Nutty goodness.

I've always had a love/hate relationship with peanut butter. Hated it as a kid, semi-loving it as an adult. There are times when I just crave a good peanut butter slather on a freshly baked pan de sal and sometimes, I'm just over it. That's exactly what happened to my last jar of peanut butter. After consuming half the bottle (not in one sitting, btw), I'm pretty much done. Since I hate wasting food, I thought I'd just incorporate my leftover peanut butter into a baked good. That way, I get to enjoy it one last time.

So I turned it into muffins! These peanut butter muffins are great for breakfast or snack, best paired with a hot beverage. Don't expect a fluffy cupcake-like texture; these are quite dense and quite filling. You really get that peanut butter flavor then get a hit of chocolate in every bite. What can I say, I quite love a pb and chocolate combo!

For these muffins, makes sure you love eating the peanut butter you'll put in them. I LOVE Peanut Butter & Co.'s crunchy peanut butter (pretty much the only pb I buy) so that's what I put in mine. Some peanut butters are more on the sweet side so just adjust the sugar measurement accordingly. The chocolate chips can be easily substituted with chopped nuts, dried strawberries, or even peanut butter chips to amp up the peanut butter flavor more. You can also do a PB & J version by omitting the chocolate chips and filling the muffins with your preferred jam instead. These muffins are pretty customizable so do what your heart desires.

Enjoy!

PEANUT BUTTER & CHOCO CHIP MUFFINS

(adapted from TheRecipeCritic.com)

Yield: 12

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour, sifted then measured

1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

a pinch of salt

1/3 cup butter, softened

2/3 c sugar (if using a sweeter peanut butter, reduce to 1/2 cup; if using salted peanut butter or prefer sweeter muffins, increase to 3/4 cup)

2 eggs, room temp

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

a little over 1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter

1/3 cup milk

1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350F and line a 12-cup muffin pan.

2. In a bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

3. In another bowl, cream butter and sugar until fluffy and light in color. Add in vanilla and peanut butter and mix until just combined.

4. Add in eggs one at a time.

5. Add in flour mixture into the butter/peanut butter mixture and while mixing, slowly add in the milk. Mix until just combined. 

6. Fold in chocolate chips and mix for one last time.

7. Pour batter into the muffin pan and bake for 20-23 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

8. Let cool for 5 minutes and transfer onto a wire rack. Enjoy!