Protein peanut butter cups and homemade shell topping!!!

I have to share this delicious recipe I found on pinterest for Crispy Peanut Butter Protein Cups. 
As usual, I didn't have all the ingredients on hand so I modified to use what I had - most notably I left out the rice cereal, and used sunflower seed butter instead of peanut butter. These would be delish with any nut butter! I can't wait to try them with almond, peanut, cashew...  

I used:

Ingredients

For the peanut (sunflower seed) butter cups

• 3 scoops unflavored whey protein powder
• 1/4 cup organic coconut oil (melted/liquid)
• 1/4 cup organic maple syrup
• 1 cup organic sunflower seed butter
•  handful of sesame seeds

For the cacao drizzle (AKA homemade magic shell topping!!!)

• 1 tablespoon organic maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon organic raw cacao powder
• 1 tablespoon organic coconut oil (melted/liquid)

 Since it's summer and we don't have A/C, the coconut oil did not require any heating; it was ready to go. For the cups, I just mixed everything together in a bowl, portioned it into 8 silicone baking cups and stuck them in the freezer for an hour.

Now for the most important part.... the magic shell topping!!!! I am so excited I found this recipe.  There's nothing I guiltily love more than magic shell topping on ice cream... but it's sooo bad for you. This stuff is the most amazing substitute for store-bought shell! And you can just throw together a single serving super quick whenever you want some. You just need equal parts maple syrup, coconut oil and cacao powder. So fast and easy! And it hardens just like shell on ice cream or on these frozen peanut butter cups. This discovery so makes my life right now!!!

These were so easy to make, and they are such a yummy treat for a snack or dessert. Valerie loves them - definitely a hit with kids! For 8 cups, I calculated each one to be about 337 calories, 22 grams of fat, 18 grams of carbs and 16 grams of protein. Okay so not exactly low calorie. For a lighter treat, you could have half a cup for 170 calories. I think what I might do the next time, rather than make them in cups, is to spread the mixture in a pan so you can slice off small pieces, which might make it easier to have smaller portions, rather than only eating half a cup each time.