During college while working in an organic chemistry research lab on campus, many of the graduate students took a coffee break nearly every afternoon. They usually worked 10-12 hour days at least five days a week, if not more, so caffeine was practically a necessity!
The Chemistry Building sat right next to one of the main food hubs on campus, making it really easy to dash across the street to grab mid-afternoon coffees. We fondly referred to that place as “The Silo” because when the university was established in the first half of the 20th century as an agricultural school, that’s exactly what it was—a place for storing livestock’s food!
The graduate students always invited me along, and although I rarely drank coffee, I still tagged along. It felt great to get outside in the sunshine and stretch my legs… Especially since it felt like the air conditioning in our building was always turned on high!
While everyone else slowly sipped their espresso and coffee at one of the picnic tables outside, I usually nibbled on a little bit of dark chocolate. That was my preferred afternoon pick-me-up, and 15 minutes later, we all trekked back to the Chemistry Building feeling reenergized for the rest of our day’s work.
After I recently caught up with one of the graduate students, those coffee break memories started floating around my head… So I turned the flavors into these Healthy Dark Chocolate Espresso Peanut Butter Cups! They’re really rich and taste so much better than anything store-bought… And they’re just 41 calories!
So basically… They’re twice the size of brand-name peanut butter cups… For almost the same number of calories… And they contain no refined sugar or artificial ingredients. Sounds like true healthy candy bliss to me!
These healthy peanut butter cups are really easy to make—but just a little time-consuming! This is one of those recipes where I play music on the radio and sing along… Or turn on a movie (or baseball game!) in the background while I work. Just zone out, get in the groove, and enjoy the process. So relaxing!
You’ll start by making the filling. It’s a combination of peanut flour (this kind!), espresso grounds (like this!), a pinch of salt, and water. Super easy! I use peanut flour because it has the same taste of peanut butter but a fraction of the calories—and it has more protein too!
This is the peanut flour I use because it only has one ingredient: peanuts. Many other peanut flour (aka “powdered peanut butter”) brands also include sugar, which we’re trying to minimize in this healthier recipe! I buy mine online here. It’s pretty inexpensive—hooray!
As for the espresso, you just need the grounds! Not brewed espresso. I highly recommend espresso grounds, rather than coffee grounds, because espresso is ground more finely… So the filling won’t taste gritty. However, regular coffee grounds will work in a pinch!
Tip: Decaf espresso or coffee grounds work too! I sometimes use those so I can eat these peanut butter cups before bed and not get a huge caffeine buzz. ?
Once you’ve mixed up the filling, you’ll shape it into flat discs that are just a bit smaller than your mini muffin cups. Do not make balls! You want to make discs so the tops of your peanut butter cups are smooth and flat.
Tip: If the filling sticks to your fingers, moisten them with a small drop or two of water first!
Now it’s time to melt your dark chocolate! I love both Ghirardelli and Lindt bars for this. Do not use chocolate chips! Those contain a stabilizer, which prevents them from melting as smoothly.
To assemble your low-calorie peanut butter cups… Line your mini muffin cups with paper liners. Working with one at a time, dab a small amount of melted dark chocolate in the center. Gently place a filling disc on top. Cover with more dark chocolate, making sure you spread it all the way to the edges of the muffin liner.
Once you’re done, pop the pan in the freezer for just a few minutes to make your healthy peanut butter cups set faster and…
Enjoy! ?? And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! ?) I’d love to see your peanut butter cups!
| Healthy Dark Chocolate Espresso Peanut Butter Cups | | Print |
- ½ cup (60g) peanut flour (measured like this)
- 1 tsp espresso grounds (see Notes!)
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ cup (60mL) water
- ⅔ cup (149g) roughly chopped dark chocolate (see Notes!)
- Place cupcake liners inside of 24 mini muffin cups. Line a baking sheet with wax paper or parchment paper.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the peanut flour, espresso grounds, and salt until thoroughly combined. Stir in the water.
- Working with a small amount of the peanut butter mixture at a time, shape into a small sphere. Flatten the sphere until it’s just barely smaller than the mini muffin cup. Place onto the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the rest of the filling mixture. (If the mixture sticks to your hands, moisten them with a bit of water first!)
- Place the dark chocolate into a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on HIGH for 30 seconds. Stir for 1 minute. Continue to heat for 10-second intervals, stirring for 1 minute between each, until the chocolate has completely melted.
