Buckeyes

This weekend, a good friend of mine, Ms. M from Cleavland came to visit. In honor of it, I thought it might be fun to make buckeyes, a peanut butter-chocolate confection most folks from Ohio (and beyond, I'm sure) are familiar with. For me, it was a Christmastime treat my Ohio State alum parents included in our regular holiday fare. It was the first time I ever tried to make them on my own and it was a bit of an adventure! Also, it seems that paraffin is not a staple of any of the grocery stores around me. We omitted it without difficulty. Ms. M and I made the peanut butter balls without trouble, but once we started melting the chocolate in a double-boiler, we ended up with a congealed mass of rather gross looking chocolate. We tried again (this time with a recently and generously gifted copper beating bowl), to great success. Amazing what a difference a pot can make! And slow, low, steady heat. Much better results!



Buckeye Candy
Courtesy of The Ohio State University

1 lb. bag of powdered sugar
2/3 lb. creamy peanut butter
2 sticks soft butter
16. oz. chocolate chips
1 Tbs. Paraffin
1 wood toothpick

Blend sugar, PB and butter
Roll into balls and place on ungreased cookie sheet
Freeze for about 5 minutes
Melt chocolate and paraffin in double boiler (over low heat!!)
insert toothpick into peanut butter ball and dip into chocolate leaving "eye". Refrigerate until served.