My husband really wanted peanut butter bars last night but I didn't feel like doing anything too intense so I found these no bake bars that are fantastic. For the graham cracker crumbs, if you put them in the blender you will get a nice smooth crust, but if you like it chunkier, smash them with a rolling pin like I did. This can easily be doubled to put in a 9x13 pan. These are great for letting kids help out as well. The hardest part is waiting for them to set up!
Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup peanut butter
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons peanut butter
Directions:
1. In a medium bowl, mix together the butter or margarine, graham cracker crumbs, confectioners' sugar, and 1 cup peanut butter until well blended. Press evenly into the bottom of an ungreased square pan.
2. In the microwave, melt the chocolate chips with the peanut butter, stirring occasionally until smooth. Spread over the prepared crust. Refrigerate for at least one hour before cutting into squares.
I made these for a class at school and everyone loved them. They are not low calorie, but they are healthier, especially if you use natural peanut butter.
Ingredients: 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/3 cup honey
1 egg
2 Tbsp canola oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup peanut butter chips
1/3 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips
Directions:
1. In a large bowl, beat the peanut butter, honey, egg, oil and vanilla until blended. Combine the oars, brown sugar and salt; add to the peanut butter mixture and mix well. Stir in chips. (Batter will be sticky.)
2. Transfer to a 13x9 in. baking dish coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350ยบ for 12-15 minutes or until set and edges are lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack. Cut into bars.
These are SO yummy! And a little addicting. I had to remove myself to the other room in order to stop eating them. My husband was skeptical when he saw the ingredients. He didn't think they would work together, but he was proven wrong! (Again ;)! Ha Ha!
Peanut Butter Cheerio Treats
3 TBLS Butter
16 oz bag marshmellows
1/2 C Peanut Butter
5 C Cheerios (Generic is fine)
Spray a 9x 13 pan with cooking spray. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in marshmallows. Heat until melted and add peanut butter. Remove from heat. Fold in Cheerios until coated. Smooth mixture into pan and let sit until cooled (if you can!). Enjoy!
I adore this easy version of peanut butter bars. I will whip these up if I have a serious peanut butter craving. If I don't have butterscotch chips on hand I will simply do all chocolate.
1 cup corn syrup 1 cup sugar
Combine the syrup and sugar in a 3-qrt saucepan. Stir well. Heat mixture on stove on low to medium eat. Stir constantly until the sugar is dissolved, but do not let mixture boil. Take off heat.
Stir in 1 cup extra chunky peanut butter. Stir together until well mixed.
Add 6 cups Crispy Rice cereal, one cup at a time. Stir well after each addition. Lightly butter or spray with cooking spray 13x9" pan. Pour cookie mixture into pan and spread evenly.
Add 1 cup milk chocolate chips and 1 cup butterscotch chips to a small saucepan. Melt on very low heat while stirring constantly. Pour chocolate mixture over cookie mixture and spread evenly. You can add M&Ms to decorate. Let cool until chocolate mixture hardens (can refrigerate to speed up cooling.) Cut into squares and eat!
I have been put in charge of making/delegating/finding cupcakes for an upcoming church function. I have been scouring the planet looking for the most amazing cupcake recipes. I came across this beauty on a blog and was amazed at how delicious it was. I did simplify it a bit, but these are very easy chocolate cupcakes with a rich and creamy peanut butter frosting. The frosting is TO DIE FOR! To add a little richness, place a few chocolate chips on the top of the cupcake immediately after taking them out of the oven. After they have melted, spread the chocolate over the top of the cupcake. After they are completely cooled, frost as usual. For those who are not expert at frosting cupcakes (I include myself in this category), I found a video on youtube that was extremely helpful for me. Go to the bottom of the post for the video. Enjoy!
Chocolate Cupcakes
makes 12-14 cupcakes
Ingredients
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
3/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup milk, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
Method
Preheat oven to 375, then turn it down to 350 just prior to baking
Beat the butter with an electric mixer until it is soft, then add sugar. Beat about 3 minutes.
Add the eggs, one at a time beating until they are well combined.
In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients and whisk them to incorporate them.
Add 1/3 of the dry ingredients to the butter and sugar and beat it just to combine. Add 1/2 of the liquids (milk & vanilla), scrape down bowl and beat to combine. Continue adding the dry and wet ingredients alternately making sure you END WITH THE DRY.
Fill cupcake liners 2/3’s of the way.
Bake for about 20-22 minutes. Do not overbake! Allow to cool, then frost.
Peanut Butter Frosting
Ingredients
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup peanut butter
3 cups powdered sugar
2-4 tablespoons milk
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 small pinch cayenne pepper (optional)
Method
In large bowl, combine butter, peanut butter, sugar, salt, vanilla, and 2 tablespoons milk. Mix well, adding more milk as needed to make a fluffy spreadable frosting. Sprinkle with a very small pinch of cayenne pepper if desired.
