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Best Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake Recipe

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The Best Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake has layers of chocolate and peanut butter frosting and is decorated with Reese’s peanut butter cups. It is the perfect dessert for chocolate lover’s.

Best Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake - homemade chocolate cake covered in peanut butter frosting and peanut butter cups. Make this easy chocolate cake recipe for parties and events! #cake #chocolate #homemade #peanutbuttercups #peanutbutterfrosting

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Whenever we go out to eat, I love to check out the dessert menu.  It doesn’t matter if we have been to that restaurant a thousand times before.  I am still going to sit and drool over the desserts.  

It’s like I have a thing for desserts or something. Especially if it is chocolate cake. I definitely have a weakness for that sweet goodness!

Now some times we leave room for dessert, and sometimes we walk away.  Mainly because I either ate way too much dinner, or there is some crazy dessert like this Thin Mint Cheesecake Brownie Cake or these Chocolate Lava Cakes already waiting in our kitchen at home.

Best Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake - layers of peanut butter and chocolate frosting make this the absolutely best chocolate cake. Make this easy recipe for all your parties! #cake #chocolate #homemade #peanutbuttercups #peanutbutterfrosting

But then sometimes we say no to dessert because we can’t justify the price.  Who wants to pay $9 for a slice of soft moist chocolate cake?  

Especially when I know that I can bake an entire homemade chocolate cake for that same price.

I do love a good chocolate cake, so I started looking for the best chocolate cake recipe that I could give a BruCrew twist to for my birthday. Of course, peanut butter had to be involved too.

Best Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake - This homemade chocolate cake covered in peanut butter frosting and peanut butter cups is the best chocolate cake ever. Make this recipe to see why! #cake #chocolate #homemade #peanutbuttercups #peanutbutterfrosting

As soon as I saw a cake that was called the Best-Ever Chocolate Cake, I knew that was the first one I was going to make and see if it was worthy of the name.  Not that I doubted it was good, but I was very curious to see if it would live up to my particular sweet tooth expectations.  

I have to admit that I have become a very, very picky dessert eater in the last few years.

It was so fun to look at the chocolate cake recipe and see what little tweaks and changes I would make based on how I like to bake.

Best Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake - a homemade chocolate cake covered in peanut butter frosting and peanut butter cups is the best chocolate cake ever. Make this easy recipe for every birthday party! #cake #chocolate #homemade #peanutbuttercups #peanutbutterfrosting

How to make The Best Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake:

  1. Make sure to beat the butter until light and fluffy, then add the sugar and beat it again.
  2. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix it one more time.
  3. Stir together the dry ingredients in a bowl and add them alternately with the milk and coffee mixture. Trust me. You will not taste the coffee in this cake. Coffee just enhances the chocolate flavor making it more intense and delicious.
  4. Bake the chocolate cake batter in a 9×13 pan that has been greased very well.  Let it cool for 15 minutes in the pan, then flip it out on a wire rack to cool completely.

Best Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake - layers of soft moist chocolate cake and chocolate and peanut butter frosting with peanut butter cups is amazing. Make this easy recipe for chocolate lover's! #cake #chocolate #homemade #peanutbuttercups #peanutbutterfrosting

How to assemble a chocolate layered cake:

  • Make a batch of homemade chocolate frosting for the center of the cake layers. Sometimes I switch it up and use this Dark Ch0colate Buttercream Frosting. It just depends what mood I’m in.  Either one is delicious!
  • Cut the cake in half, making two 4 1/2 x 6 1/2 inch cake rectangles.  Set aside 1/2 cup of the homemade chocolate frosting, then frost the top of one of the layers with the rest of the chocolate frosting. Top it with the other cake layer.
  • Cover the entire cake with the Best Honey Peanut Butter Frosting. Use the reserved chocolate frosting to pipe a border around the top of the cake with an icing tip 21 or 27.
  • Add chopped up peanut butter cups to the top of the cake and halved peanut butter cups around the bottom.

Best Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake - peanut butter frosting and peanut butter cups make this homemade chocolate cake the best cake ever. Make this easy recipe for every birthday party! #cake #chocolate #homemade #peanutbuttercups #peanutbutterfrosting

I do have to admit that this was seriously one of the best homemade chocolate cakes I have ever tried.  In fact, it was so good that it is hands down my new go-to recipe when I want to make chocolate cake from scratch.

So, if you are looking for an impressive dessert to make, this is your cake.  It looks like a lot of work, but it really is very easy to put together.

The best part is that you will getting the entire Best Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake for the price of one cake slice.  I’d say that is winning at dessert!

Best Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake - layers of soft moist chocolate cake and chocolate and peanut butter frosting with peanut butter cups is amazing. Make this easy recipe for chocolate lover's! #cake #chocolate #homemade #peanutbuttercups #peanutbutterfrosting

More chocolate recipes you may like:

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Yield: 14 cake slices

Best Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake

Best Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake

The Best Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake has layers of chocolate and peanut butter frosting and Reese's peanut butter cups. It's the perfect dessert for chocolate lover's.

