Homemade peanut butter chocolate lava cakes are the ultimate dessert decadence. Each rich, fudgy, and warm chocolate cake is filled with melty peanut butter and topped with vanilla ice cream. You’ll be surprised at how quickly this indulgent dessert comes together!
Welcome to the best dessert on earth! I’m pretty sure we haven’t lived until we’ve all had a peanut butter chocolate lava cake. Today’s peanut butter version is just like my chocolate lava cakes recipe, only filled with peanut butter. The great news is that this recipe makes 4 individually sized peanut butter chocolate lava cakes and the bad news is that this recipe makes 4 individually sized peanut butter chocolate lava cakes. Let’s be honest here… self control fades fast when you have 4 chocolate lava cakes in the house.
These Peanut Butter Chocolate Lava Cakes Are:
- Rich and fudgy
- Easier than you think
- Made with only 7 ingredients
- Super quick—only 12 minutes in the oven (it joins 30+ others in my collection of Quick Dessert Recipes—ready in 1 hour or less!)
- Decadent and indulgent
- Gooey in the center
- Perfect for small dinner parties, date night, or as a Valentine’s Day treat
- Peanut butter + chocolate!!
I worked at Chili’s throughout college—I know a good molten lava cake when I see one. While the molten cakes came to the restaurant frozen, a quick zap in the microwave made that chocolate completely ooze out with the first bite. Molten cakes are obviously a crowd favorite, but believe me when I say this: they’re 78,439x better made fresh at home with pure chocolate and lots of butter.
Ingredients in Peanut Butter Chocolate Lava Cakes
You only need 7 basic ingredients for today’s peanut butter chocolate lava cakes. I adapted this recipe from Food and Wine. Let’s review:
- Chocolate: Pure chocolate is the base of these lava cakes. Use quality chocolate—no cheap varieties and absolutely no chocolate chips. (Save them for your chocolate chip cookies!) You will be dreadfully disappointed if you use lower quality chocolate. I prefer Ghirardelli or Lindt.
- Butter: Butter is melted with the chocolate for incredible taste and decadence.
- Flour: We only use 1/4 cup of all-purpose flour for added structure—too much and the cakes would dry out.
- Confectioners’ Sugar: A little confectioners’ sugar sweetens the cake—don’t expect a super sweet chocolate cake. These are very rich as opposed to very sweet. In my recipe testing, I preferred confectioners’ sugar over granulated sugar. I found the cakes had a grainy texture with granulated.
- Salt: Salt adds flavor.
- Eggs: The most important ingredient! There are 2 whole eggs and 2 egg yolks in this recipe (2 egg whites and 4 egg yolks total)—an entire egg yolk in each cake. The egg yolks provide unique moisture and richness to each cake and the egg whites give structure, combining all the ingredients into one smooth batter and 4 sturdy cakes.
- Peanut Butter: Each lava cake is filled with creamy peanut butter. Do not use natural style peanut butter, crunchy peanut butter, or any other nut butter. The best, in my peanut butter lava cake experience, are commercial brands like creamy Jif or Skippy.
How to Make Peanut Butter Chocolate Lava Cakes
They may look fancy and complicated, but peanut butter chocolate lava cakes are incredibly simple to make. Let’s review the quick and easy steps:
- Prepare 4 ramekins.
- Make the chocolate cake batter.
- Spoon the batter evenly into each ramekin.
- Top each with peanut butter. Use a spoon to slightly press it down into the batter.
- Bake. The high oven temperature cooks the outside of the mini cakes but leaves the center slightly gooey. 12-14 minutes and they’re done! The tops may look slightly soft.
- Invert the ramekins. Carefully flip the freshly baked lava cakes upside down onto plates.
- Add toppings & enjoy! Top with melted peanut butter, chocolate ganache, ice cream, sprinkles, salted caramel, or whipped cream… choose your favorites 🙂
Best Ramekins to Use
I highly recommend using ramekins for these lava cakes. Here are the 6-ounce ramekins I use and suggest you pick up as well. They’re the perfect size for these lava cakes. Grease each ramekin with a little non-stick spray and a dusting of cocoa powder before filling with batter. This preparation helps the baked lava cake release seamlessly from the ramekin onto the plate for serving.
