These Reese’s Peanut Butter Cupcakes are always a crowd favorite! Chocolate cupcakes with peanut butter frosting and a Reese’s chocolate baked in the center.
It’s been really difficult writing this post, editing the pictures and getting it ready to share with you guys. It’s been a constant reminder that ALL I WANT is another one! Or two. Or three.
I’ve been dreaming of them ever since I made them. Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting and a mini Reese’s chocolate baked in the center. BEST CUPCAKES EVER! You can never, ever go wrong with chocolate and peanut butter.
Use a standard muffin pan and place a muffin liner in each muffin cup. Fill with chocolate cupcake batter until each liner is half full. Place a Reese’s peanut butter cup in the center of each cup filled with batter. Now your cupcakes are ready to bake! Be sure to allow them to cool completely before frosting.
When your guests are ready to eat one they’ll find a happy suprise in the center: a Reese’s chocolate!
The peanut butter frosting is the really winner with these cupcakes and it couldn’t be easier to make.
How to make peanut butter frosting:
My biggest tip for making peanut butter frosting is to use a commercial brand of peanut butter, NOT natural or homemade peanut butter! I recommend Skippy of Jif. If you use a different kind of peanut butter you may experience separating, oily or texture issues.
Start by using an electric mixer to mix together the butter and peanut butter until completely smooth.
Add the powdered sugar, vanilla and milk and mix again until smooth. The butter/powdered sugar/milk ratio here always yields a perfect thick and smooth frosting for me. If you’d like it a little thicker add a bit more powdered sugar, or if you’d like it thinner, add an extra splash of milk.
Once the cupcakes have cooled, frost them with the peanut butter frosting. I used a Wilton 1M decorating tip and an Ateco decorating bag to frost these cupcakes, but you could even use a plastic ziplock bag with a small hole snipped from the corner to pipe the frosting on.
*Disclaimer….these cupcakes are made using a cake mix (gasp!). Here’s the honest truth. As much as I totally believe in cooking everything from scratch (here’s my favorite homemade chocolate cupcakes recipe) I believe there is a time and a place for boxed cake mixes. I “doctor” cake mixes all the time–I change the add-in’s so that the end result tastes like they’re from scratch!
Sometimes you only have 5 minutes to throw together a treat, and the batter for these cupcakes only takes that long! And the best part is no one will ever guess (or care) that you used a cake mix!
Try my other popular cupcake recipes:
- German Chocolate Cupcakes
- Chocolate Cupcakes with Oreo Cream Frosting
- Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
- Thin Mint Cupcakes
- Caramel Filled Chocolate Cupcakes
You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM and PINTEREST for more great recipes!
These Reese's Peanut Butter Cupcakes are always a crowd favorite! Chocolate cupcakes with peanut butter frosting and a Reese's chocolate baked in the center.
- 1 box chocolate cake mix
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup milk
- 1/4 cup oil (vegetable or canola oil)
- 2 heaping Tablespoons plain Greek yogurts
- 30 mini Reese's Peanut Butter Cups , divided
- 1/2 cup butter (1 stick), room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2-3 Tablespoons milk
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 regular muffin tins with cupcake liners.
Mix together the cake mix, milk, eggs, oil and Greek yogurt until smooth. Spoon batter into cupcake pans, filling the liners 1/2 full.
Place a Reese's PB cup into the center of the batter in each cup (it's okay if the the tops of the Reese's are showing, like photo above).
Bake cupcakes for 16-20 minutes or until done. Allow to cool completely before frosting.
Beat together butter, and peanut butter and mix until smooth.
Add powdered sugar and vanilla and beat again until combined.
Add milk and mix until light and fluffy. (Add more milk or powdered sugar if needed to make the frosting thicker or thinner).
Frost cupcakes (I used a wilton 1M tip in the photos above).
Chop up the remaining pieces of Reese's and gently press into frosting.
Store leftover cupcakes, covered, in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Recipe Video
*For a completely "from scratch" chocolate cupcake recipe, here's my favorite
To make ahead:
Bake and cool cupcakes 1 day in advance. Keep them covered tightly at room temperature and frost the day of serving.
Unfrosted cupcakes can also be frozen up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before frosting and serving.
Have you tried this recipe?!
RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear your experience.
*I originally shared this recipe April 2015. Updated June 2018.
Thalia @ butter and brioche says
Nothing beats the combination of chocolate and peanut butter. Thanks for giving me just another excuse to enjoy it with these Reese’s cupcakes!
Alice says
Peanut butter cups are my guilty pleasure and these cupcakes looks so good!
Dawn says
The 1/2 cup of evaporated milk or cream in the frosting…..is that heavy cream?
Lauren Allen says
yes, heavy cream of evaporated milk will work great!
Sylvia Ann says
I can’t wait to try these! I am wondering if I should keep the cupcakes refrigerated before serving them?
