Peanut Butter & Chocolate Bars

So I got the Costco sized Honey Maid Graham Crackers and then realized they are best when used by December 31, 2019. And normally I would be ok with using things after the best by date… except we had an unopened box of Honey Maid Graham crackers… that were like a year past the best by date and they both smelled… and tasted foul. So… I won’t be making that mistake again… at least with Graham Crackers, I’m totally willing to try something past the best by date if it is another product.

Anyway, I had a cookie exchange party with my cousins on Sunday and I was trying to think of an easy, fast, recipe that I could make between church and the party and I came upon these… and I could use more of our Graham Crackers these before they go bad. I made the recipe and didn’t think about the cooling time needed, so they came out not so pretty when I tried to cut them and pack up up to leave the house quickly… so I did not take a picture of the final project… But I am making more today for our neighbors and for my hubby to take to his Rotary Club cookie exchange tomorrow, so… I’ll get a picture today!

Here’s what you’ll need:

• ½ cup unsalted butter (that’s 1 stick)
• 1½ cups graham cracker crumbs (that’s about 15 full crackers with all 4 pieces)
• 14 oz sweetened condensed milk (that’s 1 can)
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup peanut butter chips (the bag comes with 1 2/3 cups of chips so if you are going to double the recipe, make sure you get 2 bags)
• 13 x 9 pan

Step 1: Making the crust

First, set your oven to 350 degrees on Bake before you make the crust so it will be ready when you are. And also… Grease your 13 x 9 pan… I forgot… And got a workout trying to get the bars off the sides.

You’ll need 15 sheets of the graham crackers, I broke mine into smaller sizes to fit into my food processor so they would get ground up easier.

I used my Kitchenaid Food Processor on Sunday and that thing is a beast. I can never figure out how to get it to start, then I remember that it has to line up correctly, and I still, for the life of me, can’t figure out how to put it all together. I think, if I remember correctly, I had to have the base using with the handle locked into place before I locked the lid into place, but I feel like I’m going to break it every time I use it. It was my late mother-in-loves, but she’s not here to show me how to use it, so… I keep it, but don’t use it very often. I should probably watch a YouTube video, because you can learn to do pretty much anything on YouTube. But… today I decided to try my immersion blender food processor attachment instead, because that thing is sooooooooo much easier for me, and wouldn’t ya know…. it chopped just as well, and it was a lot lighter, and fewer pieces to wash after. If you don’t have one… it’s pretty amazing!

Next up, I took a cold stick of unsalted butter straight from the fridge into my glass 2 cup Pyrex Measuring cup and cooked it for 1 minute and 15 seconds. Yours may take more or less time, so do what works best for you to get your butter melted. I linked you to a 3 size measuring cup set because it’s only 5 cents more to get all 3 sizes (1 cup, 2 cup, and 4 cup) than it is for you to get just the 2 cup size right now….

Mix the melted butter into the graham cracker crumbs, after combined, press your mixture into the bottom of your greased 13 x 9 pan.

Step 2: Adding the toppings!

Open your can of condensed milk and pour it over the pressed crust. I tried smoothing it out with a spatula on Sunday, but found that I had better luck by just picking up my pan and tilting it from front to back and side to side to get the condensed milk spread over all the crust without flipping some crust on top of the condensed milk.

Next I added the cup of chocolate chips, just sprinkle it all over, then the peanut butter chips, just sprinkle them all over… Now that I have done this twice with chocolate chips first, and peanut butter chips second, I realize all the peanut butter is on the top… so you may get a better mixture swapping back and forth from chocolate to peanut butter, then back to chocolate and back to peanut butter. But… it all tastes the same… so that’s up to you.

Step 3: Bake it!

Bake it uncovered in preheated over for 25 minutes. Then… here’s the part when I messed up… you have to let it cool before you cut it. So… I waited about 5 minutes, but you should probably wait more like 30-45 minutes. I’ll wait that long today and let you know how it works out for me.

Step 4: Share and bring some happiness to those you love

We will be sharing these with our neighbors and my hubby will be doing a cookie exchange with them too. They were a hit at the cousin cookie exchange, so I’ll definitely be adding these to my holiday baking list.

Just some tips…

These are the measuring cups and spoons I use… and while they are affordable, and lightweight, they also melt in the dishwasher… so I have a couple deformed measuring spoons. If I were to buy myself some new measuring cups and spoons, this is what I would choose next time.

I hope you enjoy these! They can stay fresh if you keep them covered at room temp.

You can double the recipe for a thicker bar.

You can make this recipe your own by adding your favorite flavor of chips, or nuts, candy, or even coconut.