Conveniently, you can use the same ramekins for other recipes we have published like chocolate fudge cakes, chocolate soufflé, chocolate lava cakes, lemon pudding cakes, and upside down key lime pies.
If you don’t have ramekins, you can use a muffin pan: Grease 6 muffin pan cups and dust with cocoa powder to prevent the lava cakes from sticking. Your lava cakes will be slightly smaller—you’ll get 6 lava cakes instead of 4. Bake at 425°F (218°C) for 8-10 minutes. Use a spoon to release the cakes from the pan and place each upside down on plates.
I included this recipe over on my Valentine’s Day dessert recipes page, but they’re just as rich and tasty without a holiday on the calendar. 🙂
More Chocolate Peanut Butter Recipes
- Soft & Thick Monster Cookies
- Peanut Butter Cupcakes
- No-Bake Peanut Butter Bars
- Peanut Butter Balls (Truffles)
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheesecake Bars
- Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Peanut Butter Chocolate Lava Cakes
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 cakes
- Category: Cake
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
This easy recipe for peanut butter chocolate lava cakes is the ultimate dessert decadence!
Ingredients
- 6 ounces (170g) high quality semi-sweet chocolate, such as Ghirardelli or Lindt
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup (31g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/2 cup (60g) confectioners’ sugar
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs
- 2 large egg yolks
- 8 teaspoons (42g) creamy peanut butter (about 2 teaspoons per cake)*
- optional for serving: ice cream, melted peanut butter and/or chocolate syrup for drizzling
Instructions
- Spray 4 6-ounce ramekins with nonstick cooking spray and dust with cocoa powder. This ensures the cakes will seamlessly come out of the ramekins when inverted onto a plate in step 6.
- Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C).
- Coarsely chop the chocolate. Place butter into a medium heat-proof bowl, then add chopped chocolate on top. Microwave on high in 10 second increments, stirring after each until completely smooth. Set aside.
- Whisk the flour, confectioners’ sugar, and salt together in a small bowl. Whisk the eggs and egg yolks together until combined in another small bowl. Pour the flour mixture and eggs into the bowl of chocolate. Slowly stir everything together using a silicone spatula or wooden spoon. If there are any lumps, gently use your whisk to rid them. The batter will be slightly thick.
- Spoon chocolate batter evenly into each prepared ramekin. Top with peanut butter and use a spoon to slightly press it down into the batter. Some may still be exposed—see photo above for a visual.
- Place ramekins onto a baking sheet and bake for 12-13 minutes until the sides appear solid and firm. The top may still look slightly soft. Allow to cool for 1 minute, then cover each with an inverted plate and turn over. Use an oven mitt because those ramekins are hot! The cakes should release easily from the ramekin. Top with ice cream and melted peanut butter and/or chocolate syrup for serving, if desired. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: This batter can be prepared through step 4 ahead of time. Cover tightly and keep in the refrigerator for up to 1 day. Allow to come to room temperature before continuing with step 5.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 6-Ounce Ramekins or 12-count Muffin Pan | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Silicone Spatula or Wooden Spoon | Baking Sheet
- Peanut Butter: Do not use natural style peanut butter, do not use crunchy peanut butter, do not use any other nut butter like almond butter. The best for this recipe is commercial brand peanut butter like creamy Jif or Skippy. I use Jif creamy.
- Plain Lava Cakes: I’ve gotten some questions about making these plain, without peanut butter. Yes, it’s possible! No changes necessary, just don’t add the peanut butter and bake for only about 12-13 minutes.
- Ramekins: I like these 6-ounce oven-proof custard cups or these 6-ounce ramekins). I’m unsure about the bake time for ramekins any other size than 6 ounces. I highly suggest just buying the specified size if you do not own them already. The good news: this standard size is typical for other dessert recipes like custards, soufflés, creme brûlées, chocolate fudge cakes, and mousse.
