The coconut oil will make the chocolate melt easily- I wouldn’t use it. Not sure I’d use the vanilla either. I hope you were using proper chocolate, not chips or choc melts, for instance.

I’d be putting the vanilla into the peanut butter and experiment with adding more confectioner’s sugar until it tastes as you want it to. Is the filling in Reese’s PB cups that runny?

I see, thanks! And my followup Qs are in bold-italics below. You got a point about switching the vanilla to the peanut butter part, and adding more confect. there. I may try that next. As for your Qs, the filling's texture came out great (not runny) but it's a bit too peanut-buttery tasting. Also, the reason I used choco-chips, is because it's easy to measure the ounces of choco-chips via measuring cup.

I'm wondering if there's some sorta jumbo decorative cupcake holders that aren't expensive, which can keep guests hands clean from the smudgy choco? I do have in the house some XL pastel-colored cupcake holders laying around from long ago, but they're not geared to fancy occasions, AND furthermore, the Reeses diameter are a bit wider than my XL-cupcake-holders.

P.S. I'm afraid if the coconut oil is reduced, then the choco-part would not be sufficiently "melt-in-mouth". So what's the solution?

Dipping chocolate usually contains parafin....12 oz chocolate to 2 oz parafin. Sets up well.

Aside from using the wrong type of chocolate - a mistake I’ve made with unfortunate results - you used the wrong amount. Fluid ounces is approximately equal to ounces of weight for water and similar items, but not for everything and definitely not chocolate chips.

Looking at the recipe fot Toll House Cookies on a bag of Nestle chips it calls for two cups, or one 12 ounce bag, of chips. So that gives you your weight to volume conversion of 1.33. For 13 ounces of chocolate you should have measured slightly over 17 fluid ounces. So there was in fact too much oil in your mix.

But all of that is moot because you shouldn’t be using chips. If you don’t have a kitchen scale it’s easy enough to approximate off the package weight. For example if you buy four ounce bars you’ll need 3 and a quarter of them.

I use a mixture of chips and bark all the time for molding and it comes out perfectly.- Luckily I serve palates that are not as discerning as others. I too would fear the coconut oil. Maybe it's your base recipe. Here's one I use at Christmas: https://www.favfamilyrecipes.com/homemade-reeses-peanut-butter-cups/ Works every time.

Thanks - I appreciate the recipe! Anyone happen to know of promising cupcake-holders (or whatever) for my smudgy fiasco's?

arcy, I also came across the following interesting recipe after I posted my above followup:

https://dinnerthendessert.com/reeses-bark/

I had also decided in future to try the below base recipe (and double or triple it):

=================

peanutty-section

=================

1/3 c. peanut butter

2 TB honey

1 TB refined coconut oil

1 TB conf. sugar

1 tsp vanilla

=================

choco-section

=================

6.5 oz. choco-chips

1/2 TB marg.

1/2 TB crisco

P.S. Foodonastump, I had used an online conversion tool geared to convert 185grams to ounces. https://duckduckgo.com/?q=185+grams+to+ounces&hps=1&ia=answer (and doubled the recipe)

You coverted the WEIGHT of 185 grams to a WEIGHT of 6.5 ounces. So far so good. But then you assumed that a dry weight of 13 ounces is equal to a VOLUME of 13 ounces. And it is not. Which is why charts such as this exist:

https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/learn/ingredient-weight-chart

Oh my - so the above link indicates that 170-gram choco-chips equals 6 oz. equals 1 cup.

Given that, would you know how I'd measure 185-grams of chips?

You'd previously mentioned 17 fluid ounces. Did you mean the 17 ounce mark on my Pyrex? Somehow my brain doesn't process many things well, including such conversions.

P.S. Regarding people living in countries which use gram measurements, how would they measure the choco-chips via above recipe? Is it on their measuring cups?

You need a food scale.

So if I don't have one, I can't use the shape-and-store recipe?

Jally - Conversions aren’t perfect. Flour is the classic example. Depending on how you measure the flour, leaving it really fluffy or packing it, you’ll get very different results. Most flour packaging says 30 grams is a quarter cup, which makes a cup 120 grams or 4.23 ounces. Cooks Illustrated uses a conversion of 5 ounces to a cup. This is a big enough disparity to make a difference.

Something like chocolate chips is going to depend on size and shape; you’ll get more chocolate in a measuring cup if you use mini chips than regular. Less if we take it to the extreme and use hershey’s kisses as the ”chips.”

I definitely recommend getting a food scale at some point but you don’t ”need” one here. Like I said, buying chocolate bars would be easy. Divide the desired weight by the weight of the bar and figure out how many bars you need. I’m sure it doesn’t have to be exact, but you were off enough to potentially make a difference.