- Dollop a small amount of melted chocolate into one mini muffin liner, enough to cover the bottom, and carefully set one of the flattened filling spheres on top. Spoon more melted chocolate on top, carefully spreading it so it drips over the sides of the filling and into every nook and cranny of those liners. Repeat with the remaining chocolate and filling mixture.
- Once all 24 mini muffin cups have been filled, place them in the freezer for 10-15 minutes (or the refrigerator for 20-30 minutes) or until the chocolate has hardened. Store in the refrigerator or freezer until ready to eat.
You just need the espresso grounds (like this!), not brewed espresso! Decaf espresso will also work, if you’re concerned about caffeine. (I like to eat these as a pre-bedtime snack, so I generally use decaf!) As written, the espresso flavor isn’t very strong. For a more prominent espresso flavor, increase the espresso by an additional ½ to 1 teaspoon.
In a pinch, coffee grounds may be substituted for the espresso grounds. Coffee grounds are generally larger than espresso grounds, so the filling will taste a bit grittier.
I prefer my peanut butter on the salty side, so I usually increase the salt by an additional ¼ teaspoon!
Use regular bars of chocolate, not chocolate chips! Chocolate bars melt better and taste smoother than chocolate chips, which often contain a stabilizer to help them hold their shape. I love Ghirardelli and Lindt for this!
Flattening the filling ensures the tops of your PB cups are smooth and flat too, not rounded from the sphere poking up out of the chocolate!
Paper liners will better peel away from the peanut butter cups when they’re cold, straight from the refrigerator or freezer! If storing in the freezer, let them thaw on the counter for 5-10 minutes before eating.
{gluten-free, clean eating, vegan, low carb, low sugar}
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡ Healthy Pumpkin Spice Peanut Butter Cups
♡ Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Peanut Butter Cups
♡ Healthy Mini Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cookies
♡ Healthy Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Truffles
♡ The Ultimate Healthy Peanut Butter Blossoms
♡ Healthy Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter
Did you mean to tag that peanut flour? Only as it says that it also contains sugar along with the peanuts? Amazing recipe!
I appreciate your interest in my recipe Charlee! If you look at the ingredients list on the peanut flour that I linked to, the only ingredient is “roasted peanuts.” Peanuts actually contain a small amount natural sugar, which is why the sugar content isn’t zero. (Check the nutrition info on a container of no-salt-added peanuts — it’s usually around 1.5g to 2g per serving as well!) 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think if you try these peanut butter cups!
Do you have any other recipes using the peanut flour? I bought the one from your link and would like to use it for more than the peanut butter cups.This recipe was wonderful:)
Can’t wait to try these! I noticed that a “pumpkin mixture” is referenced a couple of times… I’m assuming it’s just a copy and paste error from another recipe, but I thought I’d point it out so you can update. Thank you for sharing!
Yikes! Thanks for catching that — all updated! 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these peanut butter cups Danielle!
Yummmmm! And SO gorgeous!! I’m SO glad you introduced me to that peanut flour back in the day… it’s my favorite smoothie protein boost, as every other protein powder (yes, even your soy protein! wahhh) seems to make me bloated! I can totally see you getting into the zone with these while a baseball game is playing in the background. Maybe this week, you’ll switch to the Olympics?! 😉
You’re too cute — I love your Olympics suggestion! Especially when the ice skating and hockey games are on… 😉 I’m so glad you love the peanut flour! That’s so weird how every other protein powder makes you bloated… Are you okay with rice? I’ve seen some rice protein powders that just contain the rice protein and natural vanilla flavor!
Hi i from australia never heard of peanut flour could i use almond instead?
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Glenyss! If you click on the pink text in my recipe (the pink text are my links!), you’ll see what peanut flour is (and where I buy it online!). I don’t recommend substituting almond flour in this recipe because its flavor is incredibly subtle compared to peanut flour, and it has a different absorbency. I’d love to hear what you think if you try these peanut butter cups!
Do you have any other recipes using the peanut flour? I bought the one from your link and would like to use it for more than the peanut butter cups.This recipe was wonderful:)
I’m so glad you enjoyed these peanut butter cups Laura! 🙂 You can find my recipes that use this same peanut flour here. In the future, the best way to find specific recipes is to click on the “Recipes” tab at the top of my blog or use the Search Bar (located at the top of my blog, if you’re viewing on a computer, or the bottom of my blog, if you’re viewing on a mobile device). I can’t wait to hear what recipe you try next!