Peanut Butter Cups

Who can wipe out a pack of peanut butter cups? 

And don’t need to? This girl and her husband.

I ordered a few cookbooks the other day in search of recipes that fall into the healthy category. Let me rephrase that. Dessert and snack recipes that fall into the healthy category. Inside “Plant-Powered Sweets & Treats 35 Healthy Desserts to Rejuvenate Your Whole Body” by Dr. Amanda Levitt, I found this gem...Semi Sweet Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups. This recipe is gluten free, dairy free and vegan. Now, I don’t have celiac disease, am not lactose intolerant or a vegetarian. We just want to eat food that is not packed with preservatives when we can. We are terrible back-sliders and will be spotted at eating establishments from time to time.

Andy asked me if they really were healthy. Hmmm. Depending on who is defining that. I live by the all things in moderation. As long as we don’t inhale the whole dozen in one sitting, I feel good about what I fixed.

Is it easier to buy a pack of PB cups? Yes, but these were pretty easy to fix. It was a very enjoyable experience which I plan to repeat for my visitors at the end of the month. Grand baby Cooper will be making his first overnight visit to the river and daughter-in-law Amanda, who does have celiac disease, will enjoy a break and these treats.

These are the goodies I used to prepare a dozen of these wonderful treats. 

4 oz. package of baker’s chocolate, busted up into sections

1/2 cup coconut oil 

1/2 cup natural creamy peanut butter (no sugar or oil added)

1/4 cup 100% pure maple syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

Pinch of salt

Chopped peanuts to top

Sometimes you just have to roll with the situation and come up with a solution. We were at the cabin when I got the urge to fix these. All my muffin tins are at the house so I just doubled up my liners and guess what? It worked out just fine.

Here’s how I fixed these peanut butter cups:

Make a double-boiler out of a pan and a serving bowl that nicely fits on top. 

Put about two inches of water in the pan and set the heat to medium-high.

Add the chocolate chunks, coconut oil, extract and maple syrup to the bowl and

 stir it until it slowly melts. Remove from heat. Add a pinch of salt and blend.

Pour one tablespoon of chocolate into each of the liners.

Place in the freezer and let them set for about 15 to 20 minutes.

Once the base layer of chocolate is set, top each cup with a teaspoon of peanut butter. 

I got a little heavy handed, which made it difficult to top with the remaining chocolate. 

Nobody is complaining though.

Top the peanut butter with the remaining melted chocolate. 

Top with chopped peanuts. We tend to keep pecans on hand so that’s what I used. 

Pop the tray back into the freezer for another 15 minutes or so.

Store peanut butter cups in the freezer until you are ready to eat them.

Each batch makes a dozen so you will have six nights of delicious bedtime snacks...

if you just behave. (We probably won’t)