REESE'S Brownie Cupcakes Recipe #snacktalk Challenge

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March is one of my favorite months of the year - between St. Patricks Day and College Basketball, I feel as if there is always a reason to celebrate. While in Walmart the other day, I noticed a display from REESE'S for their #SnackTalk Challenge. REESE'S wants to nationally recognize your best gameday recipe! The winner will be recognized on www.reesessnacktalk.com, CBS and walmart.com!

A few years ago, I attended a basketball party where the host made these amazing basketball cupcakes stuffed with a REESE'S Peanut Butter Cup. I went home and recreated them for a party I hosted and they were a hit. It's a very simple recipe - I use boxed brownie mix (if your store has REESE'S brownie mix, double score), full sized REESE'S peanut butter cups and peanut butter icing. You can either make your own (recipe below) or use store bought.

I made my brownies according to the cake like recipe on the box (usually 2 or 3 eggs vs. 1). Using jumbo cupcake liners, I placed one tablespoon of brownie mix in the bottom of each, topped with a peanut butter cup, then another tablespoon to cover the cup. I baked them at 350 for 25 minutes and took out of the oven for an hour to cool.

While the brownie cupcakes were cooling, I made my frosting. This was a simple yet messy task. I used a cake icing knife to smooth out the icing on the cupcakes and finally decorated with gel coloring and if you want even more peanut butter - top the basketball lines with brown REESE'S Pieces!

REESE'S Brownie Cupcake Recipe
Box of brownie mix (prepare according to box, using cake-like recipe)
12 REESE'S Peanut Butter Cups
12 Jumbo Cupcake liners

Place 1 tablespoon of the brownie mix in each liner, then place a peanut butter cup on each. Top the peanut butter cup with another tablespoon of brownie mix, or until covered. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes. Let cool for an hour.

Peanut Butter Frosting
1/2 cup room temperature butter
1 cup smooth peanut butter
2 cups powdered sugar
3 (or more if needed) tablespoons milk

In a stand mixer, beat the butter and peanut butter until smooth. Gradually add the sugar. Add milk as needed to make into a smooth frosting.

Decorations
Decorate each like a basketball. I attempted to use food coloring to turn my frosting orange - but it didn't work and after 4 tires, I was happy with standard peanut butter coloring! As mentioned above, I smoothed the frosting using a cake icing knife, then drew the basketball lines on them with gel coloring.

Enter your #snacktalk recipe at https://www.reesessnacktalk.com/. Follow REESE'S on Twitter @ReesesPBCups2Make your best REESE'S recipe. Be sure to hashtag #ChallengeEntry!