If you’re looking for a healthy holiday treat, look elsewhere! Peanut butter balls (aka buckeyes) are easily my favorite Christmastime dessert. My Mom and I get together to make them around the holidays, and it’s a good thing we only make them once a year. If I had access to these goodies year-round I would be quite plump!
3 lbs. powdered sugar
1 lb. margarine or butter
4 cups peanut butter
3 packages chocolate chips
⅓ cake paraffin wax
Heat the chocolate chips and paraffin wax in a double boiler until they melt. Combine the powdered sugar, margarine, and peanut butter in a large bowl and mix them with your hands until everything is well blended. Chill for 1/2 hour. Roll the dough into balls and chill them. Then, dip the balls into the melted chocolate, and cool them on wax paper. Store the peanut butter balls in the refrigerator, and try not to eat them all in one sitting!
This recipe makes around 175–200 balls depending on how big you roll them (and how many you eat while making them).
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One of my cousins makes these and sells them in their very successful restaurant in Mississippi. I don’t know if the recipe is exactly the same because it’s “secret.” I will say this, she definitely freezes them after she makes them, in mason jars. Also, she uses those long straight pins with the pearl at the end, maybe they are called hat pins, for dipping and they are so thin that the holes don’t show. Lastly, semisweet chocolate is the way to go or they will turn out too sweet. FYI, I love chocolate and I love peanut butter, but I don’t like them together, go figure. I do, however, love these peanut butter balls!
I’ve been trying for over twenty years to find The Buckeye recipe when i was pregnant with my first baby a neighbor use to make these for me and I have not found anyone else who has ever heard of them. Glad you shared the recipe Thank you!
I have been making these balls for years and I HATE peanut butter. I cannot make enough of these during the holidays. My recipe is a bit different in that I add “rice krispies” to the dough and I use real butter. The krispies give it a bit of crunch w/o taking away from the yummy texture. Try it next time.
Just how my grandmother has always made them! love!
I used an off brand of Rice Krispies one year and they turned out soggy, always use Kellogs!!!
how many servings does this recipe make??
I have a similar recipe (mine doesnt call for the chocolate chips) and i get about 150-175.
These are always one of our Christmas favorites. Over the years, I have experimented with different things in the center. I really like the crunch of some rice krispies cereal. Other times, I substitute crunchy peanut butter for the creamy. The balls were a little more difficult to form, but not bad, and the result was well worth it. The chocolate coating pulls it all together. YUM!!
Looks like mine !! But mine do not require refrigeration.
equal parts powdered sugar and crunchy peanut butter
add more or less and mold into balls
Melt bark in microwave
dip balls and place on waxed paper to set-up
Enjoy !!
The recipe says 1/3 cake of paraffin wax. It says melt the wax and chocolate together. Is that correct?
Yes that’s correct. You can leave the wax out if you like, but the addition of the wax helps the chocolate smoothly coat the peanut butter balls and gives the chocolate a glossy sheen.
Hi! I just came across this recipe a few days ago and was able to get all the ingrediants with the exception of the cake of paraffin wax. I can’t seem to find it. Went to Michaels and they looked at me strangely. Any suggestions as to where this can be found?
It’s available in the canning aisle at the grocery store.
It’s made by Gulf I believe. There are 4 “cakes” in it in a box. Can be found at grocery stores.
I just used the almond bark brand of chocolate instead of the chocolate chips with wax. It is easier.
Also,the recipe calls for 3 package of chocolate chips…what is the size/weight of the bag?
I don’t have a bag on hand to check the weight, but it’s just 3 of the standard sized packages of chocolate chips—not the huge bags.
The average bag of chocolate chips is 12 oz. I believe. I use a mix of both semi sweet chips and milk chocolate.. :-)
I have used this recipe for years, it was my mothers’. Last year however, I was told you should not consume paraffin wax, but not why. Have you ever heard this?
I haven’t heard that, but you can always leave it out if you are worried. The chocolate just won’t go on quite as smoothly or be as shiny when it sets.
Instead of parrafin wax, you can use crisco shortening. It works the same way!
If u use Crisco instead of the wax…how much should u use?
Does anyone know how to convert the measurements into “cups” not pounds??
Thanks!
