Easy Chocolate Peanut Clusters Make A Great Homemade Gift!
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These Chocolate Peanut Clusters are super simple to make using peanuts and two kinds of chocolate. Plus they are utterly delicious! As well as an enjoyable snack, dessert or party food they also make an awesome and thoughtful homemade edible gift idea, ideal for those that love chocolate!
This post is part of Create the Holidays (formerly Create Christmas) – a series of festive recipes, crafts, printables, and more on The Purple Pumpkin Blog!
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Chocolate Peanut Clusters
The full ingredients list and instructions are found in the printable recipe card at the end of this post. I highly recommend reading the blog post all the way through so that you don’t miss any tips or substitution suggestions and ensure that you have all the ingredients and equipment required and understand the steps and timings involved.
Homemade gifts are wonderful and thoughtful. They show the recipient that you put time and effort into making something just for them.
And they don’t have to be difficult or take a lot of time! This simple recipe makes yummy chocolate peanut clusters that only require 5 ingredients and about 90 minutes – and a lot of that time is either the peanuts roasting in the oven (although you could time-skip and buy ready-roasted peanuts) or setting the chocolate clusters in the fridge.
Bundle up several of these tasty treats into cellophane bags and tie them with ribbon, or fill bakery boxes or mason jars with the clusters to hand out as gifts during the holidays.
This economical treat can be made in large batches so you’ll have enough for friends, family, teachers, and other people in your community!
The Create the Holidays (formerly Create Christmas) series on The Purple Pumpkin Blog is filled with free printables, crafts, recipes, and more for Christmas and the Winter Holidays! You can check out Create the Holidays from 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 and 2012 for tons of awesome Holiday ideas and inspiration!
Ingredients & Equipment Used In This Recipe
While most ingredients can be bought in grocery stores, for your convenience, any specialized or notable ingredients and equipment needed for this recipe have been listed below and linked to Amazon or other stores if available online.
It may not include staple ingredients such as oil, salt, sugar, etc., as you’re likely to have those in your kitchen. The complete list of ingredients with measurements is found in the recipe card.
- Raw Unsalted Peanuts – As written, this recipe is prepared with raw, unsalted peanuts. This option is generally more economical, and it allows more control over the amount of salt used. However, if using raw peanuts, you’ll want to make sure they are blanched, so the red papery outer skin is already removed. If preferred, you can save time and skip the first couple steps by starting with shelled, roasted peanuts that have already been salted.
- Bittersweet (Plain) Chocolate Chips – 60% cacao or above
- Coconut Oil
- Milk Chocolate Chips
Recipes on The Purple Pumpkin Blog use both cup measurements and/or weighted measurements. American cups and kitchen food scales are handy pieces of equipment to have in your kitchen as it means you’ll be able to make all of the different recipes on my blog. I try to give American, imperial, and metric measurements in my recipes. Please note, you can mix cup measurements with weighted measurements, but never mix imperial (pounds, ounces, pints, etc.,) with metric (kilograms, grams, litres, etc.,).
More Recipes Using Peanuts
One of the hero ingredients in this dish is peanuts, so here are some more recipes using the same:
- Awesome Chunky Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe with Extra Peanuts!
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Mousse Parfaits
- Easy Peanut Butter Jelly Bars Recipe – A Tasty After School Snack!
More Homemade Edible Gift Recipes
Looking for more treats to make as gifts? Check these recipes out next:
Recipe Tips
- Make sure the bowl used to melt the chocolate chips is completely dry prior to adding the chips. Otherwise, the chocolate may “seize” and turn into a clumpy unusable mass if it comes in contact with even a small amount of water once heated. Milk chocolate, in particular, is prone to this issue.
- Adding a little fat, such as melted coconut oil or butter, to the melted chocolate will help prevent it from “splintering” and falling apart when you bite into the clusters after the chocolate hardens. Here, this is done with the base layer of dark chocolate, but not the decorative drizzle added later.
- For this recipe, a layer of melted milk chocolate provides a nice contrast to the underlying darker bittersweet chocolate underneath. However, you can use any type of melted chocolate you prefer.
