This easy 4 ingredient buckeye recipe is the quintessential must-have Christmas candy. These dreamy, creamy buckeye peanut butter balls are dipped in chocolate, making an irresistible small batch treat perfect for the holidays.
Every Christmas for as long as I can remember, I’ve made this easy buckeye recipe. During the holiday season when I was a little girl, we’d store these peanut butter treats inside a festive tin in the unheated, uninsulated stairwell alcove leading up to my room. Since it was always freezing in there, they’d stay nice and chilled, which was pretty convenient for me on the way to my room!
Why You’ll Love My Buckeye Recipe
- 4 Ingredients: All you’ll need is butter, creamy peanut butter, powdered sugar, and melting chocolate. Nothing fancy!
- No Bake: No oven needed. Just mix, roll, dip, and let the fridge or freezer do the work.
- Small Batch: This recipe makes about two dozen buckeyes, but you can scale it up to feed a crowd.
- Perfect for Gifting: Pack them into a festive tin and share with your neighbors and coworkers. Let the kids help roll and dip, and they can gift them to their teachers!
- Make-Ahead Friendly: Stored between layers of wax paper, they’ll last for weeks in the fridge! You can also freeze them for up to 3 months.
Ingredient Notes & Substitutions
These 4 ingredient buckeyes use mostly pantry staples that you probably already have on hand.
- Salted Butter – Let it sit out on the counter for a couple hours beforehand so that it has time to soften. Substitute 1:1 with plant-based or vegan butter if you’re dairy-free.
- Creamy Peanut Butter – You can also use crunchy peanut butter. I recommend avoiding “natural” peanut butter, because it will make the dough sticky and oily. If the dough is too sticky, it’ll be hard to form into balls, and the chocolate won’t coat evenly.
- Powdered Sugar – Also known as confectioners sugar. If your dough comes out too sticky, a quick fix is to add more powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons at a time, until it’s smooth enough to roll into balls.
- Chocolate Melting Wafers – In my opinion, a high quality chocolate melting wafer gives the best flavor, but any melting chocolate will work, including almond bark. You can use chocolate chips to make buckeye balls, but I don’t prefer the flavor.
How to Make 4 Ingredient Buckeye Peanut Butter Balls
Before getting started, make sure your butter is softened. If you forgot to get it out, heat it in the microwave at 5-second intervals ’til soft but not melted.
Making the Easy Buckeye Recipe
- Add the softened butter, peanut butter, and powdered sugar to a large bowl.
- Mix everything together until it’s blended well and you have a smooth dough. If the dough is too sticky, add more powdered sugar, about 2 tablespoons at a time, until it’s smooth enough to form into a ball.
How to Shape Buckeye Peanut Butter Balls
- Take about a tablespoonful or a small cookie scoop of the peanut butter mixture and begin to roll it between your hands. Shape it into 1-inch round balls, and place each one on a baking sheet lined with wax paper or parchment paper.
- Add toothpicks to each ball for dipping, and then chill the whole sheet in the freezer for 30 minutes.
How to Melt the Chocolate for Dipping
Depending on the chocolate you decide to use, you can melt it a couple different ways:
- Microwave: This is usually the route I go, and it’s safer than a regular saucepan on the stovetop. Dump all of your chocolate into a deep microwave-safe bowl (or a 2-cup measuring cup), and pulse it on high starting with 30 seconds, stirring every 15-20 seconds ’til melted and smooth.
- Double Boiler: If you want to melt your chocolate on the stovetop, a double boiler is the best way to do so without overheating it, which can make it seize. It’s basically a pan inside of another pan with boiling water in the bottom pan. This allows for more even melting without burning the chocolate.
- Fondue Pot: A fondue pot is totally optional, but it’s really nice for keeping your chocolate warm once you’ve melted it.
Some people like to add vegetable shortening or paraffin wax to their chocolate as it melts. This allows for a thinner coat and stretches your chocolate a little further. With good quality melting chocolate, you can probably skip this step.
