Peanut Butter Cupcakes – peanut butter fans rejoice, these are the perfect cupcakes for you! They are soft, tender, and topped with a decadent peanut butter frosting.
Not going to lie, I simply can’t resist a good peanut butter treat. Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Cookies and Peanut Butter Sheet Cake are two more treats I absolutely love!
Peanut butter is a staple at my house. We eat it on toast, on celery, on crackers, in PBJ’s, and sometimes by the spoonful. My boys will even eat it on carrots!
With our affinity for peanut butter, we of course love it in baked goods and treats. I finally got around to trying peanut butter in cupcakes, and I’m sure glad I did. These cupcakes were a huge hit with everyone in the family.
They start out moist and flavorful, but then they are topped with an incredible frosting. If you’ve never tried peanut butter frosting before, you are missing out! It is so yummy that you will want to eat by the spoonful. Just make sure you don’t eat too much – you want some left for the cupcakes!
How to Make Peanut Butter Cupcakes
Ingredients needed for this recipe:
- cake flour
- baking powder
- baking soda
- salt
- vegetable oil
- creamy peanut butter
- brown sugar
- eggs
- buttermilk
- vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 35o degrees. Line 20 muffin cups with paper liners, set aside.
Whisk together the dry ingredients in a small bowl. In a large mixing bowl, whisk the oil, peanut butter, and brown sugar till smooth. Add the eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla extract and whisk till well blended. Stir in the dry ingredients just till combined. Don’t over-mix.
Spoon batter into muffin pans, filling cups just over half full. Bake at 350° for about 15 minutes or till a toothpick comes out clean.
When they are done, they will be flat and have cracks across the top. They don’t rise up like some cupcakes, which actually makes them easier to frost. 🙂
Cool cupcakes completely, then frost.
Pro Tip: Use a regular peanut butter such as Skippy or Jif. Natural peanut butters don’t work as well for baking.
What can I use instead of cake flour?
If you don’t have cake flour, you can make your own! Measure out a cup of all purpose flour, remove a tablespoon of it, and replace it with a tablespoon of cornstarch. That’s what I always do because I rarely have cake flour on hand.
What can I use instead of buttermilk?
If you don’t have buttermilk, you can substitute 1/2 cup of sour cream + 1/2 cup milk. Or you can make a substitute by adding a tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar to a 1 cup measuring cup, and adding milk till you get a cup. Let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes till the milk curdles.
How to Make Peanut Butter Frosting
You only need 5 ingredients for this frosting:
- soft butter
- creamy peanut butter
- powdered sugar
- vanilla extract
- cream or milk
Beat all ingredients till smooth, adding enough cream to get the correct consistency. Pipe or spread on cooled cupcakes.
I like to use this 1M tip for piping on my frosting. For mess-free piping, check out this tip for frosting cupcakes.
Trust me, if you love peanut butter, you need to try this cupcake recipe!
LOVE PEANUT BUTTER? CHECK OUT THESE RECIPES:
- Reese’s Peanut Butter Ice Cream Cookie Sandwiches
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Energy Bites
- Peanut Butter Snickers Cookies
- Nutella Swirl Peanut Butter Cookies
HERE ARE A FEW MORE CUPCAKE RECIPES TO TRY:
- Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting
- Cream Filled Chocolate Cupcakes
- Thin Mint Cupcakes
- Butterscotch Cupcakes
Peanut Butter Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting
Peanut Butter Cupcakes
Ingredients
Cupcakes
- 1 ½ cups cake flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- 6 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 6 Tbsp creamy peanut butter
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 whole eggs
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Peanut Butter Frosting
- ⅔ cup creamy peanut butter
- 6 Tbsp butter softened
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 4-5 Tbsp cream or milk
Instructions
Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 20 muffin cups with paper cupcake liners, set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk the oil, peanut butter, and brown sugar till smooth. Add the eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla and whisk till well blended.
- Stir in the dry ingredients just till combined. Don't over-mix.
- Spoon batter into cupcake pans, filling just over half full. Bake at 350° for about 15 minutes or till a toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool cupcakes for 5 minutes in pans, then remove to wire racks to cool completely. Frost cooled cupcakes with peanut butter frosting.
Peanut Butter Frosting
- Combine peanut butter, butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and 4 tablespoons of the cream in a mixing bowl.
- Beat till smooth and creamy, adding cream as needed.
Nutrition
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I can see this being a hit with my peanut butter lovers! Thank you for the recipe!
These look amazing!
These cupcakes look divine! Can’t wait to try the recipe!