Google "how to make cupcake holders from parchment paper." I think you could make some fancy looking holders quite easily. Look up napkin folding too. There are some really cute folds that would really show off off a peice of candy.

Don’t use chips. The formulation for chips is different to that used for chocolate. Buy an 8oz bar of chocolate and use 7/8 of it.

I think I'd jus go to Trader Joe's if I had one nearby and buy some. They're delicous and so much less trouble.

Try this for the papers. it's a mixed search, so look around for what you need; https://www.etsy.com/search?q=fancy%20candy%20cup

If you want bricks and mortar, try a large cake supply store or party supply, but you'll find more variety online.

You can get an adequate digital kitchen scale which will do both grams and ounces for $10 at any place they sell small kitchen appliances (though, obviously you'll pay more at Bloomingdales's than Costco). Amazon has a big selection and they deliver. It's worth it. Learn how to use it correctly. You put a bowl on, and press ”tare” to set the zero point at the weight of the bowl. Many also have a setting for fluid ounces, but your Pyrex measuring cup is more accurate for that, unless you're measuring water—the weight of water is what it’s set for, figuring that many other liquids are close enough. More precision is always better in baking, candy, etc.

I was taught that glass measuring cups were only to be used for measuring liquids. I don't think they measure dry ingredients accurately,

Food scales are cheap and awesome. They can also be used for mail. I've scribbled weight equivalents in the margins of many of my favorite recipes because you don't need to get a measuring cup dirty when you weight in the mixing bowl. Get one!

On topic, PB cups is way beyond my skill level. Good luck :)

OK, thank you all for your tips! i'll address one thing at a time.

Firstly, this is relevant insofar as melting points: https://home-ec101.com/butter-makes-it-better/

Secondly, re: the holders: AdellaBedella and pillog, thanks for the handy info!

I decided on a combo of:

1. Cutting 5"x5" squares per: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_XVNvS4kJw
2. Combined with a glass I have as template to wrap the 5x5 parchment around

Thirdly, I'm very low-powered of late, and buying a scale is low-priority for me at this time of ongoing other priorities (such as neighbor-relations). I make such concoctions maybe once in a blue moon.

Still, thanks so much for the tips (or is it called "heads up"?) I may soon look into it on Amazon (or wherever) and maybe add to one of my online carts.

My choco-chips are MEDIUM dark-chips measuring ONE-CENTIMETER (across WIDEST part of their base) as their base is not a perfect circle.

Anyway, by now I give up and will just go ahead with the 1/2-TB -marg & 1/2-TB-crisco recipe (as stated above). Edit: On 2nd thought I may try arcy's version, albeit include Crisco. Because more than 30 of the peanutty-rounds are taking up room in my fridge awaiting my pouring the choco-mixture onto them. It's only been my lack of proper recipe plus other chores and sapped-energy holding me back.

P.S. It occurs to me that how many people, say, in colonial times owned food-scales, yet they got by fine?? Yeah, I know this may be considered a stupid Q, but still... And btw i don't own candy or poultry thermometers either. I really don't have it "all together" as there's always been WAY too many things to contend with to decide what to prioritize first, and I never catch up with time.

I used to make peanut butter balls for Christmas giving. The filling was peanut butter, butter, and confectioner's sugar. The dipping chocolate was semi-sweet chocolate chips and Paramount crystals.

https://www.amazon.com/CK-Products-Paramount-Melting-Crystals/dp/B0008DI8OY

“P.S. It occurs to me that how many people, say, in colonial times owned food-scales, yet they got by fine??”

They didn’t have measuring cups, either. I assume they either had the skills to wing it or else with trial and error established measurements with whatever they had on hand.

You’d be far from the first to reject the use of scales. Some excellent cooks right on this forum find them fussy and can’t be bothered. Me, I’ll do a conversion any time I deal with a sticky or awkward ingredient. I’d rather add a weight of peanut butter to the bowl than scrape out a measuring cup. But that’s just me. Regardless, if you want to follow a recipe, decide if it works and if you like it, I believe you owe it to yourself and the author to make it as written. And that includes using proper conversions, if a weight is given and you choose to use volume.

“P.S. It occurs to me that how many people, say, in colonial times owned food-scales, yet they got by fine??”

I would assume that, like in current times, baking/cooking skills were all over the board. Some great, some not so great. I think people used common kitchen items for measuring, like a teacup or coffee cup and tableware for teaspoons and tablespoons. People worked hard and probably appreciated food on the table, regardless of the preciseness of measurements. When you're hungry and expected to eat the food put in front of you, it really doesn't matter whether your pie crust has 1 c of flour or 1 ¼ cups of flour ratio to your lard/butter measurements. It's pie and it's going to be good!

