Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Breads

These mini peanut butter loaves are somewhere between quick bread and a giant cookie, dense with chunky peanut butter and studded with mini chocolate chips throughout. Buttermilk keeps the crumb tender and adds a subtle tang that cuts through all that rich peanut butter.

Cream the butter and peanut butter together with the brown sugar until light. This isn’t just mixing. You’re incorporating air that helps the loaves rise alongside the baking powder and soda. Add the eggs one at a time so each one emulsifies fully before the next goes in.

Beat the batter only until the flour is just combined. Overmixing develops gluten and turns quick bread tough and tunneled instead of soft and crumbly. Fold the chocolate chips in by hand at the end.

The recipe makes 5 small loaves, which makes them ideal for gifting or stashing in the freezer. Wrapped in plastic and foil, they keep a full month frozen and a week in the fridge.

Pro Tips

• Use chunky peanut butter, not smooth. The peanut pieces add texture that you’d miss in a smooth version.
• Test at 40 minutes. The mini loaves bake unevenly if your oven has hot spots, so rotate the pans halfway through.
• Let them cool right-side up on a rack. Flipping warm quick bread traps steam and makes the top soggy.

Variations

• Swap chocolate chips for butterscotch chips for a sweet, caramel-peanut combination.
• Add a swirl of Nutella through the batter before baking for a chocolate-hazelnut ribbon.
• Make mini muffins instead, reducing bake time to 18 to 20 minutes.