Dipping the Peanut Butter Balls
This is where that toothpick is super handy. If you don’t have any toothpicks, we’ve also used a regular table fork in the past, as well as a pair of tongs. You can also buy a dipping fork or tool.
- Dip the chilled peanut butter balls, leaving the very top part of each undipped, so they resemble an actual buckeye. If you want to avoid a chocolate ring forming around the bottom of your buckeyes, let excess chocolate drip off each one after dipping. Then lightly press the bottom of each buckeye ball onto a separate sheet of wax paper before putting it back onto your cookie sheet.
- Chill the buckeye peanut butter balls for another 15-20 minutes in the freezer; then remove all the toothpicks and cover up each toothpick hole with your finger (totally optional).
Is There a Difference Between Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Balls and Buckeyes?
Actually, yes, there is. Chocolate peanut butter balls are completely covered in chocolate, but buckeyes are only mostly covered in chocolate with a bit of peanut butter uncovered on top.
I didn’t really think it was a big deal until a friend from Ohio educated me, which is where the first buckeye peanut butter balls were made back in the 1960s. The peanut butter was left uncovered on top so that they looked like actual Buckeyes from the Ohio state tree, the Buckeye tree.
Expert Tips and Recipe FAQs
This is most likely the type of peanut butter used. I recommend a regular creamy (or crunchy) peanut butter to make buckeye peanut butter balls. Natural peanut butter is too oily, and it’ll make the dough gooey, and the chocolate won’t stick as well. If you already mixed up a batch and it’s too sticky, you can usually save it by adding more powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons at a time, until the dough is smooth and easy to work with. Or try popping it into the fridge or freezer for 20-30 minutes to help it firm up.
Keep them chilled. They will sweat if kept out of the fridge too long, so it’s best to place them back into the fridge as soon as you’ve picked out the ones you want to eat.
Store them in an airtight container that’s lined with wax paper. I like to go a step further and place a sheet of wax paper in between each layer of buckeyes. They should last up to 2-3 weeks in the fridge. You can also store them on the counter, but they won’t last as long.
Yes, you can freeze them before or after dipping. Store them in between layers of wax paper in an airtight, freezer-friendly container to avoid freezer burn. They should keep for up to 3 months.
How to Give Buckeyes as Gifts
Homemade buckeyes are one of my favorite edible gifts to give at Christmas. They look so pretty packed up, and everyone loves peanut butter and chocolate. Here’s how I like to package them:
- Pack Them in a Tin: A festive Christmas tin is my go-to. Line it with wax paper and layer the buckeyes with more wax paper in between so they don’t stick together.
- Keep Them Chilled: Buckeyes taste best cold and will start to sweat if they sit out for too long. Let your recipient know to store them in the fridge, or hand them over right before the party.
- Make Them Ahead: Because they keep for weeks in the fridge and up to 3 months in the freezer, you can make a big batch early in the season and pull them out as you gift them.
- Add a Personal Touch: Tie a ribbon around the tin or tuck in a handwritten tag. If you’re making different candies, a mixed tin makes a great holiday assortment. Try pairing your buckeyes with Rice Krispie peanut butter balls, Ritz crackers with peanut butter, chocolate covered cherries, chocolate covered almond coconut trees, chocolate peppermint bark, and fantasy fudge.
They’re not just for Christmas, either. Buckeyes also make a sweet Valentine’s Day gift. Pair them with chocolate peanut butter hearts for the chocolate peanut butter lover in your life.
More Chocolate and Peanut Butter Treats
If you love this small batch buckeye recipe as much as I do, you’ll love these treats too…
If you try this recipe, why not leave a star rating in the recipe card right below and/or a review in the comment section further down the page? I always appreciate your feedback. You can also follow me on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. And subscribe to my email list too!
Easy 4-Ingredient Buckeye Recipe
Equipment
- 1-Tablespoon Cookie Scoop optional
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons salted butter softened
- 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter*
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 10 ounces dark chocolate melting wafers (or milk chocolate)
Instructions
- Add the softened butter, peanut butter, and powdered sugar to a large bowl.
