I am a Honey Bee

All about my adventures with cooking, crafts, and travel

peanut butter

Peanut Butter Cup Peanut Butter Ice Cream

PEANUT BUTTER CUP PEANUT BUTTER ICE CREAM

post from 4/30/12, pictures updated 7/6/17

What a crazy month!

April has been crazy for us with procedures to buy our first house. It’s been very exciting and stressful… so many phone calls, emails, and things to do! Crazy!

Peanut Butter Cup Peanut Butter Ice Cream_01

Well, that is exactly why I picked this recipe from A Cook’s Quest for this month’s Secret Recipe Club posting. I loved flipping through all the recipe filled pages debating over different things to make but I kept going back to doing this amazing ice cream.

When I saw the recipe for Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream I knew that I had to do it. It would be super simple but so intense.

PEANUT BUTTER CUP PEANUT BUTTER ICE CREAM

And that is what we needed this month considering everything going on. Sometimes a big bowl of ice cream helps melt away all the stress.

It would be the perfect sweet treat to enjoy to end the month. Plus, it would give the ice cream maker a bit of work before being packed up for a bit.

 

This is one the creamiest ice creams I ever made. The high fat content from the peanut butter and that fact that everything is mixed so thoroughly really made this so smooth and creamy.

Peanut Butter Cup Peanut Butter Ice Cream_03

Plus, who can resist the combination of chocolate and peanut butter!?

I found the recipe really easy to make and would definitely make it again and again!

Peanut Butter Cup Peanut Butter Ice Cream_04

Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream

Serves 8 (1/2 cup portions)

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 Cups smooth peanut butter
  • 3/4 Cup sugar
  • 2 Cups 2% milk (alt, 1 Cup skim milk,  1 Cup whole milk)
  • 1 1/4 Cups heavy whipping cream
  • 8 ounces of mini peanut butter cups (alt, chop up regular or miniture sized cups)

Process

  1. To create the ice cream base, use a mixer to combine the peanut butter and sugar until smooth.
  2. Slowly add in the milk and mix until all the sugar is dissolved, approximately 2 full minutes. Add the heavy cream, beat until well combined and smooth.
  3. Refrigerate at least 1 hour to chill the mixture. Freeze the mini peanut butter cups.
  4. After the ice cream base as chilled, follow your ice cream makers directions to process the ice cream.
  5. When you ice cream is done, mix in the frozen peanut butter cups.
  6. Transfer to a storage container. Ensure the peanut butter cups are well mixed throughout.
  7. You can enjoy the ice cream now with a soft-serve consistency at this point.  Or you can let it chill again, for a least another hour to set up

 ____________________

 

Post contains affiliate links

 ____________________

Check out my previous Secret Recipe Club Posts:

March: Sauteed Green Beans with Lemon and Almonds

February: Fried Pickles

December: Shrimp Sriracha Stir Fry

November: Vegetable Enchiladas

October: Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars

Check out the rest of the reveal day posts!



____________________

Thanks for visiting. Please leave me a comment to provide some feedback. I appreciate all the comments I receive. 

 

Warning: Highly Addictive “Muddy Buddies”

It’s always amusing when I bring cake or other goodies into work or school and I watch people attract to it like a swarm of bees. Buzzing around getting their sugar fix and asking how I made it. I was once carrying around some cake to class and someone stopped me and asked about it. Well I shared some slices with him and a friend and as he ran away with his ‘dinner’ he yelled back to me “Thanks Sugar Fairy!!” (new favorite nickname) Well, this happened again yesterday since we had our monthly staff meeting and I brought in Muddy Buddies.

Not familiar with Muddy Buddies? Maybe you’ve heard of Puppy Chow? Still no? Well, imagine a simple piece of Chex cereal becoming host to a chocolate, peanut butter, and butter mixture, and then covered in powered sugar. This simple had just taking a drastic turn into the realm of high addictive pop in your mouth foods.

Simple to make with just a few ingredients. Some melting, stirring and then shaking. Plus if you do it right (not like me) you won’t have many dishes involved in there. A bowl for melting, a big bowl for mixing, a spoon for mixing. Use a BIG ziploc bag and things are really easy then. If you are making a few batches, or like me using 3 boxes of Chex cereal, then be prepared with a few ziploc baggies. Trust me, it makes it a lot easier to use a few than try to resue them a few times. The recipe said to let the Chex cool down after the bounce in the bag but I felt that mine was not too hot and did not need to be laid out on a parchment paper coated cookie sheet.

Chex Muddy Buddies

9 cups of Chex rice or Corn cereal (or a combination)
1 cup of semi sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup of creamy peanut butter
1/4 cup of butter
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 /2 cups of powdered sugar

1) In a large bowl, measure cereal, set aside.

