Peanut Butter Easter Egg Recipe
Today we are making a Peanut Butter Easter Egg Recipe! With Easter coming up almost the month after next, you’re bound to see chocolate Easter eggs popping up in stores. My family never really celebrated Easter, although my mom would hide chocolate eggs around the house for us to find. Think of those mini, melt in your mouth, milk chocolate Dollar Store bags of foil wrapped chocolates. The best!
One memory I have is opening Kinder eggs to find a variety of gifts inside. Although they did get banned in certain areas due to being a choking hazard for children, so at some point I did stop seeing them around and we were back to the old mini chocolate eggs.
On the other hand, peanut butter eggs were never something I was super interested in as a kid. Maybe because my mom never noticed this as an option when she went chocolate-egg-shopping, or possibly because none of my siblings (nor my parents) really liked for the taste of chocolate and peanut butter as a holiday treat.
Homemade Reese’s Egg Remake
More so as I grew older, I began noticing Reese’s peanut butter eggs for Easter everywhere. Or some variety of milk chocolate eggs with a creamy peanut butter center! It looked silky smooth and melt-in-your-mouth, especially due to the powdered sugar that was usually inside. A few years ago, I made these amazing homemade peanut butter cups from this vegan food blogger I had following for a while, Chocolate Covered Katie. I bookmarked the recipe, and came back to it many more times in the future.
Fast forward to now, when I’m left wondering why I never put up homemade peanut butter eggs myself, since Easter is coming up. I had made and photographed a recipe, but was yet to post it. If there was going to be one time in the year, then this week would be it.
So I’m going to be sharing my favourite (healthier) version for this super easy recipe for homemade Reese’s Eggs!
Why You’ll Love This Peanut Butter Easter Egg Recipe
Perfect Easter Treat: This recipe is a fun recipe for Easter with minimal, easy to find ingredients that you can make with family or small children. It’s a great way to make a healthier alternative to buying chocolate eggs as well (and avoiding common allergens such as dairy, since these are vegan and many store-bought ones are not. Or if they are, they’re more expensive).
Substitutions
Powdered Xylitol: I bought a package of pre-made powdered xylitol from my local grocery store. Otherwise, you can also use a spice grinder to powder up granulated xylitol. A good substitute would be regular powdered sugar / confectioners’ sugar / icing sugar.
Peanut Butter: I used the natural type of peanut butter. Creamy, not crunchy peanut butter. The only ingredients should be peanuts, that’s it! Using any other type of peanut butter will change the texture of the filling.
Vegan Butter: I used the brand Melt, but you can find many different brands that sell salted vegan butter sticks. I do not recommend to use margarine, oil or any butter spread substitute.
Maple Syrup: I recommend to find a 100% pure maple syrup (not an Aunt Jemima pancake syrup brand that has added ingredients). I used light maple syrup, but there are ones that are also darker in colour. The lighter the color, the less of a molasses taste it has. This is the one to look for!
Substitute this with agave syrup, or perhaps try another natural liquid sweetener such as date syrup, coconut syrup or brown rice syrup. It won’t taste the same as maple syrup due to the viscosity and sweetness though.
Chocolate Chips: Many brands of chocolate chips are already accidentally vegan. Check the back of the package to check if it has milk ingredients (like milk powder) or not. Otherwise, you can always find a vegan chocolate bar instead and break it up into pieces, or check the natural section of the grocery store.
You can also use a vegan milk chocolate brand or even dark chocolate. I prefer dark chocolate for a more bitter flavor combined with the sweet peanut butter filling.
Troubleshooting
Why did my chocolate mixture clump up?
- For best results, use the double boiler method at home to melt the chocolate. This is listed in the recipe card preparation steps. Fill a pot with water, bringing it to a boil on the stovetop. Lay another pot inside it where you will melt the chocolate. This way, the heat is indirectly applied to the chocolate which helps it to melt smoothly. Constantly stir it so it does not clump!
Peanut Butter Easter Egg Recipe Notes
- For a fun twist during the holiday season, make these winter holiday themed! Use white chocolate chips for the coating and top it with candy cane and festive sprinkles.
- You can also make peanut butter balls from this recipe by shaping these into balls instead of eggs.
More Recipes You’ll Love
No Bake Oreo Funfetti Cake Balls
If you make this Peanut Butter Easter Egg Recipe, then leave a comment and star rating! Don’t forget to tag your photos @peanut_palate on Instagram. Enjoy!
Peanut Butter Easter Egg Recipe
Equipment
- 2 Small saucepans // one should be larger than the other.
- Electric Mixer optional
Ingredients
For the Filling
- ¾ cups powdered xylitol
- 6 tbsp + 2 tsp natural, smooth peanut butter
- 1 tbsp vegan butter melted
- 1 tsp 100% pure maple syrup
- 1-2 drops vanilla extract optional
For the Chocolate Coating
- ⅔ cup vegan semisweet chocolate chips
- Splash vegan milk
- rainbow sprinkles optional, for topping
Instructions
- Line a baking tray with parchment paper or wax paper.
- Mix together the powdered sugar, peanut butter, butter, maple syrup and optional vanilla together until a dough is formed. Use a fork or an electric mixer (a mixer is preferred).
- Use either an egg mold or the palm of your hand to shape the peanut butter mixture into 14 egg shapes. Place these on the baking tray.
- Refrigerate for 2 hours. Then remove the eggs from the fridge and set aside.
- To melt the chocolate, use a double boiler *or* use two different sized stovetop pots. Fill the larger one halfway with water, and place the smaller pot inside it. Put this on low heat and add the chocolate chips with the splash of milk, constantly stirring until it becomes melted chocolate.
- Turn off the heat. Immediately dip each of the eggs into the chocolate using a fork, letting the excess chocolate drip off, then place back on the tray lined with parchment paper.
- Refrigerate for another 2 hours. After this, remove from the fridge and serve.
Notes
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Storage
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks, or in the freezer for up to two months.
