Peanut Butter- Milk Chocolate Cupcakes

Peanut butter and milk chocolate are one of my most favorite combinations, so I jumped at the chance to make this recipe from Cupcakes! They were tasty, although I would tend to call them more of a muffin in terms of texture--they were a little drier and denser than I was expecting. The frosting was good but nothing to write home about...I think if I made these again, I would use my standby chocolate frosting recipe and replace the bitter/semi/unsweetened chocolate with milk, to see how that turned out.

Peanut Butter Cupcakes

1 c flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
6 T butter at room temp.
3/4 c smooth peanut butter
1 c packed dark brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 c milk

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, use the electric mixer on medium to beat the butter, peanut butter, and brown sugar until smooth and lightened, about 1 minute. Mix in the egg and vanilla, and beat for 1 minute, until smooth. On low speed, add the flour in 3 additions, alternating with 2 additions of the milk. Mix just until the flour is incorporated and everything looks smooth.
4. Fill each cupcake liner with a generous quarter cup of batter. Bake until firm and lightly browned, about 22 minutes. Cool 10 minutes in the pan.

Milk Chocolate Glaze

1/4 c heavy cream
1 T butter
1 c chopped milk chocolate (5 3/4 oz.)
1/2 tsp vanilla

1. In a medium saucepan, heat cream and butter until hot (about 175 degrees or when tiny bubbles form--not boiling!) Remove from heat, add chocolate, and let sit 30 seconds. Add vanilla and whisk until smooth. Let sit at room temperature until thick enough to spread on cupcakes.

Cupcakes can be covered and stored at room temperature for up to 3 days.