Yes, I said salted caramel peanut butter cups.

I make some things that impress me, but I know it’s a really great sign when my husband is impressed.  It hardly ever happens.  I mean, he likes the things that I make, but he doesn’t really get excited about them like I do.  It’s just the difference in our personalities.  I get excited about every thing, and he gets excited only when it’s truly excellent. I can live with that, especially because it’s a good indicator that I’ve just made something that needs to be shared.

Except I can’t share these with you. Because we ate them. So I’ll do the next best thing and tell you how to make them.

I started with the Pioneer Woman’s Caramel Sauce Recipe.  I love that I can pretend it’s healthier because it’s made with half and half, instead of cream.

Just ignore the butter. Because it’s really not that much.

This sauce only gets better as it cools in the fridge. If you can wait a day before making the peanut butter cups, you won’t regret it.
I couldn’t wait. They turned out fantastic.

This is my double boiler. MacGuyver style. All you have to do is make sure that the water in the sauce pan doesn’t touch the bottom of the heat safe bowl.

Pour a cup of chocolate chips into the bowl, and set the heat to medium.

Stir pretty constantly, and line a cupcake tin with cupcake papers.

Spoon a thin layer of chocolate into each paper, spreading it out to make sure it covers the bottom. Then put it in the freezer for about 10-15 minutes. Just until the chocolate is really solid.

When the chocolate is ready, grab your peanut butter. You’ll also need a spoon.

I found that the back of a small spoon worked the best to spread the peanut butter over the chocolate. It allows you to use as much or as little peanut butter as you’d like, and the shape of the spoon allowed me to leave the chocolate in the paper.

At this point, you’ll want to add another cup of chocolate chips to the double boiler and melt it. You can simultaneously keep an eye on the chocolate and perform the next few steps.

Caramel sauce. Mine still hadn’t totally thickened yet. I had it in the refrigerator, and then the freezer for a minute, so it was cool enough to not melt the chocolate.

If you had told me two years ago that I’d be putting salt in a sweet treat, I’d have cried. “Salt doesn’t go in chocolate or caramel! That would ruin it!” No, Past Me, it only makes it better. I promise! Something about the salt really enhances the flavor of the caramel and the chocolate. And you don’t use very much.
You really do need a course grain for this though. Table salt would get lost very quickly, and you run the risk of over salting. With the big grains, you only need a few granules on each. Sprinkle a few right in the caramel.

Add another layer of chocolate, gently pressing to make sure that is spreads all the way out to the very edges.

Then add another few granules of sea salt. I only went with four or five per cup, since these won’t dissolve. You get a great zippy bite with each one.

Get those babies in the freezer, but only for about five to ten minutes this time. You don’t want to break your teeth.
The first time I made these, I didn’t have caramel sauce. They were good, but these…These are just over the top delicious! Store them in a ziplock bag in the refrigerator. And don’t forget to share!

Peanut Butter Cups with Salted Caramel
Makes 12 individual cups

2 cups chocolate chips, separated. Dark chocolate would be heavenly, so I’ll try that someday.
1/4 cup peanut butter (or any nut butter)
1/4 cup caramel sauce
1 tbsp sea salt (course grain)

Melt one cup of chocolate in a double boiler, stirring often to prevent burning. Line a muffin tin with paper liners. When the chocolate is completely melted and smooth, spoon a thin layer into each cup. Gently press the chocolate to the edges of the paper.
Place chocolate cups in the freezer for about 10-15 minutes.
Add the other cup of chocolate to the double boiler. Stir often.
When the cups are set and hard, use a spoon to spread peanut butter over the chocolate. Then drizzle the caramel sauce on top of the peanut butter.
Sprinkle a few grains of sea salt on the caramel, and then spoon another layer of chocolate on top. Garnish with a bit more salt, and place the cups in the freezer for about 5-10 minutes.