INGREDIENTS:
PEANUT BUTTER MOUSSE
• 8 oz cream cheese
• 3/4 cup icing sugar
• 1 cup peanut butter
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup whipping cream
• pinch of salt
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CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER GANACHE
• 12 oz semi-sweet chocolate
• 1 cup whipping cream
• 2 tablespoons peanut butter
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2 x 8″ Chocolate Cake
• Reece’s Peanut Butter Cups halved and quartered
• chopped peanuts
• chocolate chips
• peanut butter chips
METHOD:
Bake and cool two 8″ round chocolate cakes.
Begin by making the chocolate peanut butter ganache as it needs time to cool slightly. Bring whipping cream close to a boil either in the microwave or on the stove. Remove from heat and add chocolate and peanut butter. Allow to sit for a couple of minutes, and then stir until the mixture comes together smoothly.
For the peanut butter mousse, the first step is to cream the cream cheese and icing sugar together until smooth. Add the peanut butter, and vanilla and again, cream until smooth. Set aside. In a seperate bowl, whip whipping cream until soft peaks form. Gently fold the whipping cream into the peanut butter mixture until no white streaks remain. Use this to fill and cover the cake.
To assembly the cake, cover in peanut butter mousse. If desired, place quartered peanut butter cups in the filling between the two cake layers. Once mousse is smoothed onto the cake, pour a 1/4 cup of the ganache in the center of the cake, and using the back of a spoon, gently work the ganache to the edge of the cake. Continue to add ganache in the center of the cake until the chocolate reaches the edge and flows over the sides. Put as little or as much on as you’d like! Place halves and quarters of peanut butter cups along the bottom border of the cake. On the top of the cake, place halves of the cups in a circular shape and fill center with both chips, peanuts and quartered cups.
