These shockingly easy peanut butter balls require just 5 ingredients in the filling. Follow all my success tips for dipping into chocolate and use the video tutorial as your guide. These candies are as soft as chocolate truffles and as irresistible as peanut butter cups!
I’ve been making these peanut butter balls for years. I actually have two variations– I published peanut butter M&Ms truffles a few years ago and buckeyes in Sally’s Candy Addiction. Buckeyes are a common treat in Ohio. They’re like peanut butter balls but only partially dipped in chocolate so they resemble nuts from a buckeye tree. My friend lives in Cleveland and introduced me to them 15 years ago. The BEST!
Today we’re completely enrobing the soft and creamy peanut butter filling inside rich chocolate. Obviously the combination of peanut butter and chocolate is enough to convince you and obviously this is exactly what you need to make next. It’s always nice to have an easy no bake treat (that literally everyone will hoard) to share with your other Christmas cookies!
Honestly the Best Peanut Butter Balls (Truffles!)
And here’s why:
- Soft + creamy
- Easy with no baking involved
- Pure peanut butter cup flavor
- Only 6 simple ingredients
- Freeze beautifully
Go ahead and double this recipe. It’s scary how quickly 32 PB balls disappear. Ahh!
Peanut Butter Balls Video Tutorial
Ingredients in Peanut Butter Balls
- Butter: You can use salted or unsalted butter. No need to adjust the added salt in the recipe– I promise these won’t be too salty even if you use salted butter.
- Peanut Butter: Peanut butter is the main ingredient. For best texture, use processed creamy peanut butter such as Jif or Skippy– what I recommend for peanut butter blossoms and peanut butter cup tart, too. I do not recommend natural style peanut butter for this recipe because the filling will be too dry and crumbly. You can use natural style peanut butter in these peanut butter cookies though, if you have a jar that needs using!
- Vanilla Extract: Vanilla adds luxurious flavor. Of course!
- Salt: Salt offsets the sweetness.
- Confectioners’ Sugar: Confectioners’ (powdered) sugar binds everything together and adds sweetness. Without this powdery sugar, the peanut butter filling would be liquid.
- Chocolate: Use pure baking chocolate or chocolate melting wafers. (I love the Ghirardelli brand melting wafers!) Do not use chocolate chips because they do not melt properly– great for chocolate chip cookies, but not so great when we need smooth, melted chocolate like in this recipe. Pure chocolate is sold in 4 ounce bars in the baking aisle. I usually use semi-sweet, but milk chocolate, bittersweet chocolate, or even white chocolate work too. You can use all of these same chocolate options when coating Oreo balls or cookie dough truffles, too.
Think of these no bake candies as peanut butter bars in truffle form. My peanut butter bars have a bit more substance from the graham cracker crumbs. These peanut butter balls, on the other hand, have a purely creamy peanut butter filling. (And they’re even more wildly delicious than they sound, I swear.)
How to Make Peanut Butter Balls
- Beat the filling ingredients together. The filling will be crumbly and look dry, but I promise it will come together with your hands as you roll the balls.
- Roll into balls. Use a Tablespoon scoop to measure 1 scant Tablespoon each. Roll into balls with your hands.
- Chill the rolled balls for 1 hour in the refrigerator. Freezing them works too, but frozen peanut butter balls are difficult to coat in chocolate because the chocolate will slide off or crack. No shortcuts here, just refrigerate for 1 hour or up to 1 day.
- Dip in chocolate. All my success tips below!
- Let chocolate set. Refrigerate the dipped truffles for 30 minutes or until chocolate has completely set.
These peanut butter balls keep well for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator, but that’s honestly a joke. There’s no possible way they will last that long! To freeze the peanut butter balls, let the chocolate set, then arrange in a freezer-friendly container in layers between parchment paper. Freeze the candies for up to 3 months.
