Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate

Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate is easy to make at home and so, so good. 

I have a ton of hot chocolate recipes on the site, Classic Hot Chocolate, Rich and Thick Hot Chocolate, White Hot Chocolate, Pink Hot Chocolate, Baileys Hot Chocolate, so I thought I had pretty much all my hot chocolate bases covered.

But last year someone left me a comment blew my mind. They told me that they had taken my classic hot chocolate and made it into peanut butter hot chocolate.

As a lover of all things peanut butter, obviously I had to give this a try, and friends, I’m so glad I did, because it’s real good.

Adding peanut butter to hot chocolate not only makes your hot chocolate a peanut buttery delight, it also gives it a rich and creamy texture, so it feels 10xs more decadent.

Ingredients

• Sugar, cocoa powder, and water: Instead of using a store-bought chocolate sauce, we’ll use these three ingredients to make a quick chocolate syrup to flavor the hot chocolate base. 
• Milk: Any percentage milk will work for hot chocolate. The higher fat the milk, the richer and creamier your hot chocolate will be.
• Peanut butter: I recommend using a processed creamy peanut butter like this so you get the smoothest hot chocolate possible. 

Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate Variations

• Vegan: Replace the dairy milk with your favorite plant-based milk and you have instant vegan peanut butter hot chocolate. 
• Extra chocolatey: Add 2 tablespoons of good-quality chocolate chips or chopped chocolate to the chocolate syrup and stir until melted before adding the milk. The extra boost of real chocolate flavor is *so* good. 
• Extra creamy: Replace 2 tablespoons of the milk with heavy cream (or 1/4 cup with half and half) for an incredibly rich and creamy peanut butter and chocolate experience. 

How to Make Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate

1. Stir together sugar, cocoa powder, and water over medium heat until smooth. 
2. Add milk and peanut butter and heat, stirring occasionally until milk is steaming hot and peanut butter is completely mixed in. Do not allow the milk to come to a boil as it can scald. 
3. Pour into a mug (if you are feeling a little extra, you can add whipped cream and peanut butter sauce like I did, but that’s totally optional) and enjoy!

FAQ

Can I double this recipe?

Yes, you can scale up the recipe with no preparation changes needed. To change the yield, in the recipe card below, hover over the serving size or click if you’re on mobile, and slide the slider.

Can I use natural peanut butter?

I haven’t tested this hot chocolate with natural peanut butter, but I wouldn’t recommend it. I have a feeling even smooth natural peanut butter will have too much texture to stir into a drink unless you use a blender to mix it.

Can I make this in the microwave?

Yes! To make peanut butter hot chocolate in the microwave, combine cocoa powder, sugar, and water in a mug. Stir until well-mixed and microwave for 15 seconds. Add peanut butter and stir until smooth before adding the milk. Microwave 1 to 1 ½ minutes, until steaming. Stir once more, and enjoy!

More Cold-weather Drink Recipes

• Snickerdoodle Hot Chocolate
• Homemade Mocha
• White Chocolate Mocha
• Chai Tea Latte
• The BEST Crockpot Hot Chocolate

More Peanut Butter Recipes

• Buckeye Brownie Cookies
• Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies 
• Small-batch Peanut Butter Cookies
• Small-batch Monster Cookie Bars 
• Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies
• Easy Homemade Peanut Butter Cups

Recipe Notes

This recipe makes 1 cup of hot chocolate, enough to fill an 8-ounce mug. If you’d like to fill an oversized mug, 1 1/2 or double the recipe.

Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate

This rich and creamy peanut butter hot chocolate is easy to make at home and so, so good. 

5 from 4 votes

Print Pin

Course: Drinks

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 2 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes minutes

Total Time: 7 minutes minutes

Servings (Hover or Click to Change Yield): 1 cup

Calories: 318kcal

Author: Tracy

Ingredients

• ▢ 2 tablespoons (25g) granulated sugar
• ▢ 1 tablespoon (7g) cocoa powder
• ▢ 1 tablespoon water
• ▢ 1 cup milk any percentage
• ▢ 1 heaping tablespoon creamy peanut butter not natural peanut butter

Optional Toppings

• ▢ Whipped cream
• ▢ Peanut butter sauce

Instructions

• In a small saucepan, combine sugar, cocoa powder, and water. Heat over medium heat and stir until sugar and cocoa powder dissolve.
• Add milk and peanut butter and stir. Heat, stirring occasionally, until milk begins to steam and peanut butter is completely dissolved. 
• Pour into an 8-ounce mug, top with optional whipped cream and peanut butter sauce if desired and enjoy.

Notes

Approximate nutritional information is for Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate only. 

To make peanut butter sauce, combine 2 tablespoons corn syrup and 1 tablespoon peanut butter in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for 10 to 20 seconds, until syrup just begins to bubble. Carefully remove from microwave and stir until completely mixed and smooth.

Microwave Hot Chocolate Instructions: To make peanut butter hot chocolate in the microwave, combine cocoa powder, sugar, and water in a mug. Stir until well-mixed and microwave for 15 seconds. Add peanut butter and stir until mostly smooth before adding the milk. Microwave 1 to 1 ½ minutes, until steaming. Stir once more, and enjoy!

Did you make this recipe?I'd love to see it! Tag @BakingMischief or hashtag it #BakingMischief.

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This post was originally published on 11/30/18. It was updated on 11/1/20 with new photos and additional information and tips.