These unbaked chocolate and peanut butter bars They’re sweet, buttery, and easy to make with just 5 ingredients. These taste JUST like peanut butter cups, with a crunchy peanut butter filling topped with a chocolate top layer!
Fancy more dessert bar recipes? try my magic bars (you may also know them as 7-ply bars) and these chewy peanut butter passion bars.
Why You’ll Love These Peanut Butter Chocolate Bars
Is there anything better than chocolate and peanut butter? There isn’t one in my house. I recently reviewed these Peanut Butter Chocolate Bars for a last minute dessert. Wow, they disappeared quickly! Here’s why you’ll want to make these bars ASAP:
- Buttery and chocolatey. In short, you take a thick layer of crunchy peanut butter and spread it with chocolate. These chocolate peanut butter bars were inspired by Paula Deen’s recipe (love her!). Total happiness.
- Give your oven a break. This is a no-bake dessert, so the oven can leave it out. I love making these bars when I have guests or during the holidays when my oven is busy with baked ham or a casserole.
- 5 ingredients. Dessert couldn’t be much simpler or better. Chances are good that the ingredients for these peanut butter chocolate bars are already waiting in your pantry.
Ingredients you will need
If you know Paula Deen, you know these dessert bars are loaded with butter! I have learned to accept it. However, I modified their original recipe for my convenience and included some ingredient notes here. You’ll find a printable list in the recipe card below the post.
- Butter – Here it will work with or without salt. Take the sticks of butter out of the refrigerator to soften before you begin. You can also use margarine.
- Peanut butter – Use smooth or crunchy peanut butter (I love the extra texture that comes with crunchy). Whichever you choose, make sure it is shelf-stable peanut butter and not natural, which makes these bars greasy.
- Icing sugar – Also called icing sugar. Sifting the sugar beforehand eliminates lumps and keeps the peanut butter filling soft.
- Graham Cracker Crumbs – Cookie crumbs help bind the filling ingredients so the bars stay together. You can also use crushed Nilla crackers or Ritz crackers for a sweet and savory combination.
- chocolate chips – You will melt semisweet or dark chocolate chips (or chopped chocolate) for the top chocolate layer.
How to Make Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars
I get so excited about these chocolate-laden butter bars that I sometimes forget that they need time to solidify. Below is a quick step-by-step showing how to make the best peanut butter chocolate bars. Scroll down to the recipe card for printable instructions.
- Prepare the filling. Start by blending the peanut butter with the butter, sugar, and graham crackers in a food processor.
- Assemble the bars. Press the mixture into a lightly greased saucepan. Next, melt the chocolate in the microwave. Spread this over the peanut butter layer.
- Cool. Let the bars sit while the chocolate cools completely and then move them to the refrigerator.
Add ingredients
I love switching up these chocolate peanut butter bars with different toppings. The trick is to add the ingredients while the melted chocolate is still wet. Sprinkle over chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, chopped nuts, crushed pretzels, or rainbow sprinkles.
After the chocolate has hardened, you can also drizzle the tops of the bars with icing, sweet sauceeither homemade caramel sauce.
Tips and variations
- Only lightly grease the pan. Coat the baking dish or pan you are using with cooking spray, then wipe off any excess grease with a paper towel. This way the bottom of the bars will not be too greasy.
- Cool the bars. Many peanut butter chocolate bar recipes recommend serving at room temperature. However, I have always found that these bars set better when cold. They are less sticky and easier to manipulate. Feel free to serve them at whatever temperature suits you best.
- Add a touch of honey. Sweeten these bars with honey, like I do in my Honey Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars (another easy no-bake recipe!).
- Give these bars a cookie base. These Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars Look a Lot Like My Girl Scout Inspired Cookies tagalog bars. In that recipe, I swap out the graham crackers for a baked butter crust before adding a peanut butter and chocolate filling. You might also like these chocolate and caramel butter bars.
How long do these peanut butter bars last?
- Refrigerate. Store your peanut butter chocolate bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 to 5 days.
- Freeze. These bars can be frozen for up to 2 months. Wrap them tightly in a double layer of plastic or place them in a freezer bag. Defrost in the refrigerator before serving.
More Dessert Bar Recipes
Description
these dreamers chocolate and peanut butter bars They are a delicious no-bake dessert idea! Made with only 5 ingredients, you can prepare these crunchy dessert bars for every occasion.
- 1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened
- 1 cup crunchy peanut butter
- 3 cups sifted icing sugar
- 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
- 1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
- Lightly spray a 9×13-inch pan with cooking spray and then wipe it with a paper towel, so you have a very light coating on the pan, but the bars are not greasy.
- Combine butter, peanut butter, sugar, and graham cracker crumbs in a food processor. Process until the mixture forms a ball. Press into the pan with your hands or a spatula.
- Microwave the chocolate chips in a microwave-safe glass dish for 1 minute on high (100%). Remove. If the chocolate is not completely melted, microwave it for 10 more seconds and then stir. Spread evenly over cookie layer with a spatula. Cool for several hours.
Grades
- Recipe adapted from Paula Deen.
- Don’t let the bars sit too long at room temperature, otherwise they will be too soft to lift.