Dipping Peanut Butter Balls in Chocolate
If you follow my recommendation and use pure baking chocolate or chocolate melting wafers, dipping peanut butter balls in chocolate is a breeze. Whenever I dip chocolate truffles, Oreo balls, or peanut butter balls, I always use this spiral dipping tool. Place the peanut butter ball in the chocolate and lift it out with the dipping tool. Quickly flip it upside down on the lined baking sheet. You can see how I do this in the video above.
If you don’t have a dipping tool, use the same method we use to dip peanut butter eggs. Simply use a fork to lift the dipped ball out of the chocolate and use a toothpick (or another fork) to slide the ball off the fork onto the lined baking sheet.
Chocolate Dipping Troubleshooting
- Chocolate is too thick: 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil thins out the chocolate so it’s the best consistency for dipping. If you find your chocolate is still too thick, add a little more vegetable oil. Coconut oil works too, but I recommend vegetable oil.
- Chocolate isn’t smooth: It’s too thick. You want thinned out chocolate. See above.
- Chocolate is hardening before I’m finished: This is an easy fix! First, make sure you are working quickly. Second, keep the chocolate fluid by re-heating in the microwave for 10 seconds or use a double boiler. If you don’t have a double boiler, spoon the chocolate into a glass bowl set over a pot of simmering water. This keeps the chocolate slightly warm. Don’t let the water touch the bottom of the bowl.
- Peanut butter filling is sticking: If the peanut butter filling is sticking to the dipping tool or fork, it’s actually too cold. Let the peanut butter balls sit for a few minutes at room temperature. The chocolate could also be too hot. Let it sit for a few minutes to slightly cool down, then try again.
Wait until you taste them straight out of the refrigerator. Have you ever had a cold Reese’s peanut butter cup? It’s like that, but better.
More Peanut Butter + Chocolate Recipes
- Peanut Butter Blossoms
- Scotcheroos
- Peanut Butter Cup Tart
- No-Bake Cookies
- Monster Cookies
- Peanut Butter Cupcakes
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Swirl Cookies
Peanut Butter Balls (Truffles)
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
- Yield: 32 truffles
- Category: Desserts
- Method: No Bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
Using only a few simple ingredients, these peanut butter balls come together in a snap. Follow the recipe closely and review the chocolate dipping success tips and video tutorial above, as well as the recipe notes below before beginning.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (1 stick; 115g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup (250g) creamy peanut butter (not natural style)
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 3 cups (360g) confectioners’ sugar
- three 4-ounce semi-sweet chocolate bars (339g), coarsely chopped*
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
- optional: sprinkles
Instructions
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Set aside.
- With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium-high speed in a large bowl until creamy and smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the peanut butter and beat until combined, about 1 minute. Add the vanilla extract, salt, and confectioners’ sugar and beat on low for 2 minutes until everything is combined. The mixture is supposed to be a little soft, yet very crumbly. (Don’t worry, the warmth of your hands will bring it together.)
- Roll peanut butter dough into 1-inch balls (about 1 scant Tablespoon of dough each) and place on the baking sheet. Keep working and rolling the dough in your hands until the peanut butter balls come together. You should have about 32-35 balls total.
- Cover and chill the shaped peanut butter balls in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour and up to 1 day. During the last few minutes of the chilling time, begin melting the chocolate and oil together. You can melt it in a double boiler or the microwave. If using the microwave: place the chocolate and oil in a medium heat-proof bowl. I recommend using a liquid measuring cup because its depth makes dipping really easy. Melt in 20 second increments in the microwave, stirring after each increment until completely melted and smooth. Let the warm chocolate sit for 5 minutes to slightly cool before dipping.
- Remove peanut butter balls from the refrigerator. Working with 1 at a time, submerge into the chocolate, then carefully lift out using a fork or the spiral candy dipping tool. Tap the fork/tool gently on the side of the bowl/measuring cup to rid excess chocolate. If you used a fork, use a toothpick or a 2nd fork to help you slide the ball off of the fork and onto the baking sheet. If you used the dipping tool, just invert the ball onto the baking sheet. (See video tutorial above for how I do this.) If you have leftover chocolate, reheat it and drizzle on top of the truffles. Top with sprinkles, if desired.