- If you don’t have ramekins, you can use a muffin pan: Grease 6 muffin pan cups and dust with cocoa powder to prevent the lava cakes from sticking. Your lava cakes will be slightly smaller—you’ll get 6 lava cakes instead of 4. Bake at 425°F (218°C) for 8-10 minutes. Use a spoon to release the cakes from the pan and place each upside down on plates.
Reader Comments and Reviews
I noticed you worked with premade, frozen lava cakes when you worked at Chili’s. Can these also be frozen to use at a later date?
Hi Ginny, Yes, you can freeze the baked lava cakes for up to 3 months. Allow them to cool completely before freezing. Re-heat in the microwave.
Wow this was so decadent! Easy to follow recipe and it only took 10 minutes to bake. I had 4oz ramekins so the recipe made 6 little cakes. It didn’t even need ice cream or any other topping besides a sprinkle of powered sugar. This might be my favorite Sally’s recipe.
I made these for my family for Valentine’s Day. My family loved them so much that they begged me to make them again the next evening! I used six 4 oz ramekins and baked them for 13 minutes.
Will this recipe work as well if I scale it back to 2 servings?
Hi Barbara, that should work just fine to halve this recipe. Enjoy!
These were really good. If you like peanut butter with your chocolate, these are amazing. I made half with and half without, so I could compare. I kind of prefer my chocolate pure, so I liked them better plain, but they were also great with the peanut butter.
This recipe was so easy and yummy! I used a cupcake pan and made two cakes with peanut butter and four without any add-ins. I used natural peanut butter butter and it was runny, but fine. I didn’t want to buy a different PB. I added a little confectioners sugar to the Pb to sweeten and thicken it.
I decided to make this recipe as the alternate February baking challenge, since I had no need for a full cake (the main recipe for the month) and boy, am I glad I made these! First off, the cake was light and had the perfect balance of sweetness and bitterness from the chocolate. I did decide to make them plain, without the peanut butter, as I am not a peanut butter and chocolate fan, but am regretting not making atleast one with the peanut butter to try a bite. They were so good- even my parents – who don’t have much of a sweet tooth, devoured them. The best part- theyre so simple to make, I can make them anytime. THANKS SALLY!
Such an easy recipe to follow. This was a nice dessert to make for my family and they all loved it!
I didn’t love this quite as much as I had hoped to, but my family did. I do realize that the things I disliked were not original to the recipe though, so I’ll have to try them again. I used a half and half mix of 72 and 86% Ghirardelli chocolate. I’m more of a semi-sweet fan, but I was working with what I had on hand. The recipe came together quickly and easily, but the batter looked like it was separating some when I put it in the ramekins. I used chunky peanut butter. I think texture wise I would’ve preferred creamy, but it worked. My oven was fully preheated, but the cakes looked like they had grease boiling in/around them at the 12-13 min. mark. I baked a further 3 minutes and it looked more dry, but not like in Sally’s video. I’m not sure if that was my chocolate or if I used to much spray in my pans. I will say that I tried to use the small amount of chocolate I had left out of 2 bars to do ganache on top, and the oils separated. I make ganache all the time and I’ve never had that happen. Anyways, the cakes set and my family loved them. I had a hard time telling if it did the lava or not due to my ice cream, but that just means I’ll have to give it another go in the future!
Super yummy – I’m not a huge PB fan but I still loved them. Very forgiving as I accidentally baked them longer than 12 mts. I doubled the recipe and made 8 for galentines!
DELICIOUS! What an absolute treat. I could make this everyday for the rest of my life and be happy. It doesn’t even take long to make! The only suggestion I have for everyone is if you’re saving it in the fridge for the next day, it’s very hard to put in the peanut butter. I made such a mess!
Easy to follow recipe! I used a muffin tin and chocolate chips that I had on hand and both worked well. Elegant recipe with simple ingredients. Thanks!
