Description
Peanut Butter Penguins are adorable, festive treats made by dipping Nutter Butter cookies in a creamy dark chocolate and peanut butter mixture, then decorated with mini Nilla wafers, candy eyes, Reese’s Pieces, and other candies to resemble cute penguins. These no-bake treats are perfect for holiday gatherings and fun to make with kids.
Ingredients
Scale
Chocolate Mixture
- 12 ounce bag dark chocolate chips
- ¼ cup creamy peanut butter
- 2 tbsp salted butter
Penguin Decorations
- 16 ounce package Nutter Butter cookies (32 cookies)
- 32 Mini Nilla Wafers
- 64 brown Reese’s pieces
- 48 orange Reese's pieces halved (24 whole pieces)
- 64 Candy eyes
Instructions
- Melt Chocolate Mixture: Combine the dark chocolate chips, creamy peanut butter, and salted butter in a medium sized, microwave safe bowl. Microwave for 30 seconds and stir well. Continue heating in 10-15 second increments, stirring between each increment, until completely melted and smooth.
- Dip Cookies: Dip a Nutter Butter cookie into the chocolate mixture until fully coated. Use a fork to lift it out and gently shake off excess chocolate. Place the coated cookie on a wire rack or parchment paper lined cutting board.
- Attach Stomach: Place a mini Nilla wafer at the center of the bottom half of the cookie to serve as the penguin's stomach.
- Add Face Features: Attach two candy eyes on the top half of the cookie. Place half of an orange Reese’s piece, cut side down, in the center below the eyes for the penguin's beak.
- Create Feet: Place two halved orange Reese’s pieces, cut side down, horizontally below the mini Nilla wafer to form the penguin's feet.
- Attach Wings: Press two brown Reese’s pieces onto each side of the cookie just below the indent to form wings.
- Repeat: Repeat the dipping and decorating process with the remaining Nutter Butter cookies until all 32 penguins are completed.
- Chill: Place the decorated penguins in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours or overnight to set and firm up.
- Serve: Serve chilled or at room temperature. Be aware that at room temperature the chocolate may be slightly soft and could smear when handled, but will remain delicious.
Notes
- Store these peanut butter penguins in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week to keep them firm and fresh.
- For longer storage, freeze the penguins for up to 6 months and thaw in the refrigerator overnight before serving.
- Prepare and sort all decorations (Reese’s pieces, mini Nilla wafers, candy eyes) before starting to streamline the decorating process.
- Cut the orange Reese’s pieces in half for perfect beak and feet sizes; have extras on hand in case of drops or errors.
- Do not overheat the chocolate mixture to prevent it from burning; the butter and peanut butter help keep it forgiving.
- Using a fork to dip cookies helps shake off excess chocolate and prevents thick clumps from forming.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 penguin
- Calories: 180 kcal
- Sugar: 15 g
- Sodium: 90 mg
- Fat: 11 g
- Saturated Fat: 4 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 18 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Cholesterol: 5 mg
