These peanut butter cupcakes have a brown butter peanut butter cupcake base topped with chocolate peanut butter frosting, and garnished with crushed peanuts and Reese's cups!
Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a 12 cup pan with cupcake liners.
Whisk the cake flour, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl.
Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together the softened brown butter and creamy peanut butter until fully combined and smooth.
Then add in the brown sugar and granulated sugar and cream until light and fluffy.
Add in the eggs and vanilla and continue to mix until fully incorporated.
Stir in about half the flour mixture. Then stir in the milk and the rest of the flour and mix until just combined.
Pour about ¼ cup of batter into each cupcake liner (they should be about halfway full).
Bake at 350°F for 18-22 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
Remove from pan and let cool on wire rack. Let the cupcakes cool completely before filling and frosting.
Chocolate Peanut Butter Frosting
Melt the dark chocolate and let cool almost to room temperature. It should be melted but cool to the touch. I prefer to melt the chocolate in the microwave in intervals of 20 seconds, stirring each time.
In a large bowl using a handheld mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the room temperature butter and peanut butter together until smooth.
Add in the powdered sugar and mix until fully incorporated.
Set the mixer to low speed and slowly drizzle in the melted chocolate until it's fully incorporated into the buttercream.
Beat the frosting on high for 4-5 minutes until light and fluffy.
If the frosting in too thick, add in 1 tablespoon of cream at a time to thin it out a bit.
Frost the cooled cupcakes with chocolate peanut butter buttercream. Then garnish with crushed peanuts and Reese's cups!
Notes
These cupcakes will last in the fridge for up to 3 days. However, they taste best when served at room temperature! I like to let them sit at room temperature for about an hour before serving.
For best results, use processed peanut butter like Jif or Skippy that doesn't separate. Natural peanut butter has too much oil and will negatively affect the recipe. To make brown butter, melt unsalted butter over medium heat, stirring frequently. Watch closely for the butter to develop brown specs and a nutty aroma. Once you start seeing brown specs, let cook for just a few seconds longer (watch very carefully or it will burn). Remove from the heat and pour into a small bowl so that it doesn't continue to cook. Set aside and let cool for about 20 minutes in the fridge until soft and pliable. Note: For every ½ cup (1 stick or 113g), you'll lose about 1 tablespoon (14g) to evaporation while cooking. So you can either add in an extra 1 tablespoon before browning, or if you're browning big batches, just make up the weight difference in your recipe with regular unsalted butter if needed.