Indulge in these delicious Rice Krispie peanut butter balls!
They’re the perfect combination of peanut butter, chocolate and a little bit of crunch.
When you’re craving something sweet, these decadent no-bake treats are just the thing.
Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make these crispy peanut butter balls:
- Creamy peanut butter. Avoid chunky peanut butter in this recipe.
- Powdered sugar
- Crispy rice cereal. Most rice cereals are gluten free, but be sure to double check the labels if keeping things gluten free is important. Many people are surprised to learn that the name brand Rice Krispies are not gluten free.
- Butter
- Semisweet baking chocolate. We’re talking about the kind that comes in bars, and this is important! More on that later.
- Coconut oil. We’re just using a tiny bit to make the chocolate the perfect consistency.
How to Make Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls
Make the Peanut Butter Filling
Start by mixing the peanut butter, softened butter and powdered sugar together in a bowl. Then, add in the Rice Krispie cereal.
Form the mixture into balls
Now, wet your hands and start to form the mixture into balls. I like to use a small cookie scoop so I get uniform-sized balls. You could also use a tablespoon measure.
Set the balls onto a cookie sheet lined with either parchment paper or wax paper.
Chill the balls
Pop them into the refrigerator for at least one hour. You don’t need to cover them.
Dip the Balls in chocolate
Melt the chocolate in either a double boiler or a frying pan over low heat.
Adding a tiny bit of coconut oil does wonders for melting chocolate! It helps form a silky consistency that’s ideal for dipping.
Once your chocolate is ready, dip the chilled peanut butter balls. I use a regular fork to do this, but they actually make a special dipping tool that you can get for pretty cheap on Amazon.
Allow the excess chocolate to drip back into the pan, and transfer each ball back onto the parchment-lined baking sheet.
If you’re decorating your peanut butter balls for the holiday season or other occasion, now would be the time to sprinkle your decorations on top.
Refrigerate the balls
Place the cookie sheet back into the refrigerator to allow the chocolate to set to a smooth, matte finish.
Storage Instructions
Once the chocolate is set, store these no-bake peanut butter balls in an airtight container in the refrigerator. They’ll last for weeks!
Serving Suggestions
These bite-sized treats are a seasonless delight, perfect for any time of year!
Decorate them to suit the occasion: try red and green sprinkles at Christmas time, pink and red ones for Valentine’s Day or choose a color to match the theme of your party.
To create the look that you see in these photos, simply melt more chocolate and drizzle it over your peanut butter balls once the chocolate coating has completely set.
FAQs
Traditional peanut butter balls, sometimes called buckeye balls, are made with graham cracker crumbs. In this easy recipe, we swap in crispy rice cereal for the graham crackers, making it a great gluten free alternative.
You sure can. Try milk chocolate or even white chocolate if that floats your boat. Just be sure that you’re using baking chocolate bars!
Keeping your hands damp with water will make it easier to roll and shape the peanut butter balls, especially if they are really sticky.
The kind of chocolate that you use is important. I have tried using semi-sweet chocolate chips and even melted chocolate frosting.
This will result in a sticky chocolate coating.
If you want a nice, matte finish on your peanut butter balls, you have to use baking chocolate. Baking chocolate can easily be found at the supermarket, and it comes in bars. It melts nicely over very low heat, and if it ever gets too thick you can thin it with a little bit of coconut oil.
If the chocolate coating on your peanut butter balls is sticky, it’s likely because you’re using the wrong kind of chocolate.
Melted chocolate frosting and melted chocolate chips will not yield the smooth, matte finish that you’re looking for. To get a smooth peanut butter ball that won’t stick to your fingers, always use melted baking chocolate.
Yes. In order to keep the consistency and texture, it’s important to refrigerate peanut butter balls so that they don’t become soft and lose their shape.
When you make these chocolate peanut butter balls, I’d love to hear about it! Drop a rating or leave a comment below. Enjoy!
For more no-bake treats, try these:
Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls with Rice Krispies
Ingredients
- 3 cups Rice Krispies cereal
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1 cup confectioner's sugar
- 12 oz. semisweet baking chocolate
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1/2 tsp. coconut oil
Instructions
- Combine peanut butter, powdered sugar and softened butter in a large mixing bowl until smooth. Stir in the Rice Krispies.
- Form the mixture into 1-inch balls. If your hands get too sticky, wet them with water. Place peanut butter balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Chill the peanut butter balls in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
- Melt the chocolate and coconut oil over medium-low heat in a shallow pan, stirring constantly until the mixture is smooth and silky. Dip the balls into the chocolate and set back onto the cookie sheet. Refrigerate to set, at least 1 hour. Store in the refrigerator.
Going to make theses.