This Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls recipe is my favorite candy for the Holidays and so incredibly Easy to make! These are like little Reese’s Peanut Butter cups, but in ball form.
I’m pretty much a peanut butter fanatic and love making desserts using peanut butter including out Reese’s Cookies, Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie Cups, No-Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie. If you love peanut butter like I do, you definitely want to check these out.
How To Make Peanut Butter Balls
These are a must for our Holiday cookie plates and the most requested. They are so simple to make and the kids can make these all by themselves. They might need a little bit of help on the dipping part, or things could get a bit messy.
Ingredients you will need…
- Creamy Peanut Butter
- Powdered Sugar
- Butter
- Semi-sweet Chocolate Chips
- (optional) Vegetable Shortening or Coconut Oil
First, you make the peanut butter dough…
Then you form the dough into balls…
Next, you dip the balls into the melted chocolate…
Now the dangerous part. Try…just try to eat one. It’s incredibly difficult because these are melt in your mouth delicious!
Add Christmas sprinkles on top of the peanut butter balls for a festive Holiday look. It’s become a family tradition to make these for holidays and parties. These are are so great because it’s a quick and easy no-bake treat when your making a gazillion other goodies. It’s a guaranteed winner for the Christmas cookie tray.
Can You Freeze Peanut Butter Balls?
Yes! These will freeze perfectly. Make sure the balls are completely set (hardened back up) and line them in a tupperware container. Add a piece of wax or parchment paper on top and repeat until full. Seal the top.
How long do They last?
You can store in the freezer for up to 1 month.
You can also drizzle extra melted chocolate on top for a different look.
Peanut Butter Ball Tips:
- You can use any nut butters for this recipe. Almond butter, cashew butter, etc…
- Make sure the balls are chilled before dipping.
- We love these Chocolate Dipping Tools, but you can always use a fork for dipping. A toothpick will also work. Expect a bit of a mess, but it will work.
- You can melt the chocolate in the microwave in 30- second increments, or over a double boiler.
- You can use chunky peanut butter instead of creamy if you prefer. We also like to add in Rice Krispies sometimes for some texture.
- Add any type of holiday sprinkles, chopped peanuts, sea salt or whatever you prefer. It’s all good!
4-ingredient Peanut Butter Balls
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
- 3 Tbsp salted butter softened
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
- 1 Tbsp vegetable shortening or coconut oil optional
Instructions
- Mix the peanut butter and softened butter together in a mixing bowl. Gradually stir in powdered sugar until fully combined. Cover and place in the fridge for about 15 minutes to firm up.
- Using your hands, shape the dough into 1-inch balls. Place the balls on a baking sheet, cover and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes (this will hold it's shape for dipping).
- Melt the chocolate chips according to package instructions.
- Using a fork, dip the peanut butter balls one at a time into the melted chocolate. Allow the excess chocolate to fall off. Place the chocolate balls onto wax paper, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Last Step:
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Once you try this recipe for chocolate covered peanut butter balls, it will be your go to recipe! It’s SO GOOD!
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265 comments on “4-ingredient Peanut Butter Balls”
Very tasty and easy to make!! Thanks for sharing!!
these are very tasty and love all the different pics with ideas you can do. even at Cmas. thanks!
Can you use milk chocolate chips ?
Yes, this will work fine.
Can I use unsalted butter?
Absolutely!
I doubled the batch and made 24..
Excited to try them!
I LOVE PEANUT BUTTER. This was very easy to make and tastes delicious. Had fun making this with my kids. Thank you for sharing.
I’ve made the recipe once. It is easy peasy. I loved them and my little granddaughter loves, loves, loves them!! I’m making a double batch today. They are absolutely delicious!!
I love all these new recipes.I am sharing with our fire department. They are really good.
Made these today, and they are quickly disappearing. Made exactly as recipe states and they are delicious. This is the 3rd recipe I’ve tried and I won’t look any further because these are absolutely PERFECT!!!!
Can I add coconut?
Hi Tracey. Yes you could add coconut or try our chocolate coconut ball recipe or mounds bar recipe.
I made the chocolate peanut butter balls and they were so creamy!!! I love them!!!!
How many does this recipe make?
24 servings
I decrease the icing sugar and replace it with graham wafer crumbs. It cuts down on the sweetness.
May the ‘Hand of the Lord’ forever REST upon the Hearts of you and your family… especially your beautiful sons that they grow up to be GODLY Men
who have a Heart for GOD our Father and to be Ardent Lovers of GOD even after the Heart of JESUS our Father’s Holy Son. Amen & Amen
You and your sons are BEAUTIFUL!!!
Can you use chunky peanut but for this?
Absolutely!
I added a little paraffin wax to the chocolate. It makes eating much less messy since the chocolate doesn’t melt so easily.
I also add grated paraffin! It thins down the chocolate and it doesn’t cool off as quick.
How much paraffin wax did you use?
In Ohio we leave a small area uncovered on the peanut butter ball and call them Buckeyes (ie, the eye of a buck deer)
Yeah that’s not what they mean when they call them a buckeye. They look like a buckeye nut from a buckeye tree…
We always called the Buckeyes because of they look like the Buckeye nut
I thought it was like the buckeyes that fall of tress and used as a good luck charm. Because that’s what they look like
But where does the buckeye nut get its name? Possibly because it looks like the eye of a buck deer?
Karen is exactly right and everyone loves our Buckeye candy. PLEASE HOWEVER, DO NOT EVER TRY TO EAT A REAL BUCKEYE NUT!!! THEY ARE POISONOUS.
There seems to be some controversy about where buckeyes got their name, so I searched on the internet and found this:
britannica › plant › buckeye
buckeye | tree | Britannica
buckeye, any of about six species of North American trees and shrubs in the genus Aesculus of the soapberry family (Sapindaceae). The name refers to the resemblance of the nutlike seed, which has a pale patch on a shiny red-brown surface, to the eye of a deer. Like many of the related Eurasian horse chestnuts (also of the genus Aesculus), a number of buckeye species are valued as ornamental …
So, Karen dear, you are correct! I always wondered and I’m glad you shared.
where do you put the veggie/coconut oil in the recipe
I would put it with the chocolate when melting it. It’s to add a gloss
Ohio is known as the buckeye state, for their buckeye trees.
This is what a buckeye looks like, and why the cookie was named this way. It has nothing to do with an “eye of of a deer buck”.
I added in a half cup of peanut butter whiskey to give mine a kick!
Any suggested substitute for the butter to make this dairy-free?
Can you use almond bark for the coating if you don’t have chocolate chips?
Yes you can. I did.