- You can save time and skip the first couple steps in the recipe by starting with shelled, roasted peanuts that have already been salted instead of raw,blanched, unsalted peanuts.
- You can make these chocolate clusters with other nuts such as pecans, almonds, Brazil nuts, walnuts, or hazelnuts. You could do a mixture of different nuts, or even combine dried fruit and nuts!
How Do I Make Chocolate Peanut Clusters?
Check out the printable recipe card below with full ingredients and instructions. Any demonstration photos do not print out to save your ink.
Chocolate Peanut Clusters
These Chocolate Peanut Clusters are super simple to make using peanuts and two kinds of chocolate. Plus they are utterly delicious!
Ingredients
- 3 cups. raw, blanched peanuts, unsalted
- Fine sea salt, to taste
- 1 cup bittersweet (plain) chocolate chips
- 1 tsp coconut oil or melted butter
- ½ cup milk chocolate chips
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas 4 and line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or nonstick baking mat.
- Pour the peanuts onto the prepared baking sheet and spread them into a single layer without overcrowding. Season generously with salt and stir to combine.
- Place baking sheet in preheated oven for 10 minutes, then carefully shake the baking sheet to make sure the peanuts are evenly toasted. Return to oven for another 10-15 minutes, or until golden brown. Do not overcook. Remove from oven and set aside.
- Pour semi-sweet chocolate chips into a dry, microwave-safe bowl and heat for 20 seconds on “high.” Stir and return to the microwave for another 20 seconds before stirring again. Repeat until the chocolate is completely melted and smooth. Stir in a teaspoon of coconut oil or melted butter and set aside.
- Add the roasted peanuts one scoop at a time to the melted chocolate and stir to combine. Repeat until all peanuts are coated in the chocolate.
- Spoon the chocolate-coated peanuts onto the baking sheet, leaving a little room between each cluster. Place in the refrigerator for 20 minutes to firm up.
- Pour the milk chocolate chips into a microwave-safe bowl and heat for 20 seconds on “high.” Stir briefly and return to the microwave for another 20 seconds before stirring again. Repeat until the chocolate is completely melted and smooth.
- Drizzle the melted milk chocolate over the peanut clusters and return to the refrigerator for another 20 minutes.
- Remove from refrigerator and serve immediately or store in an airtight container until ready to serve. Enjoy!
Notes
- Tip #1: Make sure the bowl used to melt the chocolate chips is completely dry prior to adding the chips. Otherwise, the chocolate may “seize” and turn into a clumpy unusable mass if it comes in contact with even a small amount of water once heated. Milk chocolate, in particular, is prone to this issue.
- Tip #2: Adding a little fat, such as melted coconut oil or butter, to the melted chocolate will help prevent it from “splintering” and falling apart when you bite into the clusters after the chocolate hardens. Here, this is done with the base layer of dark chocolate, but not the decorative drizzle added later.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 20 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 208Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 3mgSodium: 47mgCarbohydrates: 10gFiber: 3gSugar: 3gProtein: 7g
This site uses Nutritionix to provide estimated nutrition. Nutritional information is always approximate and will depend on the quality of ingredients used and serving sizes. If you need exact calories and macros, please do your own calculations.
Make It A Holiday Dinner!
You’ve made the dessert, but what about the rest of the courses?
Here are additional recipes to make a full meal for a holiday dinner party!
- Appetizer: Crispy Zucchini Fries with Marinara Sauce – A Tasty Gluten-Free Appetizer
- Soup: Authentic Greek-Cypriot Avgolemono – Egg Lemon Soup
- Salad: Fig and Roasted Fennel Salad with Lemon Tahini Dressing
- Main Dish: Slow Cooker Chicken Thighs Recipe with Rosemary and Lemon
- Side Dish: Greek-Style Lemon Potatoes
- Beverage: Sparkling Pomegranate Cocktail with Citrus Vodka & Lime
There are 500+ Recipes on The Purple Pumpkin Blog for you to enjoy – please feel free to check them out too.
The Create the Holidays series on The Purple Pumpkin Blog features free printables, crafts, recipes, and more for Christmas and the Winter Holidays. Check out Create the Holidays (formerly Create Christmas) from 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, and 2012.