White Chocolate Buckeyes

These candies are controversial Buckeyes, I think.  Comments on the original recipe (which doesn't even use white chocolate) seemed mad that cream cheese and graham crackers crumbs were included in the sacred Buckeyes recipe.  But guess what? The cream cheese and graham crackers are wonderful in this; cutting the sweetness and adding something interesting.  So I'm proud to put these on here; they taste super amazing, still melt in your mouth, and aren't that hard to make, either.  I wanted to try white chocolate this time, and I loved that.....I realized it makes it even worse to Buckeye purists, but oh well.  I got two bars of Italian cooking white chocolate... it worked beautifully when melted in a double boiler with some coconut oil.  It was real white chocolate with cocoa butter and no hydrogenated oils.  I meant to post these before Christmas but I didn't get around to it, so here they are now.  (Regular buckeye recipe from the Joy the Baker is here.)

White Chocolate Buckeyes
adapted from the Kitchn

1 pound powdered sugar (about 3 and 3/4 cups)
1 (16.3-ounce) jar creamy peanut butter (not natural), such as Skippy (about 2 cups)
10 tablespoons salted butter, at room temperature
4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature (can use Neufchatel)
1 cup graham cracker crumbs (from about 8 graham crackers)
1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
12-16 ounces chopped good-quality white chocolate (not chocolate chips)
1 tablespoon refined coconut oil

1.  Place the powdered sugar, peanut butter, butter, cream cheese, graham cracker crumbs, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. (Alternatively, use an electric hand mixer and large bowl.)

2.  Beat on low speed until just combined, then increase speed to medium and beat, stopping often to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, until the mixture is smooth and holds together when squeezed in the palm of your hand, 2 to 3 minutes. (If using a stand mixer- pay attention to the bottom of the bowl.  There may be dry crumbs down there.  Use a rubber spatula to make sure everything is combined.)

3.  Form into balls- line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Form the mixture into tablespoon-sized balls (you should get about 72 (1/2-ounce) balls) and place in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Refrigerate until very cold and firm, at least 2 hours.

4.  Melt the chocolate with the coconut oil in a double boiler, stirring until smooth.  Let cool 5 minutes. (I didn't let it cool.... and it was fine.  Use your judgment.)

5.  Dip the balls- line a second rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Transfer 12 of the chilled peanut butter balls onto it. (Keep the rest in the refrigerator to keep them chilled and firm.) Insert a toothpick into the center of one of the peanut butter balls (don’t let it poke all the way through) and dip it into the chocolate, leaving a small opening (about 1-inch across) at the top of the buckeye.

6.  Shake off the excess chocolate- lift the buckeye out of the chocolate and turn the toothpick horizontally so that you are holding it at a 90° angle to the bowl. Gently shake your hand up and down so that any excess chocolate drips off the buckeye and back into the bowl. (You want to remove as much excess chocolate as possible so that it doesn’t pool around the bottoms of the buckeyes.) When the dripping has stopped, twirl the toothpick so that that very last drip wraps around the buckeye and blends in with the rest of the chocolate. (I was tired and didn't dip them quite this well... but if you have a lot of patience this would be a good idea.  Lol.)

7.  Remove the toothpick- turn the buckeye upright and place back onto the baking sheet. Use your finger or a second toothpick to gently push the buckeye off the toothpick (you’ll cover up the hole it leaves later). Repeat dipping with the remaining buckeyes.  If, at any point, the peanut butter balls begin twirling around on the toothpick as you dip, making it difficult to control, return to the refrigerator until chilled.

8.  Smooth over the toothpick holes (optional... lol) -use your thumb and forefinger to gently pinch the peanut butter filling where the toothpick has left a hole, then use your finger to smooth it out. (You want to wait until the chocolate is set up enough to do this so the buckeye doesn’t slide around.)  Refrigerate until the chocolate is set. Refrigerate until the chocolate is hardened, at least 10 minutes.

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