Peanut Butter and Jelly Cupcakes

There’s just something about peanut butter and jelly that makes you feel like a kid again.  It’s almost as if when you take your first bite, you step back in time.  You can savor the moment, letting out a deep sigh while going, “Mmmmm…”  You feel gitty and young all over again.  This will probably not sound strange to you, since most of you who follow my blog love food and love to make food, but that is how I felt when I got my kitchen back again from this hardwood remodel thing.  I was giddy and excited and probably acted like a little school girl, telling my husband, “I have my kitchen back!  I have my kitchen back!”  And I know he’s appreciated this, because I’ve been making him all kinds of goodies as a token of my appreciation for finishing the project early.  These cupcakes may or may not have been one of my little thank you’s.

So in the two week process it took to put in hardwood for the main living areas, this is what my kitchen looked like.  See what I mean by I couldn’t cook?  I survived the first day, but by the third or forth day, I began to get really annoyed.  I’d have to clear off a little space to cook and clean, only to put the “things” back on the counter.  

We had no storage, so the kitchen counters became the storage.  Eric and I have come to the understanding that we have too many books.  And our understanding is that we will currently keep them.  At least, that’s my understanding.  Anyway, the mess was totally worth it, because my kitchen floor now looks like this:

My counters are all cleaned off, but I figured showing you clean counters wouldn’t be as exciting as a beautiful, new floor.  And Matthew particularly likes the new floors.  It makes it easier for him to move his trucks around.

Okay, back to cupcakes.  These cupcakes consist of a moist peanut butter cake with jam inside, topped with a peanut butter-cream cheese frosting.  Talk about melt-in-your-mouth goodness.  You can use whatever jam you want.  I happened to have raspberry.  (It’s also my favorite jam, but that’s beside the point.)  Make them to remember your childhood.  Make them as a thank you to someone.  Make them for you!  Enjoy! xoxo

Peanut Butter and Jelly Cupcakes

printable recipe

makes: 12-16 cupcakes

Cupcake Batter

1 cup flour

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

1/8 t salt

½ cup sugar

½ brown sugar

¼ cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

½ cup regular peanut butter

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

2/3 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350.  Line muffin tin with cupcake liners.  Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.  Set aside.  In a separate bowl, combine the milk and vanilla.

Using an electric mixer with a paddle attachment, beat both sugars and butter until well combined, about 2-3 minutes.  Add peanut butter, beating until smooth.  Add egg and vanilla, beating well, making sure no trace of egg appears.  Alternately mix in the flour mixture and milk, starting and ending with the flour mixture.  Mix until everything is just fully incorporated.  Spoon batter in each liner about 2/3rds full.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until they are golden brown and toothpick inserted comes out clean.  Cool in pan on top of rack for about ten minutes before transferring to rack to cool completely.  Frost cupcakes once they have cooled.

Peanut Butter Frosting

¾ cup creamy peanut butter

8 oz cream cheese, room temp

1 cup powdered sugar

¼ cup milk

In a medium bowl with an electric mixer, beat together peanut butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar, and milk until smooth and fluffy.

Filling

Jam, your favorite flavor

To assemble:

Once the cupcakes have cooled, use a small paring knife and cut out a small cone in the center of each cupcake. (Using the knife, go around the middle of the cupcake, angling your knife towards the center.) Spoon in the jam and then replace the cone. For the frosting, spoon about ½ of the mixture into a piping bag with a large round tip, such as an Ateco #809.   Using a circular motion, pipe the frosting onto the top of the cupcake, going from the outside in.  With the backside of a spoon, create a small indent, or well, in the center of the frosting, and spoon a teaspoon of jam inside the well.

Store any leftovers in an air-tight container in the fridge.  They will last up to 3 days.

Recipe Source: peanut butter frosting from Sunset Magazine