Chocolate Peanut Butter Explosion Cake
Moist dark chocolate cake layers packed with peanut butter chips, filled with peanut butter buttercream, smothered in ganache, and topped with Reese's cups and Reese's Pieces.
- Prep Time
- 25 min
- Cook Time
- 30 min
- Total Time
- 55 min
- Servings
- 12 servings
While I was trying to come up with a name for this cake, "explosion" was the word that stuck — because it genuinely looks like a peanut butter fanatic set off a peanut butter bomb all over it. That's exactly the vibe I was going for.
I'd been thinking about making this cake for months without any real occasion, until I realized I didn't actually need one. So I roped in my peanut-butter-obsessed brother and his family, along with my parents, and put it together.
This might be one of my all-time favorite chocolate peanut butter cakes, and for good reason — moist dark chocolate layers loaded with peanut butter chips, peanut butter buttercream between the layers, chocolate ganache on top, and Reese's cups and Reese's Pieces everywhere you look.
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 1 box dark chocolate fudge cake mix (Duncan Hines)
- 1 small box instant chocolate pudding mix
- 8 oz. sour cream
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup milk
- 4 eggs
- 1 bag Reese's peanut butter chips
For the Icing
- 1 lb. butter, softened
- 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
- 5 cups confectioners sugar
For the Ganache
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
For the Garnish
- Reese's Pieces
- Reese's peanut butter cups
Instructions
- 1Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine the cake mix, pudding mix, sour cream, oil, milk, and eggs in a mixing bowl or standing mixer, and beat at medium speed for 1-2 minutes, until well combined.
- 2Stir in the peanut butter chips. Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans, and divide the batter evenly between them.
- 3Bake for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the cake is just pulling away from the sides of the pan. Cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then turn out onto racks to cool completely.
- 4For the icing: combine the butter and peanut butter in a mixing bowl or standing mixer, and beat at medium speed for 2-3 minutes, until fluffy. Add the vanilla and confectioners sugar, and continue beating for 3-4 minutes.
- 5For the ganache: place the chocolate chips in a small bowl. Heat the heavy cream for 30-60 seconds, just until it starts to bubble. Pour over the chocolate chips, let sit for 1 minute, then whisk until smooth.
- 6Place one cake layer on a cake stand and spread a layer of peanut butter icing evenly on top. Place the second cake layer on top and cover the whole cake with the remaining icing.
- 7Pour the chocolate ganache over the top of the cake and smooth into an even layer, pushing some toward the edges so it drips down the sides. Chill until the ganache sets.
- 8Finish decorating with more icing, Reese's Pieces, and peanut butter cups.
Storage & Reheating
Store at room temperature in a cake carrier for 5-7 days.
