Easy Peanut Buttery Goodness Bars

I apologize for my absence.  I’ve been traveling, well moving, across the country.  We are temporarily settled in Salt Lake City until we decide on a final destination.  In the meantime, I’ll be posting recipes that I threw together before I left.  Most of them will be quick and easy because I didn’t have a lot of spare time around my packing, and today’s is no exception.  These bars come together in just a matter of minutes.  Then they just sit in the fridge overnight and in the morning, you have a chewy, sweet, salty, peanut buttery treat.

Here’s what you’ll need: 

• 1 cup peanut butter
• 1 cup honey
• 3 cups oats
• ¼ - ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon vanilla 

Ok, so I didn’t manage to get the salt or vanilla in the picture.  The truth is, I didn’t initially intend to put them in, but decided along the way that they would make a nice addition. 

Here’s a little trick for you.  If you spray your measuring cup with a bit of oil, it will make the honey come out a little easier. 

Now, add the honey to a mixing bowl. 

See, it almost all came out.  Now you can just put the peanut butter in there without even having to scrape it first. 

For the peanut butter, I used a natural one, which had not yet been refrigerated, so it was of pouring consistency.  If you’re using something more conventional or something that has been refrigerated, just warm it in the microwave for a few seconds to make it nice and soft.  You’ll also notice that I’m using a crunchy variety.  I recommend that because of the texture, but you can certainly use whatever you have on hand.  I imagine this would work well with any other kind of nut butter if you have a peanut allergy in your house. 

To that, add the salt and vanilla. 

Stir until everything is thoroughly combined. 

Now it’s time for the oats.  I used a combination of quick oats and old fashioned rolled oats.  Either of those will work just find on their own, but if you have both, the mix makes a really great texture. 

Stir until the oats are evenly coated in the peanut butter mixture. 

Pour into a parchment lined 8x8 pan.  If, like me, you’ve used all of your energy doing something else (I did mention I was packing, right?) and you can’t be bothered to actually lay the parchment neatly in the pan, don’t worry.  Just plop the mixture into the middle of the parchment. 

Then, as you press the mixture down and spread it into the corners, the parchment paper should work itself out. 

Cover this and place it in the fridge overnight.  After that you’ll want to continue to store it in the fridge so they don’t get too sticky.  I was surprised by the fabulous texture of these bars.  They remind me a lot of a chewy, nougat kind of candy bar.  For being so simple, they are amazingly delicious. 

What is your least favorite part about moving?  I'm pretty sure mine is actually the unpacking, but I haven't gotten to that part yet.

Easy Peasy Peanut Butter Cookie Bars

If you like peanut butter and chocolate, you’re going to love this recipe.  It’s super easy.  I actually had to make it twice because the first time I was just throwing stuff into the mixing bowl and didn’t keep track of any measurements.  They were so good that I just had to share.  That meant making them a second time so I could put together an actual recipe for you.  I really didn’t mind, though. 

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 1 ½ cups peanut butter (something natural)
• 3 Tablespoons butter
• 1 ½ cups sugar*
• ¼ - ¾ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon molasses*
• 1 Tablespoon brown rice syrup (or other syrup)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• 2 eggs
• 2 Tablespoons flour
• 1 cup oats (I used quick oats, but old fashioned are also fine)
• 1 cup milk chocolate chips
• ½ cup mini semisweet chocolate chips
• *If you prefer, you can use brown sugar in place of the sugar and omit the molasses.

Go ahead and preheat the oven to 350°.  Butter a 9x13 pan and set it aside.  Then, into your mixing bowl go the peanut butter and butter.  (As always, the ingredients should all be at room temperature.)  The peanut butter I’m using is made from unblanched peanuts which is why it has such a dark color. 

Mix them together until they are thoroughly combined. 

Add the sugar.

Mix. 

Add the molasses, rice syrup, vanilla, and ¼ teaspoon salt. 

Mix.  (I did mention these are really easy, right?)  This is a good time to taste the mixture for saltiness.  I like my peanut butter stuff to be pretty salty, but it’s a personal thing.  If you like it at that point, leave it.  If it needs more salt, go ahead and stir some in. 

Add the baking soda and powder.  Mix them in thoroughly, scraping the bowl down in the process.

Next up are the eggs.  Go ahead and throw them both in. 

As you mix them in, you’ll see your stuff get stiff.  *ahem*  To be honest, I’m not sure why that happens with peanut butter cookies, but that’s the reason the eggs don’t go in until now. 

Add the flour and oats. 

Stir just enough to bring everything together.  It’ll be a bit crumbly,

But if you squeeze some of it in your hand, it will hold together nicely. 

Add the chocolate chips.  I used a combination of milk chocolate and mini semisweet ones, and although you can really use whatever you want, I highly recommend that particular pair for this application. 

Stir them in so they’re evenly-ish distributed. 

Dump the whole thing into your prepared pan and press it down firmly so that it’s an even thickness. 

Bake for 25 - 30 minutes.  It will look dry on top and will be browning nicely around the edges. 

Cool completely (yeah right.  Good luck with that) and cut into squares.  The salty peanut butter combined with the sweetness of the chocolate and the chewiness of the oats brings together all of your favorite cookies into one fabulous bar. 

What's your favorite cookie bar?