This vegan peanut butter and jelly cups recipe is one of the easiest, yet tastiest chocolate treats you can whip up. You only need a few ingredients and an hour to spare, plus you don't need any fancy equipment to make them at home.

Reese's peanut butter cups were one of my favorite chocolate treats growing up. Unfortunately, they contain dairy so aren't suitable for vegans. So while on the topic of recreating a vegan version, I figured we'd include some homemade jam in the mix. Because peanut butter and jelly are such a great combo. I mean, there's a reason why they invented peanut butter jelly sandwiches.

stack of peanut butter jelly filled chocolate cups.Pin

What to expect from this recipe

  • Made with just 8 ingredients
  • Really easy to make
  • Ready in under an hour
  • Eggless and dairy-free
  • Naturally gluten-free

Ingredients overview

ingredients to make vegan peanut butter and jelly cups on a metal tray.Pin

Notes about the ingredients

  • Smooth peanut butter: A good quality creamy peanut butter is what you're looking for here. Try to avoid peanut butter that has added sugar and oils, as we'll be sweetening and flavoring the recipe anyway. Homemade peanut butter is a great option too!
  • Berries: I usually go for frozen berries, as they are available all year round and work out less expensive. You can use strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, or pretty much any berries of your choice. My favorite is a mix of strawberries and raspberries at a 50:50 ratio, but you can also use strawberry chia jam.
  • Vegan chocolate: You can go for vegan dark chocolate or vegan milk chocolate for these PB&J cups depending on your preference.
  • Sugar: These vegan peanut butter and jelly cups call for 2 different kinds of sugar: powdered sugar, or icing sugar if you're based in Europe. And superfine (caster) sugar, which is used for sweetening the homemade berry jam. The powdered sugar is added to the peanut butter to sweeten it, it also adds some structure to prevent the peanut butter from oozing out of the chocolate cups too much. A note on white sugar if you're based in the US, it's good to opt for an organic brand as conventional brands may not use vegan-friendly processing methods.
  • Cornstarch: This is called cornflour here in Ireland and the UK, rest assured they are the same thing. This is added to thicken the berry jelly.
  • Sea salt: As well as enhancing the flavor of the peanut butter filling, a good pinch of flaky sea salt on top of your peanut butter cups adds depth of flavor and texture.
  • Lemon juice: This is used to enhance the flavor of the raspberry and strawberry jam.

How to make peanut butter and jelly cups

(Full ingredient quantities and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the end of this post)

1. Prepare the homemade strawberry and/or raspberry jam

This quick and easy jam recipe comes together in under 15 minutes. Simply add the frozen berries, sugar, and lemon juice to a saucepan and simmer for 10 minutes. There's no need to defrost the berries first, just make sure you stir the mixture every so often to prevent it from burning to the bottom of the pan.

Once the berries have cooked down, add in the cornstarch and whisk while cooking on medium heat for another couple of minutes. At this stage, the jam will become really thick, which is exactly what we want! once ready, set it aside to cool while you prepare the chocolate cups.

2. Prepare the chocolate cups

The best way to get a nice shape for your peanut butter jelly cups is to use a muffin tray to hold the cups as they set. Without it, the paper liners will just wobble and collapse with the weight of the filling. I always recommend using a double boiler when working with chocolate.

Melt the chocolate over a double boiler (bain-marie) and spoon a little into each muffin liner. Then carefully pick each case up individually and swirl them around so that the melted chocolate coats the sides of the liners. Pop them in the fridge to harden up, as you don't want to attempt to fill them if the chocolate is still melted.

3. Make the peanut butter filling

So this part is ridiculously easy-peasy. Just add the peanut butter and powdered sugar to a bowl and give them a good stir until completely smooth. You can skip the sugar in this step if you want, but as mentioned above it does help the peanut butter filling to hold up a little better.

mixing peanut butter in a bowl.Pin

4. Assemble the peanut butter jelly cups

Here comes the really fun part, layering up your peanut butter, jelly, and chocolate. Start by adding a good tablespoon of the peanut butter filling to each chocolate cup, followed by a spoon of jam. Use the back of a spoon to carefully smooth out each layer before adding the next. Lastly, top with the remaining melted chocolate before setting them in the fridge.

Storage instructions

Store them in an airtight container and refrigerate them. You can keep them in the fridge for a week or so.

Freezing instructions

To freeze, add the peanut butter cups to an airtight container, separated with a sheet of parchment paper between each layer to prevent them from sticking and freezing to one another. Defrost them at room temperature for about an hour before serving.

Variations

  • White chocolate peanut butter jelly cups: Simply swap the chocolate out for some vegan white chocolate for a delicious twist on this recipe.
  • Alternative nut butter: You can technically use any nut butter you have at home in your pantry. Cashew butter and almond butter work really well, even some homemade vegan Nutella if you have a batch to hand.
  • Nut-free version: Sunflower seed butter or tahini make a great alternative to peanut butter if you're avoiding nuts or have a peanut allergy.
stack of peanut butter jelly filled chocolate cups.Pin

More easy vegan desserts

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Peanut Butter and Jelly Cups (Vegan)

5 from 9 votes
PREP TIME: 30 minutes
Chilling Time: 30 minutes
TOTAL TIME: 1 hour
Servings: 9
PRINT RECIPE PIN RECIPE

Description

Delicious vegan peanut butter and jelly cups made with just 8 ingredients. These chocolate treats are so versatile, gluten-free, no-bake and easy to make.