Lauren Allen says
Hi Sylvia, They would do well, covered, in the fridge, before you serve them. Let them sit at room temp for at least 10 minutes or so to allow the frosting to soften before you serve them 🙂 Hope you love them!
alycia geniera says
nice recipe! Look so delicious cupcakes 🙁 can I try to make it? I don’t know
jennifer says
These look sooo good! Question though….why is your site called “tastes better from scratch” when these are clearly not made from scratch. A box cake? Really? Not really from scratch but if you say so…
Lauren Allen says
Hi Jennifer, you must have missed my “disclaimer” right above the recipe. I address why I’m using a doctored cake mix, AND I have a link to my favorite homemade chocolate cupcakes recipe if you want to make them from scratch.
Andrea says
Do I place the Reese’s flat out standing on the ridges?
Hayleyjo says
Could you use Adams chunky peanut butter for the frosting?
Lauren Allen says
I’ve never tried it but it should work fine 🙂 –It may be more difficult to pie the frosting on (if you were planing on that)….
Natalia says
These look so good and i’m so excited to make them!!!
Question: How long do these last?? And the frosting?? Like if I put frosted cupcakes in a box how long will the last? Or would they last longer if I had them kept seperately from the frosting?
Thanks!
Lauren Allen says
Hi Natalia, If you put the cupcakes in a box and they were well covered (like a bakery cupcake box) you could refrigerate them and they’d be great for about 1-3 days. If you have to store them at room temperature they would really be best the same day, possibly the next day. Another option would be to make the frosting and store it in the fridge for several days in an airtight container. Then make the cupcakes and store them in a ziplock freezer bag for several days. On the day you are ready to serve them, remove the frosting from the fridge a few hours in advance to let it come to room temperature. Then frost them. 🙂 Hope that helps!
Shellie says
How long does the frosting last?
Lauren Allen says
Hi Shellie, the frosting will last for at least 1-2 weeks, refrigerated in an air-tight container.
Erin Powers says
I am pretty upset with myself for using this recipe right now. They are for my sons Valentines Day party today, and the cake part is AWFUL. Cardboard dry. I followed this recipe to a T. I am a dessert caterer, I KNOW better than to follow a recipe, but was pimched for time. Will not ever use this “cake” recipe again. Grrrrr….
Lauren Allen says
Hi Erin, I’m really sorry you had a bad experience with the cake recipe. I really don’t know how they could turn out dry–this recipe is just a “doctored” cake mix. Do boxed cake mixes usually turn out dry for you? What altitude are you?
Louisa says
These look so yummy!! I want to make them for my sons birthday party, which is tonight. Can I substitute the Greek yogurt with sour cream?
Lauren Allen says
You can absolutely substitute Greek yogurt! YUM! Hope he has a great birthday!
Lynn Parry says
I tried these and the candy sunk to the bottom and when taking the cupcake out of the paper the candy stuck to the paper. Not good. Will not make again!
Amy says
I greased my cupcake liners and before placing the peanut butter cup into the batter I dipped the bottom in a bit of flour. This keeps the candy from sinking completely to the bottom.
MM says
If I make these the day before do I need to refrigerate them or can they stay loosely covered at room temperature overnight?
Lauren Allen says
Either way is fine! I usually refrigerate mine, but room temperature is fine to. You could place a big tupperware or bowl over them so that the frosting doesn’t get smashed. Good luck!
Christina says
For those who love peanut butter, this recipe will become a favorite. The mint brownies look tasty as well.
Lola says
I can’t finde the recipe! Why is that? There’s just a link but I can’t open it…
Lauren Allen says
Hi Lola, I’m so sorry, my site had a some technical problems this morning for a short window of time. It should be fixed now! Let me know if you need anything else! Hope you enjoy the cupcakes!
Cathy Saynuk says
I made the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cupcakes and had a problem with the frosting. It was entirely too oily from the 1 1/2 cups of smooth peanut butter and the 1 stick of butter. I did use evaporated milk. It actually never got a light and creamy consistency to it like in the picture. I added more powdered sugar and continued to whip it but it still was separated. I finally patted it between my hands to apply it to a cupcake, like I would fondant. My hands were very oily. It did have a great taste. Please advise. Thank you.
Kathy says
I had exactly the same problem. I am using homemade peanut butter (just peanuts in my Blendtec) without sugar added, followed the recipe amounts for the powdered sugar and the evaporated milk but had exactly the same experience. Help!
Catie says
I also had the exact same issue – made two batches and both were terribly oily and unusable. Ended up googling a peanut butter frosting recipe and using that instead
Lauren Allen says
Hi Catie, what type of peanut butter did you use? If it was natural peanut butter or a homemade peanut butter like the comments above then it wont turn out the same.
