Mint Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls

Kelly Kapowski serving up a delicious, chocolatey treat

Ever wonder what happened to Kelly Kapowski?

Well, she (and by she, I mean the actual actress who played her, Tiffani Thiessan) has her own cooking show now on Cooking Channel. It's called Dinner at Tiffani's (good, right?), and I believe the whole concept is her inviting celebrity friends over for a dinner party and serving the delicious meals that are explained to the viewers.

I have to admit that I haven't actually watched the show, but I did find one of her recipes online for peanut butter chocolate bites, and I will forever thank her.

I made a few modifications to it and turned peanut butter chocolate bites into...

... MINT CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER BALLS.

That's right. And THEY. ARE. DELICIOUS.

They're one of my favorite treats ever, and it's a no-bake recipe.
Make them. Make them twice.

Here's how.


INGREDIENTS

Peanut Butter Filling:

• 2-½ cups peanut butter (smooth or chunky is your choice)
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature (aka one stick of butter)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 3 cups confectioners' sugar

Chocolate Coating:

• One 12 ounce bag of dark cocoa mint candy melts*
• 2-½ tablespoons of coconut oil

*You can use whatever kind of chocolate in candy melt or chip form, but once I discovered that Wilton made dark cocoa mint melts, I knew that was the only way for me to go. You can get them at Michael's Arts and Crafts stores. In fact, go to their website, click on the coupons link at the very top and use the 40% off any regular priced item that they almost always have.

UPDATE (5/2018): Michael's does not seem to carry the mint chocolate candy melts anymore. While plain chocolate is fine and good, I recommend adding peppermint extract to the melted chocolate mixture (start with a couple of drops and add to taste).






INSTRUCTIONS

Mix the peanut butter, butter and vanilla together. I recommend a mixer with the paddle attachment on a low setting. Gradually add the confectioners' sugar while it is mixing.

Once thoroughly meshed, roll filling into 1–1-1/2 inch balls and place on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper (or with a non-stick silicone baking mat, which is what I have and totally love).

I had to change the name from bites to balls since they're too big for one bite (and balls is funnier**)

Stick balls into refrigerator for a few minutes while you make the chocolate coating.

Melting the chocolate in a double boiler (or double boiler substitute***) is, in my opinion, the best way to do your melting. The candy melts packaging says microwaving is an option, but that's never ended well for me. With a double boiler, you can't overheat your chocolate, and you can keep it nice and warm and melty so it stays consistent and smooth while dipping stuff into it.

Shiny and ready to cool

Whatever your method, melt the chocolate and coconut oil together.

Then get those peanut butter balls out of the refrigerator and roll them in the chocolate using a spoon. Return to the parchment/silicone baking mat once they're nicely coated. If you have extra chocolate, you can drizzle it over the balls if it's just a little or chocolate-coat some other foods (large marshmallows were my choice when I had too much left over the first time I made these).

Refrigerate for an hour or so until they've cooled and the chocolate has hardened. It'll be hard to resist, so clean up in the meantime by licking any spoons and bowls that have chocolate on them. Of course, make sure they're cool enough—safety first!


Now enjoy the crap out of them. You've earned it by making them.

Finished and waiting to be devoured

**Seriously, balls is funnier. I most recently made these for a baby shower, and since she was having a boy, having something in ball form just felt extremely appropriate. Don't pretend like you're above this kind of humor. We've all laughed at it before.

***My double boiler substitute consists of a saucepan, colander that fits into it and a glass bowl that can hold all of the chocolate.

I fill the water so it's no higher than an inch up from the bottom of the glass bowl. If the water ends up getting bubbly and boily, then I don't want it to get into the glass bowl with the chocolate. Ideally, this shouldn't happen since I like to keep the heat at a low-medium setting.