Ingredients

  • 300 g (2 cups) frozen berries, I use strawberries and raspberries
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 30 g (2.5 tablespoon) superfine sugar, (caster sugar)
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch, (cornflour)
  • 300 g (10.6 oz) vegan chocolate
  • 150 g (5.3 oz) smooth peanut butter
  • 20 g (2.5 tablespoon) vegan powdered sugar, (icing sugar)
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt, plus extra for garnish

Instructions

  • Add the frozen berries, superfine sugar, and lemon juice to a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring often to ensure the berries don’t stick to the bottom of the pan. Lastly, add the cornstarch and whisk well, cook for another 3 minutes while continuously whisking. Set aside to cool to room temperature for 20 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, line a muffin tray with 8 muffin cases. 
  • Finely chop the chocolate and add it to a heat-resistant bowl. Place the bowl on top of a saucepan that is about ¼ ways filled with simmering water (bain-marie). Stir the chocolate with a rubber spatula every so often to melt it evenly.
  • Add one tablespoon of melted chocolate to each muffin case, and swirl the case so that the chocolate comes up around and coats the edges. Place in the fridge to set for at least 15 minutes.
  • Add the peanut butter and powdered sugar to a bowl and mix using a spoon until smooth. Add approximately a tablespoon of the peanut butter mixture into each chocolate cup and smooth it out with the back of a spoon. Top with 1-2 teaspoons of the cooled jam mixture and smooth it out evenly with a spoon.
  • Reheat the remaining melted chocolate if needed before pouring it over the jam layer of the chocolate cups.
  • Place them back in the fridge to set completely for 30 minutes. Sprinkle with sea salt before serving.

Storage instructions

  • Keep them in an airtight container and refrigerate them for up to a week. You can also freeze them and defrost them at room temperature for an hour before serving.

Notes

  • Swap the chocolate out for some vegan white chocolate for a delicious twist on this recipe.
  • You can technically use any nut butter you have at home in your pantry. Cashew butter and almond butter work really well, even some homemade vegan Nutella if you have a batch to hand.
  • Sunflower seed butter or tahini make a great alternative to peanut butter if you’re avoiding nuts or have a peanut allergy.

Nutrition

Calories: 302kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Sodium: 206mg | Potassium: 161mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 24g | Vitamin A: 4IU | Vitamin C: 20mg | Calcium: 56mg | Iron: 3mg
Did you make this recipe? Tag me TodayBe sure to leave a rating and a review in the section below, and mention @addictedtodates or tag #addictedtodates

© addictedtodates.com. All content and images are protected by copyright. If you want to share this recipe, please do so using the share buttons provided. Do not screenshot or republish the recipe or content in full. instead, include a link to this post for the recipe.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Cups (Vegan)

5 from 9 votes
PREP TIME: 30 minutes
Chilling Time: 30 minutes
TOTAL TIME: 1 hour
Servings: 9
PRINT RECIPE PIN RECIPE

Description

Delicious vegan peanut butter and jelly cups made with just 8 ingredients. These chocolate treats are so versatile, gluten-free, no-bake and easy to make.

Ingredients

  • 300 g (2 cups) frozen berries, I use strawberries and raspberries
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 30 g (2.5 tablespoon) superfine sugar, (caster sugar)
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch, (cornflour)
  • 300 g (10.6 oz) vegan chocolate
  • 150 g (5.3 oz) smooth peanut butter
  • 20 g (2.5 tablespoon) vegan powdered sugar, (icing sugar)
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt, plus extra for garnish

Instructions

  • Add the frozen berries, superfine sugar, and lemon juice to a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring often to ensure the berries don’t stick to the bottom of the pan. Lastly, add the cornstarch and whisk well, cook for another 3 minutes while continuously whisking. Set aside to cool to room temperature for 20 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, line a muffin tray with 8 muffin cases. 
  • Finely chop the chocolate and add it to a heat-resistant bowl. Place the bowl on top of a saucepan that is about ¼ ways filled with simmering water (bain-marie). Stir the chocolate with a rubber spatula every so often to melt it evenly.
  • Add one tablespoon of melted chocolate to each muffin case, and swirl the case so that the chocolate comes up around and coats the edges. Place in the fridge to set for at least 15 minutes.
  • Add the peanut butter and powdered sugar to a bowl and mix using a spoon until smooth. Add approximately a tablespoon of the peanut butter mixture into each chocolate cup and smooth it out with the back of a spoon. Top with 1-2 teaspoons of the cooled jam mixture and smooth it out evenly with a spoon.
  • Reheat the remaining melted chocolate if needed before pouring it over the jam layer of the chocolate cups.
  • Place them back in the fridge to set completely for 30 minutes. Sprinkle with sea salt before serving.

Storage instructions

  • Keep them in an airtight container and refrigerate them for up to a week. You can also freeze them and defrost them at room temperature for an hour before serving.

Notes

  • Swap the chocolate out for some vegan white chocolate for a delicious twist on this recipe.
  • You can technically use any nut butter you have at home in your pantry. Cashew butter and almond butter work really well, even some homemade vegan Nutella if you have a batch to hand.
  • Sunflower seed butter or tahini make a great alternative to peanut butter if you’re avoiding nuts or have a peanut allergy.

Nutrition

Calories: 302kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Sodium: 206mg | Potassium: 161mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 24g | Vitamin A: 4IU | Vitamin C: 20mg | Calcium: 56mg | Iron: 3mg
Did you make this recipe? Tag me TodayBe sure to leave a rating and a review in the section below, and mention @addictedtodates or tag #addictedtodates

© addictedtodates.com. All content and images are protected by copyright. If you want to share this recipe, please do so using the share buttons provided. Do not screenshot or republish the recipe or content in full. instead, include a link to this post for the recipe.

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