By Nicole Souza
Staff Writer
What has peanut butter, chocolate, and is not a Reese’s? Peanut Butter Chocolate Balls have been a holiday recipe tradition in my family for quite some time. These sweet treats never get old, and they certainly go fast when they hit the table after dinnertime.
My family has experimented with this recipe by using and not using Rice Krispies, using the cereal to make the dessert more solid and sturdy. This year, I decided not to use the popular cereal, and the peanut butter chocolate balls still came out the same.
A warning: making this delicious dessert will require a lot of bowl and finger licking afterwards, for the peanut butter and chocolate are drippy and sticky, but scrumptious and tasty.
Makes 30. Hands on time: approximately 30 min.
Ingredients: (not using Rice Krispies)
- 3/4 cup of creamy peanut butter
- 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
- 2 cups confectioner’s sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 pound bittersweet chocolate (small chocolate chips)
Directions:
- With an electric mixer, beat the peanut butter and butter until creamy. Mix in the confectioner’s sugar, vanilla, and salt (the mixture will become crumbly).
- Make tablespoon-sized balls of dough and place on a wax peer-lined baking sheet. Freeze until firm, about 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a medium heatproof bowl set over (not in) a saucepan of barely simmering water, melt the chocolate, stirring often, until smooth. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.
- Resting each ball on the tines of a fork, lower it into the chocolate. Refrigerate on the baking sheet until the chocolate is firm, about 30 minutes.
Store suggestions: Keep the balls refrigerated between sheets of wax paper in an airtight container, for up to 3 weeks.
Enjoy!