1 cup = 8oz; 16oz = 1 lb
mine is a little different…as I also add chipped pecans,shredded coconut, graham cracker crumbs.Everyone begs for this every Thanksgiving and Christmas
Can you use butter instead of margarine?
yes!
How much shortening would you use in place of the paraffin wax?
I usually use 1 1/2 Tablespoons of shortening for every cup of chocolate chips. It thins the chocolate out a little for dipping and leaves a nice shiny coating.
Hi,
These sound really good…any suggestions with measurements to use coconut oil instead of butter and something to substitute for the powdered sugar or a gluten free version? Recently allergic to dairy and maybe wheat/glueten:/
You can make your own powdered sugar, you just need a good food processor or blender. Commercial powdered sugar has cornstarch in it, but you can leave that out. Just put a small amount of granulated sugar in the food processor and pulse it until the sugar is light and fluffy. In place of the butter you can use margarine.
Do you suggest freezing these
before or after they are getting chocolate? How long can you keep them in the freezer?
How many does this recipe make?
A zillion. I’ve never counted to know an exact number. :)
Love peanut butter balls at xmas time, my grandmother has made them for the whole family every year since I was a little girl ! Only one thing is missing in this recipe, add rice crispys and it will add a little texture and crunch to them and makes them a little less soft and rich
To me less soft and rich is less delicious. To each her own! ;)
Would love to confirm that these can be frozen. Certainly do not have room in my fridge, but my sister has a deepfreeze.
I’ve never frozen them so I can’t say. You might read through the comments. I think others have had success with freezing them.
I’ve made them (with the Rice Krispies) every year for about 25 years, and I always freeze them. In fact, that’s how I serve them. My whole family LOVES the cold crunch!
I make peanut butter balls every year for the holidays, adding rice krispies and paraffin (just enough to give it a shine). I also freeze mine and have never had a problem with discoloration or altering the flavor.
What do you use to did them in the chocolate?
A plastic fork with the two center prongs removed works great for dipping.
The paraffin box has 4 cakes in it. So you use 1/3 of one of the cakes or 1/3 of the box?
1/3 of one of the cakes.
I have had issues with the chocolate on my buckeyes, They are beautiful the first day after I make them but then they start getting a cloudy film on them and the chocolate starts seperating from the peanut butter ball and the chocolate doesn’t set very well, I have tried using parafin and shortning with no success…I don’t know what I am doing wrong and would LOVE any suggestions you can give me, PLEASE HELP!!…Thanks!!
I’m thinking has something to do with tempering your chocolate (extremes with chocolate temperature will cloud chocolate). Set your doubleboiler over already simmering water, and melt only 2/3 of your chocolate at first. stir gently and steadily with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon. Heat to 110 degrees then remove from heat and dry the bottom of the bowl. Now, add the remaining 1/3 of chocolate chips and mix vigorously until they melt. This acts to help cool the chocolate. If chocolate is too cool to work with, heat to 90 degrees.
My Aunt always made these for us growing up. These were one of the many treats she created for us. Things have changed through the years and we are no longer able to get together like back then. This is the exact same recipe. I had it at one time, but lost it. THANKS so much for sharing. I will be making these this year and will be thinking of Aunt June the whole time!
What brand peanut butter do you use? I buy Adams at our home, but a friend said it doesn’t work for these and that you need jif or skippy. Is that correct? I think Adams would taste great!
I’ve used jif and skippy, and I like skippy natural best. I think you could use any peanut butter that isn’t too runny. You could try a small batch like this to test Adams brand: http://witandwhistle.com/2012/09/04/peanut-butter-balls-for-one/
I’ve used store brand and never had a problem.
I used creamy peanut butter and i cant get the peanut butter into balls now. I’ve followed all the directions how can i fix this?
You could try refrigerating the dough for a while. Then the butter would solidify a bit and make it easier to roll into balls.
For those of you who suggested Rice Krispies, how much do you add? Thanks and yummy! : )
Any substitute for the peanut butter? These look great but I have a peanut allergy!
You could try almond butter!
How many days will these last if they stay in the fridge?
I’ve kept them in the fridge for up to a month, but they could probably go longer. Lots of other commenters have had success with freezing them too.
I use graham crumbs in my recipe. I also freeze mine and use chocolate waffers rather than chocolate chips.