Krystal says
I don’t have greek yogurt on hand. Is there something else I can use?
Lauren Allen says
You could substitute sour cream!
Justin Haslem says
My wife made these for a family party and they were a huge hit. Everyone asked for the recipe. Thank you!
Tori says
Why do you use greek yogurt? Is there something else that can be used besides sour cream as well?
Lauren Allen says
Greek yogurt and/or sour cream make the cake moist. You could try substituting buttermilk.
Sam says
How many cupcakes is this recipe supposed to make?
Lauren Allen says
This recipe makes 2 dozen cupcakes
Lauren says
Looks yummy. Can’t wait to make. Do you use unsalted butter or salted?
Thanks!
Lauren Allen says
You can use either. If you use unsalted butter for the frosting, you could add a tiny pinch of salt, if you want. 🙂
Lauren says
Thanks!! 😄
Anna says
How many cupcakes can you frost with the frosting recipe? It looks like the recipe makes 24 cupcakes. Should I double the frosting recipe to be able to frost them all?
Lauren Allen says
Hi Anna,
The recipe makes about 20-24 cupcakes and the frosting does not need to be doubled! It should be enough to frost all of them! I hope you enjoyed them.
Beth says
Would this recipe work as a 9×13 cake using regular sized reese’s peanut butter cups?
Lauren Allen says
I think that would work great! I’d love to hear how it turns out!
Melissa says
Would you recommend freezing the reeses cups first, to help keep their shape while baking?
Lauren Allen says
Hi Melissa,
It wouldn’t hut to freeze them but I don’t think it’s necessary. Hope they turn out great!
Nicole says
Hi – can you bake this as a cake too instead of cupcakes? Thanks. Nicole
Lauren Allen says
Sure! Bake in a 9×13” but adjust the baking time. Check it starting around 25 minutes. Enjoy!
Mary S Sullivan says
Made these for the first time. I used your chocolate cupcake recipe. My daughter gave it 2 thumbs up and she is an honest critic. The recipe is easy to follow and the final result is beautiful
Lauren Allen says
Thanks Mary! I’m so happy the critic gave these a thumbs up 🙂 . Thanks for commenting.
Katie says
OMG I am in love! I made these for a work potluck and they were the gone in the first 10 minutes. They are so good and a perfect combination of peanut butter and chocolate! Will definitely be making again.
Sage Maroney says
I made the scratch recipe and will say absolutely delicious. My cupcakes were amazing and the frosting is out of this world. My only problem I had is when I took the wrapped off the cupcake, the reeses peanut butter cup tended to stick to the paper and as you pull it away would tear the cupcake. Is there a trick at adding the peanut butter cup and not having it stick?
Lauren Allen says
Hi Sage, I’m so glad you liked them! Next time you could lightly spray the bottom of your liners. Or you could toss the peanut butter cups in a little bit of flour to try and help them not sink to the bottom. Hopefully one of those would help 🙂
Sandy says
I make these chocolate peanut butter cupcakes alot..but I have problems with the frosting sliding off the cupcakes.What can I do different to keep the frosting on the cupcakes..I’m making some for a wedding so need to know what I’m doing wrong?.thank you
Lauren Allen says
Hi Sandy, I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed them! The only thing I could think that’s causing the frosting to slide is if the cupcakes are not completely cool.
Monica says
Hey there. I JUST made these! Wonderful recipe! But I have a problem.. I’m not a baker… More of a cook? Baking is more like a science. So I had all the ingredients except with the frosting. I also did the mixing out of order! I mix all the ingredients at the same time with a mixer. Not one at a time. One: I searched a few recommend alternatives for powder suger;, everyone said cornstarch with granulated sugar. Followed that. Also, I didn’t have an vanilla extract. If it’s anything like cooking, a teaspoon off won’t matter. wrong?! Also, I only had half a stick of butter. (Lol) ALSO, The milk I used was Silk Almond Milk. I’ve substitute many recipes with that milk and I know it will taste different, but my outcome in this particular recipe is the texture. I mixed and mixed and there’s still little pieces of sugar!!!! It’s like eating sand, it’s sandy! Any idea what to do?? Is it because I mixed it all together instead of separate? How do I fix it? It’s covered in the fridge for now. Thanks for your help….
Monica
Lauren Allen says
Hi Monica, I would definitely recommend sticking to the recipe next time and I know you’ll have better results 🙂 Granulated sugar in place of powdered sugar in the frosting wont work–that’s were you’re getting that sandy texture from.
Monica Afnani says
Maybe I can heat it up…
John mech says
I made them last night and they were great I used your made from scratch cake recipe amazing cupcakes thank you for Sharing them
Victoria says
The frosting recipe just says milk, but reading the comments I’m seeing evaporated milk or heavy cream. Can I just use reg milk
Lauren Allen says
Yes, any of those, including regular milk, will work!