Homemade Peanut Butter M&M's

 Makes about 50 M&M’s

These homemade peanut butter M&M’s are made with pure goodness!  They are sweet, salty, slightly crunchy and WAY better than the original!  Go ahead and indulge in these delicious treats, you and your family will love them! This slightly adapted recipe is courtesy of Minimalist Baker.  You can see the original recipe here: http://minimalistbaker.com/homemade-peanut-butter-mms/

Ingredients:

  • ¼ cup rolled oats (I used gluten free oats)
  • 2 pitted Medjool dates
  • ½ cup raw almonds
  • ½ cup roasted peanuts
  • ½ cup roasted, salted peanut butter
  • 1 cup (8 ounces) dark chocolate 

Preparation:

  • Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper.
  • Mix oats in food processor until small pieces remain.  Add dates to the oats and mix until all pieces are small.  Remove mixture from food processor and set aside.
  • Next add the peanuts and almonds to food processor and mix until they turn to meal consistency.  Then add the peanut butter to the nut meal and pulse until well combined.  Next add date and oat mixture and process until it forms into a loose dough.  If it seems too wet to handle, add more oats.  If it seems too dry, add a couple more dates.
  • Scoop out the dough and form into small round balls -- about ½ teaspoon each.  Place on the parchment-lined cookie sheet and pop in the freezer to harden for about 30 minutes.
  • After 30 minutes, melt the dark chocolate over a double boiler.  Then take dough balls out of freezer and work in small batches to coat the balls.
  • To coat, dip a few balls into the chocolate at a time, flip until coated and then pick up with a fork and tap on the rim of the bowl to remove excess chocolate.  Place the balls back on the parchment-lined cookie sheet and put back into the freezer to set.
  • Repeat until all peanut butter balls are dipped and coated.  If the chocolate becomes too firm just re-warm it as needed .
  • When set, remove peanut butter M&M’s from freezer and store in an air-tight container.
  • Enjoy!