Monday 31 October 2011

Treat: Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups!! and Trick: Last Day of Vegan MoFo

We actually had Treat-or-Treaters come asking for candy tonight...the first I have ever encountered in Australia (if you're reading from the US, know that it's not really done here!). Luckily we had a bag of lollies laying around or they probably would have gotten some carrots from the fridge instead...

Anyway, in the spirit of Halloween and the last day of Vegan MoFo, I decided to make some peanut butter cups - in the style of Reese's Peanut Butter cups, a staple of any American child's Halloween haul.

This recipe is a combination of a few found on the web - it is also super easy!

Ingredients to make 12 mini cups:

  • 220g of dark chocolate (chips or bar will do)
  • 1/2 cup peanut butter (smooth is better but chunky will do!)
  • 1/8-1/4 cup icing sugar
  • a pinch of salt

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Chop and then melt the chocolate in the microwave on medium heat. I did about 75g at a time and it took about two minutes for that amount, though you should check every 45 seconds or so to make sure it's not in danger of burning. Once melted, give a good stir and pour into mini cupcake papers. Spread around the sides to coat. The chocolate on the bottom should be about 1/2 cm's worth.

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Once all of the papers have been coated, put your tray in the freezer for about 30 minutes. Before you take the tray out of the freezer, heat your peanut butter for a minute or two in the microwave then add the icing sugar and salt and mix well. Put about a centimeter's worth of peanut butter in the centre of your cups and then pop the tray back in the freezer for another 30 minutes or so - just until it's hardened a bit.

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Remove from the freezer, re-melt your chocolate and coat the peanut butter until the chocolate comes up to the top line of the chocolate sides of the cup - try to make the tops as level as possible - the top should be flat, not cone-shaped. Put the tray back in the freezer for at least another hour, remove and then carefully peel the papers off the cups. Done!

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I store these in the fridge and pull out a bit before serving so they are closer to room temperature.

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So, Vegan MoFo is over! My idea was to post every day, and I'm happy to say I only took a few days off throughout the month. I'm happy to have tried new things this month and be inspired by so many other blogs - plenty of which I will be keeping up with in the future. Thanks to everyone who stopped by this month and please come back - I've got plenty more ideas of yummy things to make in the next few months!

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4 comments:

  1. What a great way to end mofo, love all things pb and choc particuarly pb cups. Congrats on ending mofo, you made so many yummy dishes!

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  2. Thanks! They are so addictive! Now that MoFo is over, I need to concentrate on making some more healthy stuff...

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  3. Yuuuum! I fell in love with peanut butter cups when I was a student in America, but home-made ones are always better. Especially if they're made with dark chocolate, like yours!

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  4. They look seriously fantastic!!

    And how good is that Whittaker's chocolate? Have you guys tried the Cleo's peanut butter cups?

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