2) In a microwave safe bowl, put the chocolate, peanut butter, and butter together. Microwave on High for 1 minute. Stir mixture. Continue to microwave and stir in 30 second intervals until the mixture is smooth. Add the vanilla extract.

3) Evenly pour the mixture of the Chex cereal and mix together until cereal is evenly covered.

4) Transfer to a large (2 gal) resealable plastic bag. Add the powdered sugar, seal, and gently shake until covered.

5) Store in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer.

Peanut Butter Cookies

My friend Emily asked me what I use for a peanut butter cookie recipe since she wants to try a bacon peanut butter cookie. I think this is genius but what really makes it great is that she has never purchased bacon in her 23 years. Never purchased or cooked meat in fact. She is not a vegetarian but pretty close, except that I have brought her over to the dark side. She tried a big mac after boozy bowling for my 24th birthday. Pretty funny once she spotted a McDonald’s and announced that she wanted a Big Mac so Price had to drive around the block while we ran in. Needless to say Em felt like garbage later.

   

So back to the peanut butter cookies….. this simple question of “what recipe do you like?” prompted me to yank out several cook books to see what possibilities I had to try compared to my usual recipe. Whenever I have made peanut butter cookies I have used My First Baking Book. My mom got it for me when I was 6 and I have used this book several times even though it is a “kid’s cook book”.  To be quite honest I find it hard to believe that kids will be using puff pastry or making eclairs. What 6 year old makes Pate Choux?? 

 

This seems to be an easy and pretty standard peanut butter cookies recipe. While going through my cook books I noticed this was pretty close to a few others that I had. I made an addition to it by adding my homemade vanilla extract. I just think that everything should have vanilla extract. Additionally, I made some without chocolate chips and some with.

 

 

I’m not a fan of peanut butter cookies. I had 1 with the chocolate chips and it was good. Good texture, good flavor but I really don’t like pb cookies and without a sweet tooth I have had not made it my mission to try to perfect the cookie. Maybe I can work on that now. Either way, Price enjoyed them last night. I brought them into work to see what other’s have to say. Hopefully they will enjoy these and trying different recipes until they have picked the best.

Peanut Butter Cookies

2 sticks of room temperature butter
1 1/2 cups light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 cup of peanut butter
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
2 cups of self rising flour
chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat your oven to 350.

Cream the butter and brown sugar together until light and fluffy.

One at a time, add the eggs.

Add vanilla and peanut butter until batter is smooth.

Add the self rising flour until just incorporated. If adding chocolate chips add them in now.

Place teaspoon fulls onto a nonstick/greased/silicon lined baking sheet.

Bake for 12-17 minutes. Let cool on a rack and then enjoy with milk.

Super Rich Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting

IMG_0195

I served this cake yesterday at our monthly staff meeting for our September birthdays. It’s easy to make and it provides great results. The cake is rich, crumby and chocolately and it’s topped with a smooth frosting that is full of peanut flavor. I doubled the recipe to make 2 9×13 cakes that I stacked. I can cut about 48 slices of cake when I use an 9×13 pan. I perfer cupcakes but 1 single cake it a lot easier to transport than a lot of cupcakes.

Super Rich Chocolate Cake

Serves 12-16 people

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 cup coffee*
  • 1/2 cup cold water*
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) of unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 3 large eggs, at room temperature
  • 6 ounces of unsweetened chocolate, melted (Baker’s Brand is good)

Cake pans:

  • Two or three 9 x 2- inch round cake pans
  • One 9 x 13-inch cake pan
  • Muffin Tin (Makes 24, No need to grease & flour prior to using cupcake liners)

 Process 

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare baking pans by greasing and lightly flouring the cake pans. Line the bottoms with waxed paper
  2. In a small bowl, wish together the cocoa, coffee, and water. Add in the vanilla extract. Set aside
  3. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  4. In a large bowl (or freestanding mixer), using medium speed cream the butter and sugar until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Mix in the melted chocolate, mixed thoroughly. Add the dry ingredients into the butter mixture in thirds, alternating with the liquid ingredients, beating well after each addition.
  5. Pour the batter into the pans, dividing evenly. Bake for 20-25 (cupcakes for 20-22) minutes or until cake tester comes out clean. Remove from pan and cool on wire rack.
  6. When the cake has cooled, ice it with the Peanut Butter Frosting.
 

*If you want to taste more coffee flavor the use more coffee and less water, and wise versa. Any adjustments need to equal 1 1/2 cups of a coffee/water combination

 

Peanut Butter Frosting

  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, very soft
  • 2 cups of creamy peanut butter (do not use natural)
  • 2 tablespoons milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 4 cups sifted confectioner’s sugar (with more to add to reach desired consistency)
Process
  1. Beat the butter and peanut butter until creamy, about 3 minutes.
  2. Add the milk and vanilla extract slowly and beat for 3 minutes, gradually add in the sugar and beat until creamy and of desired consistency.