Reese’s Copycat Peanut Butter Balls are such a fun treat. The holidays are coming and these are a perfect gift for those you love. They are also perfect for neighbor goody plates or Holiday parties.
What is the Difference Between Peanut Butter Balls and Buckeyes?
- Peanut Butter Balls can also be referred to as Buckeyes.
- Buckeyes are popular in Ohio, as the Buckeye is the state tree.
- Buckeye Balls are only partially dipped in chocolate, leaving the peanut butter showing on the top.
- That way they look like the nuts from a Buckeye tree.
- Peanut Butter Balls are traditionally covered in chocolate.
What Ingredients Do I Need For Reese’s Copycat Peanut Butter Balls?
Here’s a list of ingredients you’ll need to make this candy (scroll down for the full recipe):
- Peanut butter
- Powdered sugar
- Butter
- Chocolate chips
How Do I Make Reese’s Copycat Peanut Butter Balls?
Here’s the simple steps you’ll follow to make this candy (scroll down for the full recipe):
- Mix the peanut butter, powdered sugar and the 2 Tablespoons melted butter together until it is all combined.
- Form into 1″ balls.
- Place them in the refrigerator, for 45-50 minutes.
- Melt the chocolate chips and the butter together by placing them in a micro wave safe bowl, melt in 30 second increments on POWER LEVEL 5 until the chocolate is melted and mixes well.
- Dip each candy ball into the chocolate; I like using a fork so that the extra chocolate falls off.
- Place the dipped peanut butter balls onto a piece of waxed paper.
- Allow the chocolate to set up. You can place them in the refrigerator in an airtight container to store.
- They store well for 2-3 weeks.
Can You Freeze Reese’s Copycat Peanut Butter Balls?
- Yes, peanut butter balls can be frozen.
- First, allow the chocolate to set up completely.
- Place the peanut butter balls in an airtight container, in an even layer in the bottom of the container.
- Place a piece of parchment paper on top of that layer and then make another layer.
- Repeat as many times as you need to store all of the candies, depending on the depth of the container.
- You can store them in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Tips and Tricks For Reese’s Copycat Peanut Butter Balls:
- If you are not a big dark chocolate fan, try using white chips, or just use white chocolate chips in place of the the dark chocolate chips for a change.
- If you like a little extra crunch, use crunchy peanut butter.
- If you want, you could always add some sprinkles on top. My grandson wanted those!
- Make sure that you use confectioners sugar so that the peanut butter balls are nice and smooth on the inside.
- Make sure the peanut butter balls are chilled when you dip them. The chocolate will set up more quickly and the candies will hold their shape better when you dip them in the warm chocolate.
- Sometimes I use Ghirardelli Melting Wafers for dipping. They melt SO smooth, and taste delicious. You don’t need to add an extra tablespoon of butter or shortening into the chocolate to thin it out because it is already the perfect consistency.
- If you use chocolate chips, they are not necessarily made for melting. That is why you add a tablespoon of butter into the chocolate to thin it out a little bit, helping to make the dipping process easier.
- If the chocolate thickens up too much while you’re dipping, melt it again for a few seconds, until you reach the desired consistency.
More Decadent Candy Recipes:
My Favorite Crockpot Peanut Clusters
Easy Reeses Peanut Butter Cups
Yield: 36
Reese's Copycat Peanut Butter Balls
Easy peanut butter balls are one of our family favorites. They only have four ingredients and they are a favorite of most!
Prep Time
30 minutes
Cook Time
2 minutes
Total Time
32 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups peanut butter
- 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
- 2 Tablespoons melted butter
- 1 (12 ounce) package chocolate chips
- 1 Tablespoon melted butter
Instructions
- Mix the peanut butter, powdered sugar and the 2 Tablespoons melted butter together until it is all combined.
- Form into 1" balls.
- Place them in the refrigerator, for 45-50 minutes.
- Melt the chocolate chips and the 1 Tablespoon of butter together by placing them in a micro wave safe bowl, melt in 30 second increments on POWER LEVEL 5 until the chocolate is melted and mixes well.
- Dip the peanut butter balls into the chocolate, I like using a fork so that the extra chocolate falls off.
- Place the easy dipped peanut butter balls onto a piece of waxed paper.
- Allow the chocolate to set up. You can place them in the refrigerator in an airtight container to store. (These usually do not ship well, as they need to be stored in a cool place).
- They store well for 2-3 weeks.
- I ALWAYS USE TOP QUALITY INGREDIENTS! Like C & H powdered sugar, Jiff Peanut Butter and Good Quality Chocolate!
Nutrition Information
Yield
36Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 92Total Fat 7gSaturated Fat 2gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 4gCholesterol 3mgSodium 59mgCarbohydrates 7gFiber 1gSugar 5gProtein 2g
Oh this is delightful and my whole family will want these. Thank you for sharing – Pinned
Yes, they are very popular among all ages. Thank you for leaving a comment.
Oh yes!! I know these as Buckeyes, as my second husband was born and raised in Ohio! I make them every year for Christmas! A family favorite.
