Peanut Butter & Jelly Cupcakes

I thought maybe you were still in the mood for some peanut butter & jelly baked goods. I know I am. I kind of looked around and I'm surprised there aren't more recipes out there. And why aren't there more packaged peanut butter & jelly snack cakes and bars? Doesn't that seem like something Little Debbie would make?
Oh wait! They do - they make PB&J Oatmeal Pies.

You might have noticed I mentioned Nutty Bars in the previous post. They were often packed into my lunch when I was growing up. Taking them apart layer by layer is the only way to truly enjoy and savor them.

I kind of have this small obsession over Little Debbie that I've never told anyone about. I always gaze over and admire all of the varieties of snack cakes, cookies and bars whenever I'm in the grocery store. I never buy or eat them because they aren't healthy and have all kinds of preservatives in them.

But say someone opens up a package of Chocolate Chip Snack Cakes, or, oh gosh, Christmas Tree Cakes, and I'm sitting near them and catch a whiff of that frosting and artificial goodness, I think, "Wowww. Those smell incredible."

So I think Nutty Bars are my favorite Little Debbie, but that's a tough call because they have quite the variety. I'm curious what everyone else's favorite is, so let's take a poll. Tell me what your favorite is in the comment section! It'll be fun times! Here are a few of my favorites:

-Cosmic Brownies. They're out of this world!

-Fancy Cakes. They're just plain fancy. You can serve them as dessert for dinner parties.

-Swiss Cake Rolls. These get smashed in your lunch easily.

-Zebra Cakes. YEAH! I forgot about these. Look at that rad zebra on the box.

-Oatmeal Creme Pies. True fact: Oatmeal Creme Pies in Las Vegas are smaller than the ones in Springfield, Missouri.

-Star Crunch. Ohhhh I don't know. I really like these too. These might be my favorite. These hold up well in your lunch, but they leave an unappealing brown smudge on the wrapper.

Little Debbie should start selling Peanut Butter & Jelly Cupcakes, don't you think? They would make a killing.

These are pretty simple, but I received good feedback on these. A light peanut butter cake batter is divided into muffin cups, a teaspoon of jelly is spooned into the center, then topped with the additional batter and baked. Then they're dipped into a peanut butter glaze to finish.
I love glazes and ganache. It's so much easier than frosting and decorating.

Peanut Butter & Jelly Cupcakes (Recipe by Me)
Printable Recipe

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons butter, softened
2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup milk
12 teaspoons grape jelly

Peanut Butter Glaze
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
6 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with liners.

In a medium sized mixing bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt.
In a large mixing bowl, using a mixer on medium speed, beat together butter, peanut butter and brown sugar, until creamy, about 1 minute. Beat in eggs and vanilla until combined; reduce mixer speed to low and beat in flour mixture until just combined, alternating with milk.

Divide about 1/3 of the batter into muffin tin. Place a teaspoon of grape jelly into the center of each cup; evenly top with remaining cake batter. Bake for 17-20 minutes or until well risen and golden. Cool 10 minutes on a wire rack before running a knife around outer edges and inverting out. Cool completely on wire racks.

To make the peanut butter glaze, whisk together heavy cream and brown sugar, in a small saucepan, over medium heat, and bring to a simmer; remove pan from heat and whisk in peanut butter until combined. Cool mixture for a few minutes until a good consistency is reached to dip the cupcakes in. Dip tops of cupcakes into peanut butter glaze and allow to dry. Double dip for double the pleasure.

Makes 12 cupcakes