BY
Thanks to everyone who entered our recent giveaway, congrats to the winners! For the rest of you, if you can’t win the toy, you can at least eat something that will make your tummy happy. And I promise these will make it very, very happy. They only take a few ingredients and you don’t even have to bake them. Best part? They taste just like Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. Seriously, they’ll make you swoon.Start with some crushed graham crackers. If you’re like me and find half-eaten packs in the back of your pantry that are too stale for eating, they work great.
Then in goes powdered sugar and some peanut butter. Chunky or smooth peanut butter will work, but I think smooth is better.
And just in case something made out of powdered sugar, graham crackers and peanut butter isn’t good enough, let’s add a bunch of melted butter. To be on the safe side.
Now at this point you could take the bowl over to the couch and sit in front of the TV and turn on the Biggest Loser or something while licking your fingers between each bite. Not that I’ve done that, but I’m just sayin…
Or you can press it into a pan. Line it with something (parchment, foil, waxed paper) to make your life easier a couple hours from now.
Set that aside and get out some chocolate chips. Melt them in the microwave with a bit of shortening to make it easier to work with.
Keep melting until it’s nice and smooth
And then dump it on top of the peanut butter mixture.
Let’s do it in slow motion just for dramatic effect.
There it goes…
That’s the good stuff right there.
Now spread it out nice and smooth and pop that pan in the fridge.
The trick is to let the bars chill until the chocolate is just set so it’s still easy to cut. Otherwise you get a soft bottom and a really hard top, so you just smash everything. However, if you happen to let it chill all the way, it’s not the end of the world, I actually did that with this batch pictured. The trick then is to use a sharp serrated knife and score the cuts a few times until you cut all the way through. It works great!
*Tip: Love this tip from one you readers! Instead of adding shortening to the chocolate topping, add a scoop of peanut butter. That will prevent the top from getting solid and it will taste yummy!
Once the bars are cut, they can go back into the fridge to set all the way.
Or you can just eat them. You’ll probably want to just eat them.
No Bake Reece’s Peanut Butter Bars
1 1/2 C graham cracker crumbs
1 lb (3 1/2 C) powdered sugar
1 1/2 C creamy peanut butter
1 C (2 sticks) real butter, melted
1 12oz bag chocolate chips (milk, semi-sweet, or dark, you pick!)
2 tsp shortening
In a large mixing bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs, powdered sugar and peanut butter and butter and beat until combined. Press into a parchment (or waxed paper or foil) lined 9×13 pan.
Place chocolate chips and shortening in a microwave safe bowl and heat in 30 second intervals, stirring after each one, until melted and smooth. Pour chocolate over peanut butter mixture and spread out evenly. Place pan in the fridge just until chocolate is set and then cut into bars. Tip: If the bars chill until the chocolate is too hard to easily cut, use a sharp knife and score the cuts first, then gently cut through. Can be stored in the fridge or at room temp. They will stay firmer if stored in the fridge.
*Tip: Love this tip from one you readers! Instead of adding shortening to the chocolate topping, add a scoop of peanut butter. That will prevent the top from getting solid and it will taste yummy!
Those look so yummy! Peanut butter is a biggie in our house. Plus, anything that doesn't require baking has my vote!
P.S. I think I believe you now since you posted it on your blog (hee hee).
These are one of my fave all time cookie bars. Back when I was a young dinosaur these were served in my school cafeteria(you know, when lunch ladies still cooked everything from scratch). I found an issue of Family Circle years ago that had this bar in it & the grease stained pages are a tesament to how much I love them.
Wowww it looks so yummmmy!Lovely blog sweetie!
I love making these! I like them with chunky peanut butter. At my house, because I am the girl who puts stuff in the fridge to cool and forgets time, I skip the shortening with the chocolate, and use a tablespoon or so of creamy peanut butter with the chocolate chips for the topping. It never sets up as hard, and keeps the awesome flavor going.
That's my kind of treat. I'll just ahve to share with others so I don't eat the whole pan by myself!
