Peanut Butter Earthquake Cake
This homemade Peanut Butter Earthquake Cake recipe is an easy peanut butter cake swirled with a sweet cream cheese filling. Topped with crushed peanuts and peanut butter chips, this earthquake cake is a peanut butter lover’s dream!
Servings: 12 slices
Ingredients
Peanut Butter Cake
- 1/2 cup peanut butter (creamy all natural or Jif)
- 1/3 cup vegetable or canola oil
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar (light can be substituted)
- 3 eggs, large
- 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Cream Cheese Filling
- 8 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup butter, melted
- 2 Tbsp half & half (you can use milk or heavy whipping cream)
Additional Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups peanuts, salted (I used half regular and half honey roasted)
- 2/3 cup peanut butter chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9x13 baking dish.
- Sprinkle peanuts and 1/2 cup of peanut butter chips all over the bottom of the baking dish. Set aside.
- In a large bowl with a stand mixer (or a hand mixer), cream the peanut butter and vegetable oil together until well combined.
- Add in the granulated sugar and brown sugar, creaming the mixture with your mixer until light and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes (this helps your cake be light and not nearly as dense).
- Add in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
- In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
- Alternately, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, mix the flour mixture and the buttermilk in with the peanut butter batter, until just combined.
- Add in the vanilla extract and mix until combined.
- Pour the batter into the baking dish, smoothing in an even layer. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, whisk (by hand or with a mixecream cheese, melted butter, powdered sugar and half & half together.
- Once combined, drop the batter by spoonfuls all over the top of the peanut butter cake batter.
- With a knife, swirl the cream cheese filling and the peanut butter cake batter together.
- Sprinkle the remaining peanut butter chips on top.
- Bake for 35-37 minutes. The cake should be set on top, but the center should jiggle slightly when the cake pan is gently moved.
- Allow the peanut butter earthquake cake to cool before serving. I prefer this cake cold, but you can serve warm, at room temperature or cold.
- Enjoy! Store leftovers in the fridge.