Homemade Giant Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups: Easy Copycat Recipe Better Than Store-Bought

Experience the ultimate chocolate and peanut butter combination with these incredible homemade Reese’s peanut butter cups that taste even better than the original. This simple 5-ingredient recipe recreates the iconic sweet and creamy peanut butter filling perfectly encased in rich, smooth chocolate. Whether you’re craving a nostalgic treat or want to impress guests with homemade candy, these customizable peanut butter cups deliver authentic flavor with the satisfaction of making them yourself.

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Why This Recipe Works

The secret to authentic Reese’s flavor is achieving the perfect balance of sweet, creamy peanut butter filling and rich chocolate coating. This recipe recreates that signature texture by incorporating air into the peanut butter mixture and using the correct ratio of powdered sugar to create that distinctively smooth, melt-in-your-mouth filling that has made Reese famous since 1928.

The Magic of Homemade Peanut Butter Cups

Creating homemade peanut butter cups gives you complete control over size, ingredients, and flavor intensity. Unlike store-bought versions with preservatives and artificial ingredients, these use simple, natural components you can pronounce. The process is surprisingly simple, requiring no special candy-making equipment or techniques, making it perfect for beginners and experienced bakers alike.

Ingredients

• Peanut butter – Choose smooth for authentic texture or crunchy for added interest
• Butter – Either salted or unsalted works perfectly for binding
• Powdered sugar – Creates the signature sweet, smooth filling texture
• Vanilla extract – Enhances the overall flavor profile
• Chocolate – Use quality chocolate chips or chopped chocolate for best results

How to Make Reese’s Peanut Butter Filling

There are many peanut butter and chocolate snacks out there. But perhaps the enduring popularity of Reese’s peanut cups is due to the brand’s uniquely sweet and creamy peanut butter filling.

To get the same peanut butter filling texture as Reese’s, you must start with smooth-style peanut butter. Of course, if you prefer a crunchy texture, go with crunchy peanut butter instead.

Look for a brand without any added sugar since the peanut filling recipe calls for a significant amount. While there is no need to buy the premium stuff, all-natural peanut butter will make the recipe slightly healthier.

1. Place peanut butter and unsalted butter in a mixing bowl. Please make sure they are both at room temperature.
2. Use an electric mixer at medium speed to whip and combine them until smooth. At this point, you want to incorporate a little air into the mixture.
3. Add powdered sugar and vanilla extract.
4. Beat until thoroughly combined.

5. Shape the peanut butter filling mixture and into a patties. Repeat with the remaining peanut butter mixture.
6. Place the patties on a cookie sheet lined with waxed paper and refrigerate them for 30 minutes.

How to Make Peanut Butter Cups

1. Melt chocolate chips and add 2 tablespoons of butter. Stir until the butter has melted and the mixture is smooth.

2. Place cupcake liners in a muffin pan. Spread a little chocolate in the bottom of a cupcake liner. If you use a silicone muffin pan you do not need to use the cupcake liners.

3. Put a peanut butter patty on top of the chocolate.

4. Cover the patty with chocolate. Repeat with the remaining chocolate and peanut butter patties.

Let the peanut butter cups sit for a couple of hours to harden the chocolate then remove the cupcake liners or pop them out of the silicone muffin pan.

Peanut Butter Cups Without Ridges

Classic Reese’s peanut butter cups have ridges on the side. However, if you want to make peanut butter cups without ridges, you can use a silicone muffin pan. The chocolate will not stick to the silicone, and you can easily pop them out of the pan.

As you can see from the photos, I used this method to make peanut butter cups. It’s a nice touch that makes homemade peanut butter cups stand out over store-bought. You are going to love this delicious snack, and they are perfect to make for game nights!

Recipe Variations

Using this same Reese’s copycat recipe, there are many ways you can make these peanut cups your own.

• Change the size of the peanut butter cups. Make them as big or small as you want. One great thing about homemade candy is the ability to make it giant, king size, extra large, or even mini.
• Use dark chocolate. Semi-sweet, dark chocolate adds sophistication to these peanut butter cups.
• Add a layer of crunch. Although this is a peanut butter cup recipe without graham crackers, you can try sprinkling a layer of crushed graham crackers on the lower chocolate half before putting the peanut butter filling on top.
• Flavor up the filling. Stir in chopped peanuts, crushed potato chips, pretzels, peanut brittle, mini Reese’s pieces, or mini chocolate chips.

Best Way to Melt Chocolate

The ideal way to melt the chocolate is using a double boiler. If you don’t have a double boiler, you can make one by placing a metal mixing bowl on a pot with simmering water. Just ensure that the water never touches the bottom of the bowl, or the chocolate may burn.

1. Start by roughly cutting up the chocolate. The smaller the pieces, the quicker they will melt; there is less chance of scorching.
2. Add the chocolate pieces to the top of the double boiler and stir with a rubber spatula continuously until melted.
3. Once the chocolate melts, turn off the heat and add the two tablespoons of butter. Stir the butter into the warm chocolate.

Tips for Making and Storing Copycat Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups

• Use silicone cupcake liners. These reusable liners come in various sizes and creative designs to add a bit of style to your peanut butter cups.
• Don’t store the peanut butter cups on the counter. Refrigerate them for up to a month or freeze them for up to three months.

Frequently asked questions about homemade peanut butter cups

I can’t wait for you to try this recipe. The most faithful peanut butter fans will love this recipe. Your kitchen can become a candy company when you make these at home. Let me know which combination of nut butter and chocolate you like best!

More Homemade Candy Recipes

• Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls
• Homemade Twix Bars
• Microwave Peanut Brittle
• Peppermint Bark
• Peppermint Patty Candy
• Reese’s Peanut Butter Eggs

Favorite Chocolate and Peanut Butter Recipes

• Homemade Peanut Butter Pie
• Peanut Butter Frosting
• Peanut Butter Ice Cream
• Peanut Butter Ice Cream Topping
• Reese’s Peanut Butter Ice Cream Pie
• Reese’s Snack Mix

Check out my easy candy recipes and the best DIY Recipes here on CopyKat!

Please take a look at more of our commercial candy-inspired recipes on YouTube.