How many graham crackers make up 1 1/2 cups crushed?
Approx. a pack and a half make 1 1/2 cups of chrushed graham crackers
Yummy! We all love the chocolate peanut butter combo at our house:)
Oh my, I laughed at the Biggest Loser comment. That show always makes me so hungry for some reason!
oh my!!! now, this is lowfat, right?? 🙂 i'm so making these soon! i'm sure I can come up with a reason!!
Lisle- that is a *great* idea!
Ramsey- I think it's a little over 1 pack.
SMW- glad I'm not the only one who has the urge to eat during Biggest Loser! lol
These are so good!! We use to make them when I was growing up.
My friends mom used to always make these for us and I always wanted to hang out at his house just on the possibility that she might make them! Thanks for the awesome reminder! 🙂
my friends mom used to make these “homemade” oreo type cookies. I used to do the same thing. Hang out and hopefully she would make them. I am still looking for that recipe online.
thank you for this. I was hoping to get the recipe for these that my mom makes, but I did not before her passing last week. I was wondering how I could find it (haven't gone through her things yet) and here you are with a very similar recipe. I think she said hers had 4 ingredients-so very, very close.
these look so good, wonder what would happen if you left out the graham crackers. I am on a gluten free diet … hmmm
I have been gluten free my whole life. If you used crushed nuts they work just fine! Hope your four munchkins like them!
We used gluten free granola (Nature Valley Pumpkin Flax) and 1/2 cup less sugar and it was delicious!
looks AMAZING! yummm can't wait to try them! thank you!! 😀
sara
They look delicious (although I'd prefer a bit more chocolate…) I love that they're no bake!
I HAVE to try these – I love anything with peanut butter and chocolate! My kids will love them too.
You misspelled my name where you announced the winner. In fact your spelling wasn't even close! Oh well, I'll still accept my prize. So excited!! 😉
These are one of my all-time favorite desserts. I usually keep the whole pan in my fridge and take a swipe every time I open the door (which ends up being a lot). I always think if I cut them into bars I'll them too fast, but I think my way is worse!
These bars are awesome!! Yummy one of my favorites:)
I LOVE these!!!! My grandmothers trick to melting chocolate in the microwave is to put it on defrost… guaranteed to not get over done!
Thanks for all the wonderful recipes!
these look awesome! I'll have to try them… I think they'd be even better with crushed nutter butter cookies instead of graham crackers though.
Another good tip for these yummies…I run a sharp knife under hot water and dry off and make quick slice through the goodies. The heat melts the chocy and makes for a nice smooth cut as well.
Oh Christi Christi Christi…I think you might be onto something there!
and Good tip Sue!
I think this is a sign! I saw this recipe on another site I frequent yesterday! I think God wants me to make these. 😉
These are always a instant winner. Love no-bakes in a hurry!
Reese's are my all time favorite candy bar. I know I'll eat the whole pan when I make these. Thanks for the recipes. By the way, cute little square plate that you displayed them on.
Oh my goodness! When I was in college I worked at a Mrs. Fields and loved the peanut butter dream bars. I think these could make a great substitute (especially if you crushed up cookies instead of graham crackers.
love peanut butter bars, but i've never had no bake ones!!!
O.M.Goodness!!!
These look soooo absolutely delicious!!! I can't wait to make some!!! These are much easier than the bars I try to make at the holidays and to not have to be baked or anything? EVEN BETTER!!!
Maybe I can make these instead of standard peanut butter balls (buckeyes)
@mommieof4munchkins – you could always use kinnikinnick S'moreables … they taste just like regular graham crackers but are Gluten Free!!!
My son claims to not eat sweets, but this is the one dessert he will always eat. He's now hooked his Boston friends, so he never leaves home without a pan to share.
