I Tried and Ranked Every Reese’s Boxed Mix I Could Find — And the “Decadent” Winner Shocked Me
Apple and cinnamon, pumpkin and spice, coconut and lime: So many of these legendary combinations have earned their rightful spot in the food pairing Hall of Fame. Sometimes there’s a flavor duo so earth-shatteringly brilliant it deserves a spotlight all its own: chocolate and peanut butter.
As legend has it, Harry Reese was the true inventor of the peanut butter and chocolate pairing, working first on Milton Hershey’s dairy farm before creating the concoction in 1928. Amid the Great Depression, Reese supported his wife and 16 children (!) with the success of his chocolate factory’s star flavor, and ultimately discontinued all other offerings around the time of World War II.
Nearly a century later, Reese’s is one of the most popular candies in America, second only to M&Ms, and continues to create dozens of new variations inspired by the famous cup, including ones infused with chocolate lava, churned into ice cream, and even supersized for Thanksgiving.
Following up on my thorough ranking of all the Duncan Hines boxed cake mixes, I set out to test every Reese’s dessert I could find at the grocery store: cookies, cakes, bars, and more. It was a tall order (how can you go wrong with an American legend?). In the end, I believe I found the best dessert of all.
7. Reese’s Pancake Mix
This pancake-and-peanut butter mix is an ambitious combination, especially with its inclusion of Reese’s Puffs as a playful topping. Ultimately it falls flat in comparison to other tastier options due to its gummy texture and too-subtle flavor — with muted peanut accents and no chocolate in the mix, it was a challenge to find the similarity to the famous Reese’s. It only requires water or milk to make it come to life (a huge plus!), but unfortunately, it’s just not enough to surpass the other items on this list.
Buy: Betty Crocker Reese’s Puffs Peanut Butter Pancake Mix, $3.96 on Walmart
6. Reese’s Coffee Cake
I’ll admit it, coffee cake isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when I think of the perfect peanut butter pairing. But with an unusual crumbled peanut streusel topping and unexpectedly impressive peanut-flavored cake batter, Reese’s coffee cake mix is a pleasant surprise. However, since it doesn’t include any chocolate, it’s difficult to consider it a competitor among the other Reese’s treats. It might be best served as a fun post-sleepover option or even for a peanut butter lover’s birthday breakfast.
Buy: Betty Crocker Reese’s Peanut Butter Coffee Cake Mix, $4.99 on Instacart
5. Reese’s Muffin Mix
The Reese’s muffin mix is a little more savory than our other sugar-coated options. It’s a satiating on-the-go breakfast with just a whisper of chocolate and peanut butter, but still completely delightful. With a moist and structured cross-section complete with gems of peanut butter and chocolate chips, these will get the job done when you’re looking for a midweek treat or after-school snack.
Buy: Betty Crocker Reese’s Muffin Mix, $4.66 at Walmart
4. Reese’s Peanut Butter Cookie Dough
This preportioned cookie dough churns out chewy mini cookies with a unique fork-made pattern that can easily be plated and served for any occasion. And since it bakes in under 15 minutes, this won’t take away precious time that could be spent eating the cookies themselves! They break apart beautifully and I used them for mini ice cream sandwiches, which I highly recommend you try. They’re practically perfect, other than the fact that they have no chocolate (which kept them from ranking higher). Thank goodness this dough is safe to eat raw, too — resisting these gooey spoonfuls before they make it to the oven is next to impossible.
Buy: Pillsbury Reese’s Peanut Butter Cookie Dough, $5.99 on Instacart
3. Reese’s No-Bake Bars
Reese’s no-bake bars are quick and delicious, and take 10 minutes of prep plus 20 minutes of refrigeration before they’re completely ready to serve. They’re not only perplexingly simple (you need a stick of melted butter and not much else); they’re the closest dessert on this list to the original Reese’s cup. The peanut butter base is nutty and satisfyingly grainy in the way only a Reese’s cup can be, with a thick, squeezable topping of chocolate that makes for an artful dinner party addition.
Buy: Betty Crocker Reese’s No Bake Bars Mix, $5.14 at Walmart
2. Reese’s Pieces Cookie Mix
On their own, Reese’s Pieces have never quite achieved that same “wow’ factor as their cup counterparts — but what holds them back individually (their imbalance of chocolate and peanut butter) makes them shine in this mix: Their hard chocolate shell, creamy peanut butter flavor, and multicolored accents offer add a much-welcomed pop of crunch, candy, and design to a classic sugar cookie dough.
Buy: Betty Crocker Reese’s Mini Pieces Cookie Mix, $4.09 on Instacart
1. Reese’s Brownie Mix
The brownie mix is rich and fudgy, achieves a beautifully dense texture and has that crisp edge that could make any bake sale connoisseur fall to their knees. It’s the classic, moist chocolate brownie you grew up loving, studded with equally decadent peanut butter chips — a reminder that yes, it really is that simple to make a showstopping dessert. All you need is a little bit of peanut butter.
Buy: Betty Crocker Reese’s Brownie Mix, $4.99 on Instacart
Do you agree with our ranking? Tell us about it in the comments below.
Further Reading
The “Beautiful” $3 Flower Tumblers at Walmart People Are Buying 2 at a Time
Reese’s Just Launched a Limited-Edition Peanut Butter Cup, and It Tastes 4x Better than the Original
