A Peanut Butter Lover's Dream

aka my dream.

i love peanut butter

i just found lauren's blog and read her ode to the red chair. 

i am tempted to write one for my peanut butter cupcakes now. but i will spare myself. and you.

pb cookies are my favorite.  so when i saw martha's recipe for pb cookie cupcakes i thought wow. combine my 2 favorite things. this oughta be good! and they were!

I had one right after i made them.  and i planned on that being enough for the day. which i was able to do.  but the next day... a whole other story. what made it worse was that i was reading out of my history textbook all day to catch up on missed reading.  so of course i am not paying attention to what i am reading, but rather the pb cupcakes upstairs.  so i had to give myself goals.  30 pages= another cupcake.  :) thank goodness i only got to 30 pages that day!

I went home last weekend and was able to take the remaining dozen to people that would actually eat them.  everyone enjoyed them.  except grandma didn't like the pb frosting on top...

i definitely recommend anyone that likes peanut butter to try these. i used a WHOLE 16 oz jar of pb for them.  :)

PEANUT BUTTER CUPCAKES

1. 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2. 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3. 1/2 teaspoon salt
4. 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
5. 3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
6. 1 1/3 cups sugar
7. 2/3 cup natural, creamy peanut butter
8. 3 large eggs
9. 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
10. 1/2 cup sour cream
11. 12 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
12. 1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, plus more for decorating
13. 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
14. 1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line 3 standard 12-cup muffin tins with paper liners.
2. Make the cupcakes: Whisk flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a medium bowl. Put butter and sugar into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy. Reduce speed to low. Mix in peanut butter. Mix in eggs, 1 at a time, and vanilla. Add flour mixture; mix until combined. Mix in sour cream.
3. Spoon scant 3 tablespoons batter into each muffin cup. Bake until pale golden and a cake tester inserted into centers comes out clean, about 13 minutes. Transfer to wire racks; let cool completely.
4. Make the frosting: Put cream cheese, confectioners' sugar, and butter into the clean bowl of a mixer fitted with the clean paddle attachment; mix on medium- high speed until pale and fluffy. Stir in peanut butter with a rubber spatula.
5. Spread 1 1/2 tablespoons frosting onto each cupcake. Refrigerate until frosting is firm, about 10 minutes. Using tines of a fork dipped in confectioners' sugar, score each top in a crosshatch pattern. Cupcakes can be refrigerated in single layers in airtight containers up to 2 days.