Peanut Butter Cup Cupcakes

I had a great weekend!  Steve and I had tickets to a Lifehouse concert on Saturday night.  The concert was at a casino that was over an hour away from our house, so we decided that we would make it a mini getaway and stay overnight.  We headed out Saturday afternoon and started out with a nice leisurely lunch in cute little town near the casino.  Then we got settled in at the hotel and before we knew it, it was time for the concert.  The concert was amazing, I wish they would have played all night!  Sunday morning, we got a leisurely start and had a nice breakfast.  As we were checking out of the hotel…..here’s where the story gets good…..we noticed that two of the guys from Lifehouse, the singer and the drummer, were sitting in the lobby.  After we checked out, we walked over to them and said hi and told them how much we liked the concert.  They were so nice!!  They thanked us, shook our hands and told us to have a good day.  My day was totally made!!

So now let’s celebrate with cupcakes.  I took an old cake recipe and tweaked it just a little bit.  I used dark cocoa powder, instead of regular and added a little instant coffee.  The result was a more intense chocolate flavor which is perfectly complimented with the chocolate peanut butter frosting.  My family all agreed that the cupcakes taste like a peanut butter cup.  The cake is actually vegan and it’s extremely easy to make, it turns out moist and delicious.  It’s made entirely from pantry ingredients, which you probably already have on hand, and everything goes into the mixing bowl at once.

The frosting is not vegan, but it is super delicious and easy as well.  It’s a thinner frosting, kind of like a thick glaze.  If you like the chocolate, peanut butter combo, you’ll absolutely love these cupcakes!

Peanut Butter Cup Cupcakes

For cupcakes:

• 3 cups flour
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/3 cup dark cocoa powder
• 2 cups cold water
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp instant coffee granules
• 2 tbsp white vinegar
• 3/4 cup grapeseed oil

For frosting:

• 8 oz heavy cream
• 4 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 4 oz peanut butter chips
• 2 cups powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Line 24 cupcake tins with paper cupcake cups.

Combine all ingredients for cupcakes in a mixing bowl.  Whisk together until well combined.

Divide batter between cupcake tins.

Bake cupcakes for 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Cool completely before frosting.

To prepare frosting, heat cream to a simmer (do not boil) and place chips in  a mixing bowl.

Pour hot cream over chocolate and peanut butter chips.

Let sit for a few minutes and then stir until the chips have melted and everything is well combined.

Let mixture cool completely, stirring occasionally.  Cooling will take about 1 hour.

Once mixture has cooled, beat on high speed, until frothy.

Beat in powdered sugar, one cup at a time.  Frosting will be somewhat thin, somewhere between a frosting and a glaze.

Frost cupcakes.

Store in the refrigerator.

ENJOY!