Peanut Butter Balls - A Beautiful Mess

These chocolate peanut butter balls (also called Buckeye Balls) are delicious and so easy to make. The flavors of chocolate and creamy peanut butter make this the perfect autumn or Christmas dessert recipe. Start a new tradition, making this peanut butter balls recipe every year! My children love helping. Who’s ready to make some treats?

Related: Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies, Peanut Butter Bars, Peanut Butter Fudge, Chocolate Covered Strawberries.

Ingredients

Peanut Butter – You can use creamy or crunchy peanut butter. I used crunchy this time.
Softened Butter – Use salted butter.
Powdered Sugar – For sweetness and texture. This makes the peanut butter balls melt in your mouth.
Graham Cracker Crumbs – You may also use cookie crumbs.
Milk
Vanilla Extract
Salt
Melting Chocolate – You can use any type of melting chocolate including dark chocolate, milk chocolate or white chocolate. I used Ghirardelli.

This recipe is so decadent and indulgent. Don’t skip the vanilla extract or the pinch of salt—it really makes a difference. I used dark chocolate for mine and they were delicious.

How to Make Peanut Butter Balls

In a stand mixer (or bowl), combine peanut butter and softened butter on medium speed until it is smooth.

Slowly add powdered sugar, graham cracker crumbs, milk and vanilla extract to the peanut butter mixture as you mix the batter at medium speed.

Roll the dough into balls and place them on a piece of parchment paper. Freeze the balls for at least 10 minutes before moving on to the chocolate coating.

Use your microwave in 30-second intervals to melt the chocolate. Stir between each interval. Once the chocolate is completely melted, it’s time to dip.

Dip each ball halfway into the chocolate, giving it a shake over the bowl to remove excess chocolate. Place it on a parchment paper covered baking sheet or cooling rack to harden. Once each half has hardened, dip the other half into chocolate. Be careful to cover every part of the ball with chocolate.

Lastly, use a spoon to drizzle chocolate over the top of each ball, creating a textured design. Optionally, you can also add festive sprinkles to your peanut butter balls to match the holiday or occasion.

This recipe makes 20-25 balls depending on how large you make them. If you are a perfectionist, you can use a dough scooper to measure out each ball. I personally like to eyeball it.

Tips For Making

If you don’t have melting chocolate on hand, you can melt chocolate chips or candy bars to use as your chocolate coating.
You may swap the graham cracker crumbs for cookie crumbs of any flavor. Choose peanut butter cookies for even more delicious peanut butter flavor. They taste just like Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. Or choose chocolate cookies to create a nice flavor variation.
If you don’t have a microwave, try a double boiler to melt your chocolate or use an electrical melting pot.
If you want to dip your balls all in one step, try using a spiral dipping tool or a fork.
Don’t like peanut butter? You can use any type of nut butter including almond butter, cashew butter or even cookie butter to make this recipe.
Add festive sprinkles if you are celebrating a holiday.

More Chocolate & Peanut Butter Recipes

Frequently Asked Questions

How long do Peanut Butter Balls last?

You can store these in an airtight container for up to two weeks in the refrigerator and longer in the freezer. Although I should note that they are so delicious they probably won’t last that long.

Is it better to use creamy or crunchy peanut butter for Peanut Butter Balls?

Choose what you love! Creamy and crunchy peanut butter both make excellent peanut butter balls—the only difference is a little extra crunch and texture when using crunchy peanut butter.

Get our FREE recipe guide with our most popular recipes of all time!

Get the Guide

Get the Recipe

Learn to make creamy Peanut Butter Balls using peanut butter, graham cracker, butter, salt, milk, powdered sugar, vanilla and melting chocolate.

Yield 20 balls

Prep 30 minutes

Freezing time 10 minutes

Instructions

In a stand mixer (or bowl), combine peanut butter and softened butter on medium speed until it is smooth.
Slowly add powdered sugar, graham cracker crumbs, milk and vanilla extract as you mix the batter at medium speed.
Roll the dough into balls and place them on a piece of parchment paper. Freeze the balls for at least 10 minutes before moving on to the chocolate coating.
Use your microwave in 30-second intervals to melt the chocolate. Stir between each interval. Once the chocolate is completely melted, it’s time to dip.
Dip each ball halfway into the chocolate and place it on a parchment paper to harden. Once each half has hardened, dip the other half into chocolate. Be careful to cover every part of the ball with chocolate.
Lastly, use a spoon to drizzle chocolate over the top of each ball, creating a textured design. Optionally, you can also add festive sprinkles to your peanut butter balls to match the holiday or occasion.

Notes

If you don’t have melting chocolate on hand, you can melt chocolate chips or candy bars to use as your chocolate coating.
You may swap the graham cracker crumbs for cookie crumbs of any flavor. Choose peanut butter cookies for even more delicious peanut butter flavor or chocolate to create a nice flavor variation.
If you don’t have a microwave, try a double broiler to melt your chocolate or use an electrical melting pot.
If you want to dip your balls all in one step, try using a spiral dipping tool or a fork.
Don’t like peanut butter? You can use any type of nut butter including almond butter, cashew butter or even cookie butter to make this recipe.
Add festive sprinkles if you are celebrating a holiday.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts

Peanut Butter Balls

Amount per Serving

% Daily Value*

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated, using Spoonacular, for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.

Peanut Butter Balls – A Beautiful Mess