Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Loaf Cake

Things continue to move at a frazzled pace–which is why you will see a few pound cakes before you see any cookies again. Not that cookies are hard, but nothing takes less time than whipping up a loaf, bundt or tube cake–except maybe brownies. But I digress. The point is that we continue to hurdle toward the first day of kindergarten and *I* continue to feel unprepared. I am pretty sure Alex feels fine!

I made this to relax last Saturday while the kids and John went shopping–to give me a break from the unceasing “I’m bored, Momma!” and “What can we do NOW, Mommy?!?!?” that has been heard around here lately. It was certainly relaxing, but also very rewarding as the cake is yummy and unique. Not shockingly unique, but pretty different nonetheless from our normal pace. I think this is the first time I’ve put peanut butter in a cake! The result is both like and not like a peanut butter cookie (not surprisingly). If you like the one you will like the other. It makes for a very dense, moist pound cake–with an impressive crust. The kind of crust that the adults will enjoy but the children will want to cut off (while devouring the rest of it).

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Loaf Cake
Adapted from Cake Keeper Cakes, Lauren Chattman

4 large eggs
2 t vanilla
1 1/2 cups (189 g) AP flour
1 t baking powder
1/4 t fine salt
1/4 t coarse gray sea salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter (I used half natural and half Jiff)
1 cup packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup bittersweet chocolate chips (or use all of one or the other or even try milk chocolate)
1/2 cup peanut butter chips

Preheat the oven to 325 F. Spray a 9X5 loaf pan with a grease/flour combo (such as Baker’s Joy). Set aside.

Whisk together the eggs and vanilla in a bowl or measuring cup with a spout. Set aside.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and both kinds of salt in a small-medium bowl. Set aside.

Cream the peanut butter and butter until combined. Add the brown sugar gradually, beating on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. With the mixer on medium low speed, add half of the egg mixture, then half of the flour mixture. Repeat, finishing both the eggs and the flour, scraping down the sides of the bowl a few times. After the last addition, mix on medium speed for one minute and then stir the chips in.

Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the top with a rubber spatula. Bake until the cake is golden brown and a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 80 minutes. Check at the hour mark and tent the cake with foil if it is browning too quickly. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes before flipping it onto a cooling rack to cool completely before slicing.