- Refrigerate peanut butter balls for 30 minutes or until chocolate has completely set before serving.
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: You can start this recipe 1 day ahead of time. The shaped peanut butter balls can be chilled in the refrigerator for up to 1 day prior to coating. The coated peanut butter balls can be frozen. Freeze the coated candies for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
- Peanut Butter: This recipe was updated in 2022 to include more peanut butter for better flavor (from 3/4 cup to 1 cup). While it’s great for cooking and eating, natural style peanut butter isn’t ideal for peanut butter balls. The filling will be too dry and crumbly. I do not recommend crunchy style peanut butter for that same reason. It’s too thick and the filling will be too crumbly.
- Chocolate: For the best looking and tasting peanut butter balls, use 4 ounce “baking chocolate” bars found in the baking aisle. I prefer Bakers or Ghirardelli brands. You need about 3 four ounce bars for this recipe, 12 ounces total. You can use semi-sweet chocolate, milk chocolate, bittersweet chocolate, or white chocolate. Candy melts, chocolate dipping wafers (such as Ghirardelli brand) or almond bark work too. Do not use chocolate chips, as they contain stabilizers preventing them from melting into the correct consistency for coating.
- Coating/Melting Chocolate: See all my troubleshooting tips in the post.
- I do not recommend tempering the chocolate for this recipe. Tempered chocolate should not be refrigerated and due to the fresh ingredients in the filling, these candies must be refrigerated.
Keywords: chocolate, peanut butter cup, candy, no bake dessert
I am making these for our daughter’s wedding. I wanted to know if I could substitute extra virgin olive oil for the vegetable oil.
Hi Karen, Olive oil has a distinct flavor. We fear it might have an overpowering flavor in these peanut butter balls, but let us know if you give it a try!
Very yummy and surprisingly easy! <3
★★★★★
I made these for my son for Valentine’s Day and he (we!) LOVED them! They are to DIE for! I roasted and salted some Spanish peanuts I had, chopped them fine, and then sprinkled them all over the top. Delish!
★★★★★
I have been making these for years ( a little different recipe) but mine never looked that pretty. I really think it was the tool you used. Just a skewer and fork always leaves mine a mess. What is the name of the tool you used for dipping?
Hi Beverly, It’s the spiral dipping tool from this set.
Love this recipe ❤️
It was easy to follow and tasted just like a peanut butter cup
Question: Would the balls keep their shape if they aren’t dipped in chocolate? Sometimes I find the chocolate taste too overpowering over the delicious peanut butter goodness…
They wouldn’t hold up well without a coating. How about rolling in cocoa powder?
These were easy and came together nicely, but WAY too sweet. I would try this again with less sugar.
★★★
These were reeeeeeaaaaaalllly sweet for our tastes….I wonder if I could use less confectioner’s sugar for a more peanut-buttery ball? Also, the chocolate pooled around the base of the balls on the cookie sheet, leaving little feet on all the balls. I wonder if putting balls on a wire rack would help the excess chocolate fall off, rather than pool at the bottoms?
★★★
I just made these! They are bonkers easy (25 minutes to make the peanut butter filling and 15 minutes a few hours later to dip them in chocolate) but decadent tasting, and they look very fancy to me.
I just used Ghirardelli dark chocolate melting wafers without additional vegetable oil, and it seemed to work fine for me.
★★★★★
Could I use almond butter instead? My mom always made these for Christmas but my littlest is allergic to peanuts.
Hi Anna, As long as it’s a creamy almond butter and you stir it up extra well before using– it should work!
I have made these for years but I use less powdered sugar and add Rice Krispies and also use crunchy peanut butter. My family and friends LOVE these.
