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This moist peanut butter cake is exploding with peanut butter flavor! It’s a soft peanut butter sheet cake frosted with the dreamiest peanut butter frosting, finished with a sprinkle of chocolate peanut butter candy. Perfect for birthdays and sharing!
If you love the flavors in this easy peanut butter cake, be sure to try these incredible peanut butter cheesecake brownies and this no-bake peanut butter cream pie, too!
This peanut butter cake is one for the books! It’s a moist peanut butter-infused cake finished with a thick layer of the creamiest peanut butter frosting. It’s the ultimate dessert, especially if you add Reese’s candies and chopped peanut butter cups like I did. I can’t get enough of how melt-in-your-mouth this cake turned out. I’ll definitely be making it again ASAP!
Why I Love This Peanut Butter Cake Recipe
- Packed with flavor. There’s peanut butter in every bite of this cake, from the super-soft crumb to the rich and creamy peanut butter frosting. If you’re a peanut butter lover like I am, prepare to be obsessed with this dessert!
- So easy. The ingredients are super simple and the cake batter comes together in minutes. I bake this cake in a 9×13” pan, which keeps things easy since there’s no stacking or layering.
- Great for sharing. This peanut butter sheet cake is the perfect dessert for a crowd. I love that it’s easy to make and decorate, and yields plenty of slices– enough to feed a whole party (or to have lots of leftovers!).
Ingredients You’ll Need
These are some notes on the easy ingredients you’ll need to make this peanut butter cake from scratch. Scroll to the printable recipe card for a complete list with amounts.
- Butter – I use unsalted butter, but salted works, too.
- Peanut Butter – I recommend using creamy peanut butter. Natural peanut butter tends to have a lot of excess oil that can separate. See below.
- Flour
- Sugar – I use both granulated sugar and brown sugar in this cake.
- Baking Soda – Not to be confused with baking powder, which isn’t the same thing.
- Milk – This can be whole milk, 2% milk, or any dairy or non-dairy milk you’d like.
- Eggs
- Vanilla – For the best flavor, use real vanilla extract.
- Frosting – I include the recipe for my favorite homemade peanut butter frosting. You can decorate your peanut butter cake with any frosting you’d like (see below for more ideas).
- Toppings – Reese’s pieces or chopped peanut butter cups are optional garnishes, but recommended! I’ll chop up homemade peanut butter cups when I have some on hand.
Use the Right Peanut Butter
For the best peanut butter cake, I recommend using shelf-stable, creamy peanut butter, like the kind from Jif or Skippy. It can be sweetened or unsweetened (just note that sweetened peanut butter will give you a sweeter cake). I don’t recommend natural peanut butter or the kind that needs mixing. The oils may separate even after they’re thoroughly mixed, which will impact the cake’s texture.
How to Make a Peanut Butter Cake
This is one of the easiest cake recipes you’ll ever make, and it’s ready to bake in 10 minutes. Follow the steps below, and scroll to the recipe card for printable instructions.