I was thinking about making real buckeyes and leaving a spot undipped. They are super yummy. Thank you for coming by.
How do you get the balls to form ? I’m making them and sure aren’t round balls. WHONDER I got if there is a trick to forming them to be round
You could try using a small cookie scoop and then rolling them with your hands. I have never had a hard time getting them round. Thank you for asking.
I’m going to need these all to myself, they are too good to share!
I agree 100%! Happy Holidays!!!xoxo
I don’t think ours have ever even lasted a week! We tend to make traditional buckeyes since we received the recipe as part of 50 states post card exchange and that was the recipe we were given but I fully admit that we cover as much of the peanut butter as we can with chocolate! Pinned.
You are a family after my heart! I have never made buckeyes, so I must give them a shot! Happy Holidays!:)
My mother-in-law gave me a very similar recipe years ago but her chocolate coating used semi-sweet chips and a small piece of paraffin melted together so it would adhere to the peanut butter balls.
That is fascinating. I remember that we used paraffin wax a lot when I was growing up. We used to melt it and pour it on the top of our jam to seal it. It is funny how I hardly ever use it now. You can really use any kind of chocolate that you want when making these. Different kinds of chocolate do melt differently and harden differently too. Thank you so much for coming by and leaving a comment. I love hearing about the memories that these recipes bring up. Happy Holidays!
Thank you for sharing at #OverTheMoon. Pinned and shared. Have a lovely week. I hope to see you at next week’s party too! Happy Holiday!
Thank you for sharing at #ThursdayFavoriteThings. Pinned and shared. Have a lovely week. I hope to see you at next week’s party too! Happy Holiday!
These look wonderful, Amy. I’ve featured them at TFT–Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for sharing! Have a very Merry Christmas! 🙂
Incorrect quantity on the powdered sugar. 1 1/4 cups is not enough.
I believe that it depends on the brand of peanut butter and also the humidity. Thank you for sharing and for sure some people have needed to add more powdered sugar! Merry Christmas!
Peanut Butter Balls are always a favourite in our house. These look absolutely delicious! I’d love for you to come share with us over at You’re the Star. It’s a month long linky party with new features each week. Please come share your amazing recipes with us each week!
https://www.momthelunchlady.ca/2020/12/youre-star-garden-feature.html
Thank you for coming by and leaving a comment. These Peanut Butter Balls are wonderful.
These sound so so good! Peanut butter and chocolate, what’s not to love about that. Yummy! Thanks for sharing your recipe with us at the Snickerdoodle Party.
Thank you. We love peanut butter and chocolate, and it does seem to be really popular. Thank you for stopping by and leaving a comment.
I am so excited to tell you that this was the most clicked from last week’s Snickerdoodle Create Bake Make Link Party!!
That is exciting! Thank you. We do love these Peanut Butter Balls.
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Thank you for sharing at #OverTheMoon. Pinned and shared. Have a lovely week. I hope to see you at next week’s party too! Please stay safe and healthy. Come party with us at Over The Moon! Catapult your content Over The Moon! @marilyn_lesniak @EclecticRedBarn
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Amy,
I love peanut and chocolate together. These are the perfect combination. Yummy! Congratulations, you are being featured on Over The Moon Linky Party. I hope you stop by. https://www.eclecticredbarn.com/2020/12/over-moon-linky-party_13.html
Hugs,
Bev
Thank you so much for the feature. We do love these Reese’s Copycat Peanut Butter Balls. They are perfect for Christmas, or anytime!
I’m making these this weekend as gifts for friends Christmas. Thank you
Your friends are going to love them! Thank you for coming by and leaving a comment.
Can these be made without the butter for those who are dairy free?
Yes, Dee you could use vegan butter or even margarine.
Peanut Butter Balls are to DIE for. Ill make them again and again! and easy as they come!
Thank you for leaving a comment. We love that you love them! The Peanut Butter Balls really are delicious and easy to make.
My daughter and have made buckeye balls for gifts to a large Zumba Gold group. Everyone loves them, but I make such a mess trying to cover the balls with chocolate. Is there a trick to doing this? I have tried a fork, a melon ball utensil and toothpick and I’m not getting any better at it. Is it the brand of chocolate I use? Any suggestions?
Oh, that’s really neat that you do that. I bet you are better than you think. The only ideas I have is that you put them in the refrigerator and bring out about 10 at a time otherwise they all return to room temperature. Dip, drip, and twirl. Think of dipping buckeyes as a three-step process. You’ll dip the ball into the chocolate (leaving a small opening at the top), let the excess drip off, then twirl the toothpick so that the very last drip wraps around the buckeye and blends in with the rest of the chocolate. Use a second toothpick to gently encourage the buckeye off the toothpick without smearing the chocolate. I usually use chopped semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate with a Tablespoon of coconut oil, however, I have had pretty good success with semi sweet chocolate chips before. I wish you the very best and I am sorry I am not more help! Thanks for checking out the recipe. 🙂