Prep Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 2 hours

Ingredients

For the Cake

  • 3/4 cup butter
  • 3 eggs
  • 2 cups flour
  • 3/4 cup dark cocoa powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 3/4 cup milk
  • 3/4 cup cooled strong coffee

For the Chocolate Frosting

  • 1 cup dark chocolate chips
  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/4 cup dark cocoa powder
  • 1 batch Best Honey Peanut Butter Frosting
  • Peanut Butter Cups

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 pan with nonstick baking spray.
  2. Beat the butter until light and fluffy. Add the sugars and beat again.
  3. Add the eggs one at a time and beat until mixed in. Stir in the vanilla.
  4. Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir together the milk and coffee.
  5. Add the flour mixture alternately with the milk mixture to the butter mixture. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes.
  6. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean.
  7. Let cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then flip out onto a wire rack and let cool completely.
  8. Cut the cake in half and set aside. You will have two 4 1/2 x 6 1/2 rectangles.
  9. Melt the chocolate chips and butter in a saucepan. Let cool for 5 minutes. Beat in the sour cream.
  10. Sift together the powdered sugar and cocoa powder. Slowly beat into the mixture. Set aside 1/2 cup of the frosting for later.
  11. Spread the rest of the chocolate frosting on top of one side of the cake. Place the other layer on top.
  12. Cover the cake with the best honey peanut butter frosting.
  13. Add chopped peanut butter cups to the top, and halved peanut butter cups to the sides, if desired. Store in a covered container. Serves 14.

Notes

Recipe adapted from BHG's Best Ever Chocolate Cake

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

14

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 617Total Fat: 28gSaturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 90mgSodium: 396mgCarbohydrates: 85gFiber: 3gSugar: 63gProtein: 8g

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Instagram

© Jocelyn @ Inside BruCrew Life
Cuisine: American / Category: Cakes & Cupcakes
Best Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake - soft homemade chocolate cake with chocolate and peanut butter frosting is perfect for chocolate lovers. Make this easy recipe for parties and events! #cake #chocolate #homemade #peanutbuttercups #peanutbutterfrosting

 

*The post and recipe for the Best Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake was first published on February 4, 2015. The photos have been updated and it was republished on April 9, 2019.

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Comments

        • Jocelyn says

          I have not tried baking this in 2 round pans, but I think it would work if you used two 8 inch round pans. I’m also not sure on the baking time, so I would start checking the cakes at about 28 minutes and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few crumbs.

          Reply

  3. Taylor @ Food Faith Fitness says

    Haha, I am so like you! ALWAYS check out the dessert menu first. You know, something on it might sound better than ordering “real food” for dinner 😉
    I love that you put Honey PB frosting on chocolate cake. Totally drooling! Pinned!

    Reply

  11. Mir says

    Jocelyn, you have done it. I have had a lot of favorites on your blog, but this is going to take the cake, no pun intended. I am in LOVE. Deep, lasting love. You know I can’t stay away from anything with PB and chocolate!

    Reply

  14. Cyndi @ My Kitchen Craze says

    This cake looks amazing Jocelyn! I always look at the desert menu first too. I also tell myself not to eat to much because I really want desert, but guess what happens. I eat waaayy to much so I have to forgo desert. Bummer. I agree about the prices and I honestly think our homemade cakes and desserts taste way better. This looks amazing. I’d love a slice right about now. Pinned. 🙂

    Reply

  26. Crystal says

    Where did the recipe go? I’ll I see is weird text. I’d love to try this for my husband’s bday in April.

    Reply

    • Jocelyn says

      Hi, Crystal. There was never an actual recipe on my post because of how I had to share it with BHG. You can click through the link that says read more HERE to see the post I did on their site. Or you can email me and I can send you the recipe exactly how I made it 🙂

      Reply

  28. KElly says

    So none of the stores in my area sell Dark Cocoa powder, would I be able to use regular cocoa powder as I already have that on hand?

    Reply

    • Jocelyn says

      Yes, the baking time for 8 inch or 9 inch pans would be about the same. Just bake them until when a toothpick is inserted it comes out with just a few crumbs on it.

      Reply

  30. Stacy says

    Do I use powdered or confectioners sugar for cake? What kind of flour? How long will this cake keep? I want to make it Thurs or Friday for a birthday party on Saturday.

    Reply

    • Jocelyn says

      The recipe calls for sugar and brown sugar for the cake. Any time you see just sugar, it means granulated sugar. The frosting calls for powdered sugar. I also used all purpose flour for this particular cake. It should keep for a few days as long as you keep it covered. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

      Reply

  36. Linda says

    I will be making this for my grown up son who LOVES peanut butter and chocolate together. Does it matter whether the peanut butter is old fashioned “just peanuts”? Or is something like Jif or Skippy better? Thanks for a yummy sounding recipe!

    Reply

    • Jocelyn says

      I have never tried this recipe using a “peanuts only” peanut butter or a natural peanut butter. The recipe here was tested using Jif, so that is what I would recommend using. I hope you and your son enjoy the cake!

      Reply

  38. Lexi says

    Just made this cake last night, and the frosting tastes delicious. Haven’t tried the whole cake out yet, but will tomorrow.
    Can’t wait to try it out!
    P.S. My cake isn’t as pretty as yours, but hopefully just as tasty.

    Reply

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