The Cupcake Monster

This past weekend my momma turned another year younger and we celebrated with some yummy cupcakes! We went to my grandma’s for lunch and then of course Grams made a yummy  cake for mom. I wanted to bring a little something of my own though and thats when I got the idea for these delicious looking peanut butter cupcakes with a peanut butter cookie dough frosting on top. I found the recipe on Faceobook and had it saved away until the perfect moment. Which just so happened to be Mom’s birthday! Now, most of my experience is with cooking and not backing so I was a little nervous as to how this was going to go…

Before I start telling you all about these cupcakes I want to put a disclaimer out there. Baking or doing anything with peanut butter can be a big pain in the bootay. It is sticky and doesn’t spread or come off the spoon when trying to mix it in with the rest of the ingredients. Needless to say, I got a little frustrated with the peanut butter. Be prepared.

Alright, moving on. Making the cupcakes was relatively easy (besides the peanut butter) and turned out pretty well I think. Who doesn’t love peanut butter and cookie dough and put them together in a cupcake and it is almost irresistible.

The cupcake ended up being a little dry and heavy for me but everyone I asked seemed to like it. Next time though, I think I will add a bit more butter and milk to try and help with that heaviness of the cupcake.

If you are not a huge fan of peanut butter and can only handle a little bit at a time, you could try taking the peanut butter out and using 1 cup of butter instead. That way, you only get the peanut butter taste in the frosting!

Here’s what you will need for the cupcake part:

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/3 cup milk (I used a bit more though)
• 1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

Frosting:

• 8 oz. cream cheese, softened ( the real stuff, no reduced fat or fat free)
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1-2 cup powdered sugar (start with 1 and add more depending the consistency you want)
• 3 Tbsp. brown sugar
• 3 Tbsp. all purpose flour
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 cup oats
• 3/4 bag mini M&Ms
• 3/4 cup mini or regular chocolate chips

You will want to start by mixing all the ingredients for the cupcakes together with a stand still or hand mixer except for the chocolate chips. Once all the ingredients are whisked together you will fold in the chocolate chips with a spoon.

Pre-heat oven to 350 degree and while that is heating up you will distribute the batter into the cup cake pan. I used paper cupcake holders because my cupcakes always stick to the pan even when I use a non stick spray. And less cleaning involved when you use the cupcake holders. So fill them about 3/4 way up and stick them in the oven for about 20 minutes! When they are done, you will let cool completely before putting on the frosting. Mine were done right when the 20 minutes were up.

While the cupcakes are cooling, you will make the frosting! You will start by using a stand paddle mixer to mix together the cream cheese, butter, and peanut butter until smooth. The peanut butter will stick everywhere so just be aware.

Then mix in the brown sugar, flour, vanilla and oats. I used the mixer to do this. Then you will add the powdered sugar 1 cup at a time. I added a little extra after the first cup to just give it a little more consistency. To top it all off you will then add the M&Ms and the chocolate chips. Mix them well with a  spoon to just get them evenly dispersed.

When I tried this frosting, I was shocked at how good it was. I probably could have eaten this frosting out of the bowl with a spoon. It was so good that I just like kept smiling while putting them on the cupcakes, I was so excited to try the dang thing. It is a frosting that you could put on any cupcake too. I think it would be good on a vanilla or chocolate cupcake even! Definitely a recipe that I will keep for a long time.

Anyway, once the cupcakes are cooled and the icing is mixed go ahead and put the frosting on! I even had icing left over so just put as much frosting as wanted on those bad boys. When you are all done, pour yourself a glass of milk and sit down at the table and enjoy. It will be worth all the calories I promise.

Until next time,

Chubs.