Happy Thursday! Hope you’re having a good week, enjoying the (fall) season where you are and making plans to bake, if you’d like to, this weekend.
A major craving for one of my favorite sweet and savoury combinations, peanut butter and chocolate, was the driving force behind the baking plans of these little guys.
Rich, delicious, chocolate cupcakes topped with a cloud of peanut butter frosting. Sigh. Heavenly!
The autumn colours around my house inspired the rustic set-up. Thanks to my Dad for cutting the wood discs and my husband for putting the cake stand tiers together last year! {Here’s another post I used it in if you like}.
Tying in the fall theme with some simple mini cookies was easy.
Gingerbread cookies decorated with royal icing…
Some sprinkled with colourful sanding sugar…
… and some I experimented a bit with. The cookie above is supposed to be a pine cone. Emphasis on supposed to be. I’m thinking he looks a little like a textured blackberry. 😉 Think I’ll make the pinecone a little lighter in colour next time and maybe try a different piping tip. {The tip I used here was a PME #44}.
Each one has a mini Reese’s treat on top too, a quick and fun little garnish, and they’re so yummy!
You can find a few more Reeses garnish pics and another topper idea are here, in my contributor post for The TomKat Studio.
The adorable cupcake wrappers and striped straws are from TomKat’s shop btw, and the icing was piped with an #808 Ateco tip.
Hope you have a great weekend and in case you missed it, I’m hosting a KitchenAid mixer giveaway HERE.
Good luck and have fun decorating!
xo,
Marian
Ingredients
- 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup sour cream, at room temperature
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup confectioners' or icing sugar
- 1 cup (creamy) peanut butter
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup 35% cream
- Reese’s pieces or Reese minis as an optional garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place liners in cupcake pan.
- Cream the butter and 2 sugars on high speed until light and fluffy, approximately 5 minutes. (In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment is ideal, but a hand mixer can be used as well).
- Lower the speed to medium, add the eggs and the vanilla and mix well.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk and sour cream. In another bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. On low speed, add the buttermilk mixture and the flour mixture alternately in thirds to the mixer bowl, beginning with the buttermilk mixture and ending with the flour mixture. Mix only until blended. Fold the batter with a rubber spatula to be sure it's completely blended.
- Divide the batter among the cupcake pans (about ¾ of the way for each cupcake). Bake in the middle of the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes, remove from the pans, and allow to cool completely before frosting.
- Mix the confectioners' sugar, peanut butter, butter, vanilla, and salt together. (In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment is ideal, but a hand mixer can be used). Mix on medium-low speed until creamy.
- Add the cream and beat on high speed until the mixture is light and smooth.
- Garnish with mini Reese's cups or topper of your choice
- Recipe adapted from Ina Garten's recipe
p.s. Here are some other autumn-themed posts you might enjoy:
- Autum Leaf & Mushroom Cookies
- Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing
- Woodland Cookies – Owls, Mushrooms and Squirrels
- Gluten-Free Coconut Cupcakes (Racoon, Pumpkin and Apple Toppers)
They cupcake look delicious, and the recipe sounds really good. I will be making these on Friday. The cookies are beautiful (as always). I love the squirrel cookie its adorable. Thanks for the wonderful ideas.
These are so pretty! Lovely idea!
So autumn-y (is that a word?) I love the whole look!
What did you use to pipe the peanut butter frosting as one big ‘mass’?
Have fun making them, @ Lisa Cornely!
Thanks, @ Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar and @ Stampinjul.
I used quite a large, round tip, @ Sarah. I’ll go add a link to the post so you can see it.
I remember that cake stand…so darn cute! And all the cute stuff on it…I must find a squirrel cutter…..
I think the pinecone is brilliant! (as is the rest :))
They look so cute and whimsical. Love it 🙂
What is 35% cream?
Peanut butter and chocolate what a great combination. The cookies were my favorite. I love gingerbread cookies decorated with royal icing even more than sugar cookies. As alway a beautiful presentation.
so cute, I love the mushrooms, they remind me of the smurfs.
Mmm, yummy and so cute!
What a sweet collection! I especially love the texture on the acorns!
These sound DEVINE and beautifully done:) Thank you for continued inspiration and for sharing your talent. Amazing work!
I like your pine cone and think that your cupcakes and all your Fall cookies are spectacular. Love how the addition of the sanding sugar really makes some of them pop. That squirrel is gorgeous!
I am so going to have to try these. They look so delicious and I just love chocolate and peanut butter. I am not sure if I missed it but how many cupcakes does one batch make?
This is my favorite combo peanut butter and chocolate. I can not wait to make these but what is 35% cream? Heavy whipping cream, half and half?
How cute! I think it totally looks like a pinecone! 😉
Hi @ susie: I got my squirrel cutter from Ikea. (unexpected isn’t it!). It’s in a box set with other animal cutters.
Thanks, @ Miss Overballe and @ ThisBakerGirlBlogs. 🙂
@ Jamie, @ Andrea B: 35% cream is heavy cream. The container usually lists percentages; i.e. milk at 1 or 2% and cream is usually 15% (half and half) or 35% (heavy).
@ Marian N, @ Eftychia, @ [email protected] My Sweet Tooth, @ Darlita, @ Paula: Sweet thanks!
Hi @ Jennifer Moshier: It makes about 15 cupcakes. You may have leftover icing, depending on how thick the layer is you put on the cupcakes.
@ Stephanie: Thanks! xo
I love the whole presentation and of course all your beautiful idees of the cupcakes….so very colourful.
thanks for sharing your talents.
ML
It does look like a pine cone!!! Your cookies are always so cute, but I specially like your little squirrels, adorable!
@ Maria Theresia, @ Mary Sanavia: Thanks so much! xo
I love your recipes, than you for share your passion with us. I want to surprise to my husband in 2 weeks we celebrate our anniversary, please can you put a special ans delicious dessert please and thank you for all !!!!
My color was TANGERINE !! I love the color and it reminds me of fall !!
Beautiful presentation as usual both the cookies and cupcakes look delicious I will be making these later today
What beautiful presentation! I’ve been amassing cake stands for about 10 years :). Where can I locate this stand? It would be perfect for my log home!
Thank you!
Beautiful presentation! The cookies are so detailed, I love them!
so awesome! I put this on my Facebook fan page today!
I LOVE all your cookies blog and cookies that you’ve made. You should have your cookie book out. I would order them and have them the gift baskets along with the other goodies.
Great cupcakes and cookies! I love the cake stand tier.
I just cannot stay away from Marian’s site..LOL
I have been soooo inspired by this Cookie Pro!
Thank You so much for allowing me to be here so much and for all the help you have given me since I 2010.
First time I posted, I think but I have been coming here for a long time…:)
These cupcakes were wonderful!
Thank you ladies for your lovely, lovely comments! I cherish every one of them! xo
Would this icing be good for icing a whole cake?
It should cover an 8″ cake, @ Jen, with some leftover. Let me know how it goes. xo
Thank you! And I will! 🙂
So, I made these last night (without the frosting, cuz I just wanted a chocolate cupcake recipe to decorate for St. Patty’s Day). Oh. My. Goodness. They are UNREAL. The best chocolate cupcakes ever!!! So fluffy and rich and flavorful. I’m obsessed. THANK YOU!
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