Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars – about the best flavor combination ever invented. Don’t you agree!?
Today’s recipe for Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars is compliments of Emily. Technically Emily is my niece in law (my husband’s brother’s daughter in law) but Emily is more like a sister to me some days and other days she has to listen to my motherly advice and she is more like a daughter. But whatever she is, she is wonderful and amazing and I love her. She allows me to stay at her house whenever I am in Utah. She allows my son to live at her house all summer. She feeds my children on a regular basis and she is always there for us when we need her. Yes, everyone should have an Emily in their life. And her husband Wynn is pretty great too!
On my most recent visit Emily was yet again preparing to feed the entire Wilkes’ clan (and that is a lot of clan!) Unfortunately, Jim and I were flying out before dinner. Fortunately for us, dessert was done before we left and Emily sent us out the door with a plate of these Chocolate Peanut Butter Bar goodies. The fact that most of them ended up in Jim’s lap in the car is another story.
We ate them anyway.
Emily said they reminded her of the Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars the lunch lady use to make at school. I was a brown bagger at school so I’m not sure if our lunch lady ever made these but if she didn’t she should have and if she did I’m sorry I missed them!
The base of the bars is a moist cookie base made with quick oats, flour, butter and of course sugar.
The base is spread into a jelly roll size pan and then baked. Be sure to not overbake it. While it is still warm, you spread the top with some peanut butter that has been whipped with vanilla. It will soak into the cookie base. Yum.
The top is then crowned with a mixture of butter, cocoa and some more sugar.
Then let them set up and they are ready to cut and eat or if you are like we are – you don’t let them cool and you eat them!!
I think these would make the lunch lady proud! I am thinking these bars would also be pretty amazing with Jif’s new Chocolate Hazelnut Spread. If you haven’t entered the giveaway to get some for FREE along with a $50.00 gift card you need to! Head over here.
- 3/4 C butter
- 3/4 C sugar
- 3/4 C brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 3/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 C flour
- 1 1/2 C quick oats
- 3 tsp vanilla divided
- 1 C peanut butter
- 1/4 C butter
- 1 1/2 Tbsp cocoa
- 3 Tbsp milk
- 2 C powdered sugar
- Cream together sugars and butter.
- Add in eggs and beat until fluffy.
- Add in soda, salt, flour, oats and 1 1/2 tsp vanilla.
- Dough will be moist but not sticky.
- Spread on to a jelly roll size cookie sheet
- Bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes. Don't overbake
- Whip together peanut butter and 1 tsp vanilla in mixer.
- Spread over top of warm cookie base.
- Heat 1/4 C butter and stir in cocoa until dissolved and smooth.
- Add in milk, powdered sugar and 1/2 tsp vanilla.
- Mix until smooth and spread over peanut butter layer.
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You are too kind with your sweet words, but the reality is I am just trying to be like you! And for the sake of my mother’s reputation I was a “brown bagger’ as well except for the days that peanut butter bars were on the menu 🙂
Can you tell me what size “jelly roll” pan is. It looks bigger than a 13×9, but I don’t think I have one and will have to purchase one and I want to make sure I get the right size. Thanks
My pan is 17 x 12 and I bought it at Costco.
Hi, my jelly roll pan is 10″ x 15″. In doing a search, I found 10″ x 15″ and 13″ x 18″ jelly roll pans being sold.
I am sure your 10 x 15 would be fine they will just be a bit thicker and may need to cook a few minutes longer.
These look delicious! How much peanut butter do you use?
How much peanut butter?
Sorry – updated the recipe – 1 cup!
Looks yummy! I’ll have to make some of these. Chocolate and peanut butter are my favorite combination!
Do you have this on pinterest? If so, which board is it on? I thought I pinned it to mine, but I can’t find it. Thanks
Never mind last comment…I got it!
Hi Leigh Anne, Drew and Kiley made this right away. They baked it about 12 minutes, but it was still gooey when cooled. My oven may be off. Also, the frosting didn’t look chocolatey-is there only 1 1/2 tsp of cocoa powder? I got to tell you that I dumped them in the sink and poured water on them because even though they were under baked, I could have eaten way too many of them!
Dawn, Sounds like they just need to be baked a bit longer. Our ovens must be different. And thanks for catching that typo on the cocoa – it should be 1 1/2 Tbsp sorry!!!
YUM!!! We looooove pb bars!
Yes I have to agree that chocolate and peanut butter are the best combo every! Emily sounds amazing too! I love these bars. Simple, yet absolutely delicious looking!
This was the first really terrible recipe I’ve tried from this website. I put them in a jelly-roll sized pan (liek the recipe said) and thought they seemed thin, but went with it. Baked for 10 minutes, finished the recipe and then went to cut. They were hard as a rock. I threw them in the trash. I’m pretty sure they should be in a regular 9X11 pan. A jelly roll pan doesn’t work for this.