- Mix everything together until it’s blended well and you have a smooth dough.*
- Take about a tablespoonful or a small cookie scoop of the peanut butter mixture and begin to roll it between your hands. Shape it into 1-inch round balls, and place each one on a baking sheet lined with wax paper or parchment paper.
- Add toothpick to each ball for dipping.
- Chill the peanut butter balls in the fridge or freezer for about 30 minutes.
- Add the chocolate to a deep, microwave-safe measuring cup or bowl; and pulse it in the microwave on high starting with 30 seconds, stirring every 15-20 seconds 'til melted and smooth.
- Remove the peanut butter balls from the freezer, and using the inserted toothpicks, dip each one into the melted chocolate, leaving the very top part undipped, so to resemble an actual buckeye.
- Chill your buckeye peanut butter balls in the fridge or freezer ’til set, probably about 15-20 minutes.
- Then remove all the toothpicks and cover up each toothpick hole with your finger (optional step).
- Store the buckeyes in a wax paper lined airtight container or festive Christmas tin in the fridge.
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this recipe sounds so much easier than I thought it would be . I ‘m trying tomorrow.
It’s one of the easiest recipes that you could make! Be sure to let me know how it turns out.
My husband just went to buy your ingredients, I have been ill this year but know I can do this. Thank you, I will post a picture when I’m done, won’t do it for a few days, am so excited! Always meant to make these, never had a recipe, Merry Christmas to you
That’s great, Susie. You have a very merry Christmas, and do post pictures!
Are you talking natural, unsweetened peanut butter or something like Skippy, please?
Lynne, I usually go for Peter Pan or Great Value. Skippy would work just fine. You can make it with the more natural peanut butter; they just won’t be as sweet.
I really like the peanut butter balls at Christmas but would like directions to make peanut butter disc…like the Reese’s candy. Any suggestions ?
Nan, I have not tried making these yet, but I would love to at some point. The peanut butter filling would probably be quite similar to buckeyes, and you’d need a tiny disc mold, which you could probably find on Amazon. I’m not sure how to make the shell, though. This reminds me of one of my favorite chefs, Claire Saffitz. She recreates all sorts of favorite junk and comfort foods. I wonder if she would consider making them if we were to email her and suggest it. She’s done Reese’s PB Cups. https://www.bonappetit.com/video/series/gourmet-makes
To make the Reese style patties. I just bought a mold from a candy/cake supply shop. I then put a dollop of melted chocolate in the bottom of the mold. Then I use a food safe small paintbrush to “brush” the chocolate up the sides. Put a patty of the PB mixture flat in the bottom, making sure it doesn’t go higher than top of mold and not touching the chocolate coated sides of the mold. Place in refrig. for several minutes until peanut butter patty gets a little hard. Remove from refrig., put another small dollop of chocolate on top, spread over top, with brush, so it covers PB patty and touches chocolate sides. Back into refrig. until candy solidifies. Yum! My mother-in-law showed me how to do this about 35+ years ago!
How long would these keep in the fridge?
Becky, we’ve had them last about 2 weeks. But usually they’re gone before then. :)
Can you make these with bittersweet chocolate?
Maria, you can. It might not taste quite as good, but you definitely can.
We normally do dipped pretzels for bus driver and neighbors. I am thinking we are going to try this this year. But I think we will need to make a lot of extra because I think my kids will love these too.
Gina, that’s a great idea! My boys love chocolate covered pretzels. Yeah, you definitely may need to make extra. If your kids are anything like mine, they’ll gobble them up.
Could I use dark chocolate morsels in place of the bark?
Cindy, you can. You may need to add a little shortening to thin them out for dipping, but yes, you can.
I absolutely LOVE your recipe…made these last night and if I don’t hide them they will all be GONE before Christmas…thanks for the good tips also?
Carol, thank you so much for letting me know. I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
I absolutely love this recipe. I had fun making these with my granddaughters. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Barbara, thank you so much! You’re very welcome. I hope you have a wonderful Christmas!