. Immediately I thought of a client of mine who I try to make treats for every now and then, but the drawback was that the recipe called for coconut oil. I understand the logic – it can be warmed and liquified to mix with the cocoa powder and then reset as it cools again – but the problem is my client can’t eat coconut. What to do?!

So, I got to thinking about an alternative…

I thought about how I make chocolate bark. Warm, melt, mix, set. Seemed like the perfect solution! I got to it and a few versions of these fun little homemade treats were born! Here’s how I do it:

Overhead view of homemade chocolate cups filled with either peanut butter or marshmallow fluff and strawberry jam.

First, melt the chocolate. Call me old fashioned, but I like to melt chocolate the double-boiler way – by setting a large, heatproof bowl over a saucepan with a few inches of boiling water and stirring until the chocolate is smooth. Lots of people prefer to do it in a microwave instead. Whichever way you choose, melt about 2/3rd’s of the chocolate, then remove from heat and stir in the remaining chips. Stir until everything is melted and smooth.

Then, scoop about 1 tablespoon of chocolate into muffin cups lined with paper cupcake liners. I’ve played around with both a regular muffin tin and a mini muffin tin. Both work perfectly well. The minis are super fun, and you make more, however, they are too easy to eat at rapid fire! So, just consider yourself warned!

Muffin tin cups lined with melted chocolate and dollops of peanut butter.

Next, top with a small dollop of peanut butter. Then, cover with more chocolate and for added flair, inspired also by the Pinch of Yum post, a sprinkle of course salt. Yum and Done!

Muffin tin filled with melted chocolate for homemade chocolate peanut butter cups.

I’m happy to report, these worked splendidly well for my client who can have chocolate and peanut butter. But of course, I couldn’t stop there. Armed with this new method, I had to get a little more creative. So, voila, my marshmallow-strawberry jam-rice krispy chocolate cups were also born. Sure, my client can’t enjoy these, BUT my friends can!!!

Taking the same chocolate method as above, I then stir in rice krispy treats to the melted chocolate. This adds so much texture, I absolutely love it. Then, instead of peanut butter, I add a dollop of marshmallow fluff followed by some strawberry jam. Cover these two fillings with a layer of melted chocolate. And, now you have jammy-fluffy-marshmallow-stuffed chocolate treats to enjoy!

Muffin tin filled with melted chocolate and topped with dollops of marshmallow fluff and strawberry jam.

One easy tip, it does help to work quickly here. You don’t want the chocolate to harden before you’ve finished covering all the cups. I like to store these in the refrigerator so they stay fresh longer, but then I also like to let them soften at room temperature before eating. I’m complicated like that!

In either case, these are so fun to make and my experiments simply show how versatile you can be. Next time, I’m pretty sure I’m gonna do a marshmallow-peanut-butter version, ‘cuz how good does that sound?! Or, how about a PBJ chocolate cup? Why Not!? Get creative and have fun!

Overhead view of homemade chocolate cups filled with either peanut butter or marshmallow fluff and strawberry jam.

Homemade chocolate cups broken in half with marshmallow fluff and strawberry jam oozing out.

 

Print
clock clock iconcutlery cutlery iconflag flag iconfolder folder iconinstagram instagram iconpinterest pinterest iconfacebook facebook iconprint print iconsquares squares iconheart heart iconheart solid heart solid icon
Homemade chocolate cups filled with either peanut butter or marshmallow fluff and strawberry jam.

Chocolate Cups with Peanut Butter and/or Marshmallows

  • Author: Emily Wilson
  • Prep Time: 15 Minutes
  • Cook Time: 20 Minutes (for chilling)
  • Total Time: 35 minutes
  • Yield: 9-16 1x
  • Category: Sweets
  • Cuisine: American

Description

Everyone loves the classic peanut butter chocolate cup. Making them from scratch is super simple and fun for all ages, plus, then you can add any flavors you enjoy most with chocolate!


Ingredients

Scale

For the Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups – Makes about 9 regular:

  • 12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • about 3 tablespoons peanut butter, or almond butter
  • flaky salt, like Maldon

For the Rice-Krispies & Marshmallow Chocolate Cups – Makes about 10 regular:

  • 12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup Rice Krispies cereal, plus more for topping
  • 912 teaspoons marshmallow fluff
  • 912 teaspoons strawberry jam, optional

Instructions

For either version, start by melting the chocolate:

  1. Fill a medium saucepan about 1/3 of the way with water. Set over high heat and bring to a boil.
  2. Line a muffin tin with parchment muffin liners. You can also use a mini muffin tin.
  3. Pour about 2/3 of the chocolate chips into a heat-proof bowl. Use a bowl that sits on top of the saucepan without touching the water. Once water is boiling, lower heat to a simmer and set the bowl of chocolate over the top. Stir occasionally as the chocolate melts.
  4. Once the chocolate is melted, remove from heat. Stir in remaining chocolate chips until chocolate is smooth.

For the Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups:

  1. Scoop about 1 tablespoon of melted chocolate into the bottom of each muffin cup. Follow by scooping about 1/2-1 teaspoon of peanut or almond butter on the center of each chocolate. Use less if you are making minis. Finish by scooping chocolate over the top, using a spoon to push the chocolate over the sides, too.
  2. Sprinkle the chocolate with flaky salt. Then, transfer to the fridge. Allow chocolates to set for about 20 minutes. They taste great straight out of the fridge while cold, but I also like to let them warm to room temp before eating.

For the Rice-Krispies & Marshmallow Chocolate Cups:

  1. Stir 1/2 cup of Rice Krispies cereal into the bowl of melted chocolate. Scoop about 1 tablespoon into the bottom of each muffin cup.
  2. Next, scoop about 1/2-1 teaspoon of marshmallow fluff into each cup, followed by 1/2-1 teaspoon of strawberry jam, if using. Finish by scooping more of the chocolate-Rice Krispies mixture over the top, using a spoon to push the chocolate over the sides to completely cover the filling.
  3. Sprinkle some Rice Krispies over the top of each chocolate cup. Refrigerate for 20 minutes or so to set.



4 thoughts on “Chocolate Cups with Peanut Butter and Marshmallows”

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe rating

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.