I make these every year using Smuckers all natural peanut butter, but I pour off the oil on the surface. I use real butter instead of margarine. I chill the dough before forming into balls. Once I have the balls made, I can freeze them until I get around to dipping. Freezing after dipping can make the chocolate cloudy. Also, I don’t use parafin in the chocolate. I melt the chocolate in a double boiler until smooth, then I take it off the heat and add another 1/2 to 3/4 cup of chocolate bits and stir till smooth to bring down the temperature (tempering the chocolate) until it’s the temperature of a baby’s bottle (test on the wrist). Make sure to shake the balls well to get the excess chocolate off. Before you’re done, you may have to reheat/re-temper the chocolate. This makes a lot of buckeyes.
i also used creamy and i put it in the freezer and i cant get mine to form into balls ether and i used less peanut butter and less butter than it called for..oh well making peanut butter cups now
Brittany, I found that if they do not form into balls, adding more peanut butter helps.
Hi Amanda, Can these be frozen?
Yes, you can freeze these. I make hundreds each Christmas and freeze them for up to a month before they get eaten or used in gift baskets. I use a large plastic container and separate layers with wax paper.
Thanks for the recipe! Can you use a tablespoon of light corn syrup in the chocolate for smooth texture instead of the wax?
I’ve never tried it, but I would guess no since corn syrup is very sticky. You would need to add something with a waxy/oily texture for smoothness.
Chocolate wafers are a great way to coat buckeyes. Then you don’t have to mess with the wax and I think it might taste better.
I’ve used 2 tsp of vegetable oil to 8 oz. of chocolate for coating my truffles for several years without problems. Also, I saw a tip on Pinterest about keeping your coating chocolate warm by sitting it in a crockpot of water on high. Haven’t tried that yet, but I thought I might this year.
Ive made these before and they came out great! Note to self adding water to the chocolate and wax does not make it thinner. But how did you make them so shiny? Mine come out all sorta dull.
The chocolate is so shiny in the last photo because it was still warm and gooey. As it cools and hardens it becomes less shiny. :)
I make these every year with my grandmother, but we use graham crackers in ours (must be a Northern thing, we put the crackers in a food processor, mix with the powedered sugar then mix with the butter/pb combo and roll into balls. :)
I just finished making these and they are to die for! I didn’t use the paraffin wax and ended up buying semi-fancy (milk chocolate) melting chocolate from a candy store. They turned out great. My batch made 163. Do these have to be refrigerated and how long would you say they stay good for? I’d like to give them as Christmas gifts in a week or so.
Do you mean 3 cups of powdered sugar not 3 lbs? That’s over 11 cups of powdered sugar to 4 cups of peanut butter. The consistency is way off and they won’t form balls. All other recipes I can find are WAY closer to equal parts of peanut butter and powdered sugar.
Nope, I mean 3 lbs. It form balls perfectly as you can see in the photos. If you don’t believe me you can try making this single serving recipe with the same powdered sugar to peanut butter ratio to test it out: http://witandwhistle.com/2012/09/04/peanut-butter-balls-for-one/
Its actually 6 cups. :) But if you weigh 3 pounds of powdered sugar it is equal to 9 cups. :)
Does it work to split this recipe in half? I don’t really NEED that many. I’m afraid if I make that many, I’ll eat them all myself!
Yes, you can cut it in half.
Do you melt the butter and peanut butter before mixing with the powdered sugar?
Nope!
I don’t have a double boiler. Can you melt the Choc. Mixture in the microwave?
Sure, it will just be harder to keep it warm and melty while you dip 100+ peanut butter balls.
I was looking for something easy to bring over to my un-laws for Christmas Eve and I think this is just what I wanted!
how do you dip these? What tool do you use? ty for posting this recipe. We make them too, but they don’t look as good as your, but do taste yummy!
I use a plastic fork with the center two prongs broken off. Works like a charm!
just to confirm would the 3lbs of of powdered sugar equal to about 6 cups? same with the 1 lb of butter, would you say thats 1 stick of butter?
3lbs of powdered sugar is 3 boxes of powdered sugar (they are marked 1lb on the outside). It’s more than 6 cups. 1lb of butter is 4 sticks.