★★★★★
I didn’t measure, so can’t tell you exactly how much I added, but we stirred Rice Krispies into the filling and everyone lost their minds-couldn’t stop eating them. Guestimating that we added 1/2 cup at a time, giving a little stir, then adding a little more, being careful not to dry it out so much that they wouldn’t hold, but allowing for that bit of crunch. We will make them that way from now on! Great recipe!!
Here in Ohio, we call these buckeyes. I made these for the OSU vs Michigan game and everyone loved them! This is a delicious recipe and very easy to make.
★★★★★
Needed a gluten free and dairy free dessert for Thanksgiving. Made with Miyoko’s cultured vegan butter (hadn’t used before) and dough came together very well. Need more practice with dipping chocolate to make them as pretty as Sally’s but they’re delicious!!
★★★★★
Have you ever tried making peanut butter cups? I made them twice and my family devoured them in an hour!
I absolutely adored this recipe! Very rich and sweet. Reminds me of a Reese’s peanut butter cup.
I did not have Confectioners sugar so I used granulated sugar instead. At first it was a bit gooey but then I added a couple tablespoons of milk powder and then it turned out to be the same texture. I decided to use milk powder because flour and baking powder would taste disgusting. I brought it to a family picnic and everyone loved it! Super happy with this recipe, defiantly will try it again.
★★★★★
I’ve made this recipe when I only had granulated sugar so I put it in my blender first and had amazing powdered sugar.
★★★★★
That’s a great idea!
Can I substitute almond butter for the peanut butter?
Hi Amanda, As long as it’s a creamy almond butter and you stir it up extra well before using– it should work!
Hi Anna! While solid coconut oil could be an adequate substitution, we fear it would have an overpowering flavor in these peanut butter balls. Let us know if you give it a try!
I was wondering if I could make these a week ahead and freeze without dipping in chocolate until I had them out of the freezer for a few hours?
Hi Rebecca, That should work. Enjoy!
I made these today but I changed what is suggested for the chocolate and they turned out amazing! This recipe is fabulous. If you don’t have a double boiler or you don’t want to mess with the microwave then I have a wonderful tip for you! I use semi chocolate chips and gulf wax!!! Get a medium pot of water and heat it til it starts to boil then cutting the heat down to medium in a smaller pot put a quarter of gulf wax in and let it fully melt then add a 12oz bag of semi chocolate chips in and let all of it melt stir well. Also I inserted tooth picks in my peanut butter balls so it would be so much easier to dip them in the chocolate. Mine turned out fantastic this is a recipe my Mom and I use to make together when I was a young teenager. I hope these other steps will help others’ out and you enjoy this wonderful recipe. It is Christmas Eve and my family is already enjoying this candy. **Instead of using a regular Tbsp I used a measuring tablespoon made the balls so much better to work with and roll and I ended up with 45 balls….
★★★★★
Love these. Have used high quality chips with the oil and had no issues with consistency!
★★★★★
I agree! Costco Chocolate Chips work just fine!
These are delicious! But for some reason the filling is kind of oozing out of the chocolate. Is this normal?
Hi Kaitlyn, We are glad you enjoyed the tasted of these! Are you using room temperature butter (not melted) and chilling the balls before dipping them in chocolate?
These are delicious and I make them every year! This year I got Ghirardelli melting wafers instead of the bars. Do I still need to add oil if that’s the case?
★★★★★
Hi Sarah! It can depend on the brand of wafers that you use. If you’ve used them in the past and they’ve melted evenly, then you can go ahead and skip the oil. But they may need it still – let us know what you try!
Hi Sally! I was hoping to make these tomorrow but unfortunately the grocery store was absolutely wiped clean of baking bars. I’ve read I can substitute the baking bar with a cocoa powder/sugar/oil mix–will that work for these? Thanks!
Hi Kate, We’ve never tried that so we are unsure of the results. Let us know if you test it!