I made this recipe for the February Baking Challenge. I made 3 with Peanut Butter and one without as my husband doesn’t like Peanut Butter. Despite the warnings, I used crunchy because that’s what I had. It still came out fine.
Dessert is rich and easy to make.
These were so easy and tasty! I halved the recipe and made them in a jumbo muffin tin- worked great!
This was really delicious. I stored in the fridge for awhile before baking and even with bringing it to room temp the consistency was super thick so didn’t get a good “lava” effect, and they needed an extra 5 mins in the oven. Next time will bake right away.
This recipe is amazing! Definitely have to do again!
My 5 year old son and I love baking together I’ve been looking to bake something different besides cookies and cakes I do believe we are going to enjoy baking this together thank you for the recipe and other tips to make a perfect lava cake.
Quick, easy, and delicious!
Fantastic! I loved this recipe. It tasted better than the lava cakes they serve at a local fancy restaurant! The recipe worked perfectly, and the cakes popped right out.
Sorry, forgot the star rating – Five of course!
This is SO good. Like, if you thought you liked lava cakes before, think again! These are simply out of this world incredible, with the classic “lava” and melty delicious peanut butter, which adds this unbeatable layer of decadence, and the saltiness is nice too. PLEASE please please go make this, preferably for Valentine’s day. They’re so easy too, so you don’t have an excuse. 🙂
Can you use pryex glass custard cups?
Hi Annette? Are they 6 oz like these ramekins? That should work well, if so.
If you make these ahead of time and freeze/then defrost in the microwave – will they still be able to be inverted onto a serving plate? Or after freezing/defrosting, should they be served right in the ramekins? Also, after re-heating, will the peanut butter center still be gooey?
Hi Ginny! You should still be able to invert them, and the centers should still be gooey. Let us know if you give it a try!
Hi Sally, I want to make this recipe today. But I have just 85g of dark chocolate. Can I use the balance with baking cocoa powder, by mixing it with water? There are instructions on the box to make baking chocolate from the powder. Please let me know . Thanks
Hi Jessica, did you end up trying it? How did it work out? We do recommend using baking chocolate for best results.
Could I use something else such as say caramel in place of the p.b. since there is a nut allergy. But these sound so amazing I will try as is for my own use.
Hi Cheryl, I recommend you try this chocolate lava cakes recipe, and you can always add some salted caramel to it (either in the middle or drizzle on top after baking). Enjoy!
That is what I want… caramel. Would you use soft caramel or a wrapped candy?
Hi Jo, we’d recommend trying our salted caramel sauce for the middle.
These are SO GOOD! My fam was craving some late-night deliciousness, so I threw these together, and they did not disappoint! The lava cake base itself was one of the best I’ve tasted, but the saltiness of the Peanut Butter kinda cut the excessive rich sweetness and added a whole new dimension of flavor. I loved these! They also were super quick and simple to throw together, not to mention that they only took a few minutes in the oven. I’ll make these quite a bit from now on!
I just made these and they are amazing! My husband loves peanut butter! I have made him almost all your peanut butter desserts! He also like these cold! They tasted just as good that way! And they are so easy to make that i did extra and froze them! Thank you for this great recipe that only took about twenty minutes total to make!
Yum!!! Just made these for Valentine’s Day delicious!!!!!!!
Hi Sally, I’m at my daughter-in-law‘s getting ready to make this dessert for tonight. She does not have ramekins, so I’m going to use a muffin pan. Just curious why I would not fill four instead of six? And make the cakes the same size as the ramekins would be? Thanks! From a peanut butter and chocolate loving family.
Hi Patti! The ramekins are larger than a typical muffin cup, so they would overflow if you made 4 in a muffin pan.
Thanks!
Is there an issue using a darker chocolate bar with this recipe or do I need to alter another ingredient? I have 70% Lindt.
Hi Erin, you can use a darker chocolate bar for a deeper chocolate flavor. Enjoy!