Chocolate and peanut butter is such a classic combination. The sweet and the salty, it makes for great desserts (and sandwich fillings when you’re a broke University student).

It’s funny though, the rest of my family are not peanut butter fans. Just another thing that makes me the odd one out in my family. Not that I’m complaining, they’re the ones missing out.

I made these gorgeous creatures for a group of friends. One couple cooked dinner and hosted me and another couple at their flat. So, because it’s me, I made dessert. And boy were these a hit!

With a secret dollop of pure peanut butter hidden under the peanut butter frosting, it was such a decadent and delicious bite. I think this would be too much as a whole cake, but as cupcakes, they work beautifully.

I also used Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1-to-1 Flour for these, to see how it fared. I will definitely be using it again. The flour is pre-mixed perfectly so that you don’t have to add xanthan gum or any other binding agent.

Usually buying Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free flour can be expensive, but I found it for a fairly reasonable (but still not that cheap) price at my local supermarket which was a nice surprise.

This recipe came about as an adaptation of a Hummingbird Bakery recipe, which is my go-to for cupcake basics. I love their base cupcake mixture, and then adding and taking away from it to come up with different cake and cupcake mixtures. Heck, even my original brownie recipe was inspired by them.

The secret dollop of peanut butter is quite hard to see in the photos because it blends in with the frosting so well. There’s always a worry that you’ll scoop too much out and the cupcake will lose its shape, or you’ll create a hole in the bottom, so I’d rather than surprise dollop be tasted without necessarily being seen.

Either way, if you’re a peanut butter fan, and a chocolate fan, these cupcakes are for YOU!

Ingredients

100 grams gluten free 1-to-1 flour
20 grams unsweetened cocoa powder
140 grams caster sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
salt
130 grams unsalted butter, softened
145 ml milk
1 large egg
200 grams no-sugar-added peanut butter
250 grams icing sugar

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C.
2. Mix together the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder and a pinch of salt in a large bowl. Add 40 grams of butter and beat on low speed until you get a sandy texture.
3. Gradually pour in 120 ml of milk, beating until all ingredients are incorporated. Add the egg and beat well.
4. Scoop the mixture into a prepared cupcake tin with paper or silicone cases, about two-thirds full.
5. Place in the oven and cook for 20 minutes, or until the cake bounces back when gently touched. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes before placing them on a wire rack to cool completely.
6. Meanwhile, combine the remaining 80 grams of butter and all of the icing sugar in a large bowl. Beat on a slow speed until the mixture is combined well.
7. Slowly pour in the remaining 25 ml of milk, beating slowly until just incorporated, then increase the speed to high and beat for 5 minutes until creamy and fluffy.
8. Add 80 grams of peanut butter to the frosting and beat until well incorporated. Set aside.
9. Once cupcakes are cool, scoop out a small hollow in the middle of the cupcake, and fill each hole with a scoop of peanut butter (about a tablespoon each).
10. Decorate the cupcakes with the peanut butter frosting as you desire. You can use a piping bag, or simply spread it on with a spatula.
11. If you like, you can grate some dark chocolate over the cupcakes for that final finish.