Peanut Butter Cake – have you ever had it? When I was growing up certain friends always had it for their birthday cake. I loved it but never had the recipe until a few years ago.
I called up my childhood bestie and she tracked it down for me. The only problem was the recipe was made for sea level baking. What worked in New Brunswick at sea level did not work out quite as well in Calgary, Alberta at about 3500 feet above sea level. The original recipe resulted in a DRY cake. There’s nothing worse (in baking) than a DRY cake. So, slowly, as I’ve craved the cake over time, I’ve tested and retested the recipe until I’m happy with it. Now, it’s good enough to share with you.
I’ve added an egg, increased the peanut butter a wee bit and cut back the baking powder by a teaspoon. If you live at sea level, by all means, cut back the extra egg I added, keep the peanut butter and add that baking powder back as you like. The other thing to watch for is to not over bake it. Nothing dries a cake out like over baking. Use a cake tester or toothpick and check on the doneness every 5 minutes from 30 to 40 minutes the first time you make it. When it pulls out clean, you know it’s done. For me, it takes 40 minutes. For you and your oven, it might be different. So, check and make a note on your recipe.
I hope you enjoy this Peanut Butter Cake as much as I do. It brings back joyous memories of celebrating birthdays with my childhood friends. Special thanks to Annie for sourcing it for me.
PrintPeanut Butter Cake
Moist, light and fluffy with just a subtle hint of peanut butter, this Peanut Butter Cake is delicious.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 40
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 8 to 10 servings
- Category: desserts
- Method: baking
- Cuisine: Canadian
Ingredients
For the cake:
½ cup unsalted butter (softened)
1 ¼ cups sugar
⅓ cup peanut butter (use a brand with icing sugar in it like Kraft or Skippy and not the natural type)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 eggs (at room temperature)
2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup whole milk
For the icing:
¼ cup butter (softened)
¼ cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 ½ cups icing sugar
¼ cup whole milk (you need at least this fat percentage so don’t use 2%, 1% or skim)
Instructions
For the cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ and spray a bundt or 13×9-inch pan with cooking spray.
- Place the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat until creamy and smooth.
- Add the sugar and beat again until creamy and smooth.
- Add the peanut butter and vanilla and beat until smooth.
- Add the eggs one at a time and beat, stopping to scrape down the sides between each addition.
- Put the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl and mix thoroughly then add about half to the mixture in the bowl, alternating with the milk until all our creamy and smooth.
- Pour into either the bundt or cake pan and place on the middle rack in the oven. The Bundt will take 40 minutes. The cake pan may take 30 to 35 minutes. It’s done when a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean. Do not overcook it or it will be dry.
- Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan. When the cake pulls away from the sides of the Bundt, invert it on a rack to continue cooling.
For the icing:
- Place the butter and peanut butter in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat until smooth. Add the vanilla extract and the icing sugar a½ cup at a time alternating with bits of the milk until you get the desired consistency for your icing. You may not need all the milk.
- Ice the cake when it is completely cooled.
- Enjoy as a tea time treat or dessert on its own or with chocolate ice cream or sauce.
Keywords: Peanut Butter Cake