I am an excellent cook and I cannot even imagine the hoops that I see people here going through to measure/weigh everything. It's so far out of the realm of the way I cook, the way my mother and grandmother cooked that it really kind of makes me feel bad for them that they feel they have to expend all that time and energy getting everything EXACTLY the same every time.

I have all the modern equipment, and I just made a really good soup by just dumping stuff in a pot. No measures. I can make cake or bread just by estimating and adjusting. Same with a lasagna, quich or fruit pie. These are the kind of things most of those colonials made. They knew from experience how much to use. They also did have measures available. Some just used handfuls or pours for things they made daily, and did it by sight or feel, but we talk about ”cups” and ”teaspoons” because our forebears often used an odd teacup or a handy spoon as a measure. It makes it easier to replicate a good dish. A friend might have totally different measures, but one's own cup was the same. I know what's in my soup, but will never be able to make the same thing again because I have no idea how much of each ingredient. Back when, they also had measures like how much of an ingredient one could buy for a penny, or for other than staples, they might buy just enough by weight. Even though they might have to be quite well to do to have their own scales, the merchant would.

If I'm making a recipe, I find weights far more accurate and reliable, especially for baking. If I were making peanut butter cups, rather than basic bread, I'd need to follow a good recipe too, and I'd choose one that lists by weight.

Good luck with your project. I'm sure you'll be able to get them together so they can be enjoyed by those you give them too. They needn't be the ne plus ultra—they just have to taste good! I'm sure they'll be fine.

I think the different approaches to cooking (and measuring) have as much to do with personality as anything else. I have no doubt that my imperfect, imprecise way of cooking would result in perfectly delicious peanut butter cups.

If I were making this recipe, I would use almond butter instead of peanut butter, and I would not use any oil at all. I also would not use vanilla, but I do add food-grade paraffin to chocolate when I am making candy. I use 1.6 oz of paraffin per pound of dark chocolate, and I use dark chocolate that I buy from Trader Joe's. I use a silicon Madeleine mold:

These are filled with caramel (which I make with cream instead of milk) and pecans, and they contain no salt. To me, they taste sweeter without salt, and one of the reasons I make candy in the first place is to leave out the salt. I think that all peanut butter and almond butter will have salt, but in those cases, the nut butters need a bit of salt, and so they are an exception. Caramel is much better without salt. I've also always eaten pecans without salt, usually while picking them up from my parents' yards.

Wow, those are professional looking and probably delish! Y'all are so experienced! And you've definitely convinced me of the merits of a food scale. Sorry I never bought one long ago.

Meantime, VOILA! have I got pics for y'all which are wimpy by comparison to your gorgeous candy.

(see below attached)

The 2nd time around (hours ago) I made a version of arcy's recipe, and it came out more firm and yummier than the first batch, but still tends to smudge fingers. I used two nine-ounce bags choco-chips, 2-TB marg., 1-TB Crisco, 1-TB coconut-oil, and a large stainless spoon (serving-spoon) heaped with Conf.Sugar.

Note arcy's recipe would have called for 6-TB butter per 18-ounces-chips (since arcy's was 4-TB per 12-ounces-chips). Whereas I used only 4-TB fat per 18-ounces, because I chose coconut oil for one of the tablespoons, and Crisco for another., so didn't want to take chances of it being too oily. (I'm thus confused as to how arcy's recipe remained non-smudgy??) Also, in the hope of further "firming" it up, I added aforesaid Conf.sugar.

I used to make buckeyes alot and I used food grade paraffin but today if I were, I wouldn't add anything to the chocolate.

Thanks for the compliment, nickel. And Bumblebeez thanks for mentioning buckeyes, because that led me to find this recipe (via youtube) which advises 2-cups choc-chips plus 2-TB coconut-oil for choc.mixture, and which i assume is not smudgy: https://preppykitchen.com/wprm_print/15573

I might try this strategy next:

Filling: 1 cup peanut butter, 2 TB marg., 3 TB honey, 3 TB Conf.sugar, 1-tsp vanilla

Choc-part: 4 cups choc.chips, 2-TB coconut oil, 2-TB marg.

I wonder if, before washing (meaning it's probably too late now) if placing them in the freezer and then flexing them would cause the brittle frozen chocolate and pnut butter to just fall out?

I actually tried that, but it worsened it, because it became more like hard-sticky-glue (rather than softer sticky-glue that you can wash off.

Mind you, its for sure a great concept for other things, such as burgers. (See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7CvOPzJ5PU

And maybe even mini smart-cookies if their choco-chip-cookie recipe turns out to be truly mess-free. Or maybe even mini veg. patties or fish patties.

P.S. Whether the kids liked it or not, the neighbors definitely appreciated the fancy/unique look which added to the decor. And the adults liked the taste.