Why Mixing Cocoa Powder Into Peanut Butter Makes Perfect Sense

Considering many of the most popular candy bars have some variation of chocolate and peanut flavors, peanut butter and chocolate is arguably a tastier duo than even peanut butter and jelly. Instead of indulging in a Reese's cup at the grocery store, simply add some cocoa powder into your peanut butter. It's a simple, healthier, and more decadent way to marry these two flavor powerhouses together. Cocoa powder instantly transforms anything you mix it with into a deliciously chocolatey dessert. Peanut butter, however, is robust and rich enough to hold its own when paired with cocoa powder so you get the best of both worlds in a peanut butter chocolate spread. 

You can bring these two ingredients together by making a chocolate peanut butter spread from scratch, or take a shortcut with store-bought, all-natural peanut butter. Simply stir one tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa powder into three-fourths of a cup of natural peanut butter with a tablespoon of honey (ideally raw) to sweeten things up even more. If you're making the spread from scratch, you'll need a food processor to break the peanuts down into a fine paste; 300 grams of toasted peanuts makes about 1.5 cups of peanut butter. 

The fat content of the peanuts is enough to transform them into a creamy paste, but you can add a teaspoon of oil for an even smoother, more spreadable texture. Once the peanut butter is made, add three-fourths of a cup of cocoa powder, half a cup of sugar or honey, and a pinch of salt before blending everything into a smooth spread.

While making peanut butter from scratch requires considerably more effort, a food processor makes quick work of it. Plus, it helps blend the cocoa powder and sweetener effortlessly into the peanut butter, whereas stirring cocoa powder and sweetener into premade peanut butter takes a lot of elbow grease. In fact, you might want to use a food processor to blend premade peanut butter with cocoa powder and sweetener regardless. Whichever route you take, you get to decide how much cocoa powder and sweetener to add. If you want a more bitter and savory chocolate peanut butter spread, increase the cocoa powder and decrease the sweetener. 

Honey and sugar are classic choices, but maple syrup and agave nectar are also great options. You can also use stevia for a sugar-free sweetener. Of course, there are many different kinds of cocoa powder, each with its own distinct tasting notes and robustness. If you want an especially chocolate forward cocoa powder, Dutch chocolate powder or rouge chocolate powder are the best bet. Of course, you can get the best of both worlds with Double Dutch cocoa powder. You can also kill two birds with one stone by using hot cocoa mix, which already has sweetener in it. 

Even better, you can eat this spread by the spoonful. It'll also taste great with apples, bananas, or strawberries, or on a slice of bread or toast too. Add a layer of marshmallow fluff and cherry compote for an upgrade to this fruity fluffernutter dessert panini.