If you haven’t noticed already I have a thing for peanut butter and jelly (see my PB&J Thumbprints post).  I’m not sure if it’s nostalgia from the PB&J sandwiches I ate as a kid, or the delicious salty peanut butter mixed with sweet jelly, but there’s something about the combination that brings me comfort and joy!

 

This isn’t the first time I’ve gone “mad scientist” and tried a variation of the two, however, this creation makes me really proud.

The first time I made PB&J Cupcakes was several years ago for my brother Jett’s birthday party, and funny story, by the time he went to have one they were gone.  I laughed when he told me that the next day, but I was also sad he didn’t get to enjoy how fabulous they were.  My point is…. these will win you many praises if you bring them to a party or company potluck.

But grab one for yourself first because they’ll go FAST!

 

Start by making two dozen dense vanilla cupcakes, and none of that “fluffy” cupcake nonsense.  You need dense cake to support the jelly filling and heavy frosting.

The recipe I used is from ‘Sally’s Baking Addiction’ (link posted below).  It worked out perfectly!

 

Now for some helpful tips when baking cupcakes:

• Properly measure flour by ‘spooning and leveling’ it into the measuring cup with an actual spoon.  When you “scoop” flour directly with the measuring cup, you pack in more than necessary.

 

• Make sure to sift the dry ingredients.  <<Too many reasons to list.

 

• Make sure you have a cute helper.  <<THE MOST IMPORTANT TIP!

“What makes life so sweet?  Cupcakes to eat and someone to love.” – Marie Williams Johnstone

 

• Use an ice cream scoop to pour the batter into the tin for three reasons:

1. Easiest method
2. No mess!
3. Equal amounts in every cup = same size cupcakes

 

• Lastly, let them finish cooling on a cooling rack.  Keeping them in the cupcake tin can leave them dry since they are surrounded by so much heat.

 

I’d say these turned out as a great base for my PB&J Cupcakes! 😀

Thanks, Sally’s Baking Addiction!

 

Now for the fun part!

Hull out a small bit of each cupcake with a knife or small spoon, and put 1 teaspoon of jam into each hole.  I used blackberry spread but I’ve also tried grape, strawberry and raspberry.

Seedless raspberry jam is my favorite for this recipe…

 

This little butter knife worked fine. 🙂

 

Ta-da!

 

1 teaspoon of jam per cupcake.

 

Done!

 

Now whip up a batch of fluffy peanut butter frosting.

The recipe is from Allrecipes.com (link posted below) and has been a go-to for me since it’s SO EASY to make… oh, and because it’s DELICIOUS!

 

Pipe each cupcake.

 

Pretty ❤

 

Since I used blackberry spread, I placed a large ripe blackberry on top of each cupcake.  This is optional, but makes for a great presentation.  I was taking these to a family picnic so I wanted them extra cute. 🙂

 

I also sifted powder sugar on top of each one… again.. presentation matters! 🙂

 

Magnificent!

 

So pretty and TASTY!

 

❤

 

Enjoy! xoxo

 

You can find the VERY EASY recipes here:

Very Vanilla Cupcakes

 

Fluffy Peanut Butter Frosting