FUELED Wellness + Nutrition | Good-For-You Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups? Yes, Please!

Molly Kimball
·3 min read

NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — Peanut butter cups have always been one of my favorites for Halloween and Easter.  But let’s be honest, we don’t really need a special occasion to crave the sweet-and-just-a-bit-saltiness of a chocolate peanut butter cup.

But a typical two-cup serving packs in 20 grams of added sugar, along with questionable ingredients like TBHQ, a food preservative.  

Fortunately, more brands are giving us low-carb, low-sugar peanut butter cup options. Many of these also offer other options for nut butter, like almond, cashew and more.

Here are five good-for-you chocolate peanut butter cups that are worth trying; each are gluten-free, grain-free, low carb, with zero added sugar.

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For more on Net Carbs, including what it means and how to calculate, check out Molly’s past WGNO segment, link here

Check out this vintage Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup ad!  Link here

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5 Peanut Butter Cups that are truly better for you [all are GF, Grain Free, Low Carb, Zero Sugar]

Eat Fit DIY Salted Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter (or Cashew, or Almond Butter) Cup

  • Featured in the Eat Fit Cookbook

  • Ingredients include cocoa powder, cacao butter, Swerve, and nut butter of choice

  • Per 2 mini cups: 100 calories, <1 gram net carb, 1 gram fiber, 0 sugar, 0 added sugar

Lily’s Peanut Butter Cups

  • Ingredients include unsweetened chocolate, cocoa butter, whole milk powder, peanut butter, sweetened with erythritol and stevia

  • Per 2 mini-cup serving: 140 calories, 3 net carbs, 7 grams fiber, <1 gram sugar, 0 added sugar

Choc Zero Peanut Butter Cups

  • Ingredients include unsweetened chocolate, cocoa butter, peanuts, sweetened with monk fruit

  • Per 2 mini-cup serving: 140 calories, 3 net carbs, 13 grams fiber, 1 gram sugar, 0 added sugar

Evolved Almond Butter Cup

  • Ingredients include organic almonds, cacao, cacao butter, pink sea salt, sweetened with monk fruit

  • Per cup: 100 calories, 2 net carbs, 5 grams fiber, 1 gram sugar, 0 added sugar

Quest Peanut Butter Butter Cup

  • Ingredients include whey protein isolate, unsweetened chocolate, cocoa butter, peanuts, sweetened with erythritol and sucralose (Splenda)

  • Note: these are sweetened with natural erythritol, and artificial sweetener Splenda. Molly’s recommendation and preference is typically to avoid artificial sweeteners.  She chose to include Quest PB Cups, though, because they are such a crowd pleaser as a low-sugar alternative

  • Per cup: 100 calories, <1 gram net carb, 2 grams fiber, 0 gram sugar, 0 added sugar

RECIPE: Salted Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups by Ben McLauchlin; also featured in the Eat Fit Cookbook

Makes 12 servings

Chocolate Coating:

  • 6 tablespoons coconut oil (melted) or salted butter

  • 6 tablespoons of cocoa powder (unsweetened)

  • 3 tablespoons Swerve, Confectioners

Peanut Butter Filling:

  • 6 teaspoons peanut butter or nut butter of choice (no sugar added)

  • 2 tablespoons cocoa butter (melted)

  • 1 tablespoon Swerve, Confectioners

  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt or Celtic sea salt

Instructions:

In a muffin pan, place muffin liners in 12 cups. Set aside.

Whisk together melted coconut oil, cocoa powder, and Swerve in a medium bowl.  Place a tablespoon of chocolate mixture in each muffin liner.  Freeze for 5 minutes.

In a separate, microwave-safe bowl, whisk together melted cocoa butter, peanut butter, Swerve, and salt.  Once combined, zap in the microwave for 10 seconds.  Remove the chocolate from the freezer, and add one teaspoon and a half of the peanut butter mixture to the frozen chocolate coating.  Freeze for another three minutes.

Remove from the freezer, and add a tablespoon of remaining chocolate in each cup, covering the peanut butter mixture.  Freeze for five minutes and eat.

Store in the fridge or freezer in an airtight storage container.  Note – If desired, let soften for 15-20 minutes before eating.

Per Serving: 100 calories, 10 grams fat, 7.5 grams saturated fat (all plant-based sat fat if use coconut oil), 90 mg sodium, 5 grams carbohydrate (<1 gram net carb), 1 gram fiber, 0 sugar, 1 gram protein.

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Molly Kimball, RD, CSSD is a registered dietitian + nutrition journalist in New Orleans, and founder of Ochsner Eat Fit nonprofit restaurant initiative. Tune in to her podcast, FUELED | Wellness + Nutrition and follow her on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter at @MollyKimballRD. See more of Molly’s articles + TV segments at www.mollykimball.com, and sign up for Eat Fit Wellness Bites weekly newsletter, here.

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