I love to make these. I like to keep them in the freezer and eat them cold, or better yet crushed and put on ice cream or make a shake with them. 🙂
I didn't have any graham crackers or anything cookie-like to use so I put oatmeal in the food processor and made it fairly fine. It turned out pretty good. I also only had choc. and pb chips (bag of mixed) and I used those with a dollop of pb when I melted them and it tasted pretty yummy. The kids loved them and have already asked for one in their school lunches tomorrow.
And Boot~C, I also remember these being made in my elementary school cafeteria too!
Love the tip about melting chocolate in the microwave on defrost! Worked like a charm! I added heavy cream to the chocolate and made a thick ganache instead of using the shortening. 🙂
Commenting on Easy Pretzel Turtles to let you know that they are REALLY cute and very tasty with a candy corn squished on top! Couldn't figure out a way to comment with the original post, so here you go!
parkervp@gmail.com
These look perfect. The peanut butter is always the best part of Reese's, and these definitely reflect that.
Will have to make this soon 🙂
Just whipped up a batch and now waiting for them to chill out in the fridge while I clean up the kitchen…can't wait to try them!! Thanks for sharing!
Those look great – too bad I'm starting my diet – but my family loves peanut butter & choc
Thanks
Love how such few ingredients can yield such a tasty treat–great recipe!
I read this post and an hour later, my son and I made them so they can be ready for his sister when she got home from school. DEElicious! Thank you!!!
Sara
This is the exact same recipe I use for my hand dipped chocolate peanut butter balls. well except I obviously roll my peanut butter into balls and they are the bomb. You just made it easier for me to get fat. thanks!!
My mom has made these for years and I just love the recipe. I don't know why I don't make them more often. Oh wait, bc I will eat the whole pan 🙂
just made these – OMG – DIVINE!
made them with nutter butter cookies crushed instead of graham crackers and then peanut butter instead of shortening with the chocolate.
can't wait to try them.
I made these for the first time last night and they are BEYOND yummy!!! SO good and addicting!
Yum! I love these!
Just made these with my girls!! My 7yo said we should make these for Santa instead of cookies because they taste good with milk!
I've just had a really, really hard day; and I'm currently fighting a major migraine. However: next to my beautiful baby girl, the photos of this dessert is the most gorgeous thing I've seen all day! There's something about the glossiness factor of the chocolate mixture that can make a girl lose her mind! Beautiful stuff ladies…Keep it up 🙂
Peanut butter would be so good in those pumpkin muffins i love so much!
I make basically this exact recipe, but I freeze mine and serve them frozen. Yummy! That was you don't have to add shortening or peanut butter to the chocolate chips. You kind of have to chip them out of the pan, and they don't turn out super pretty, but they are SO good frozen!!!
I love Reeses Cups and can't wait to try these out! Also love your blog and practically drool over every post!
Ok – I'm back again to ask another question …
I'm going to make this recipe, but want to make them into little mini cups like reeses cups….
what would be the best way to do that? Use foil liners in a mini muffin pan and then paint the sides with chocoalte and let harden and then place pb ball inside and then let set and then pour melted chocolate over top?
that's how I'm envisioning it but is that the best way?
if you check out post # 84.1 , I added my 2 cents for a chocolate bottom crust, that could be useful for what you want to do…
I would place a tiny bit in the bottom of each cup, and tap it down with a dowel, or pestle….( fingers ) or what-have-you….tightly into the bottom of each paper cup…
then, add the p-butter and tap that down, and cover it with the melted chocolate….
good luck… and do let us know how it came out
: )
( although I like the mini cup idea, and may just have to try this tonight, for a party I’m going to tomorrow )
thank for the idea !!
Jenn- you got it! I've actually done it just like that and it works great. A little time consuming, but they turn out awesome 🙂
I made these yesterday, using the 'add peanut butter to the choco chips' trick, and they are FABULOUS! Thank you thank you for adding to my no-bake desserts stable 🙂
My daughter's homework this weekend was to find a no bake cookie recipe. Well, there are a million versions of the ubiquitous cocoa, oatmeal, and peanut butter no bake cookies out there, but that's about it. I'm so glad you posted this recipe!!
🙂
ButterYum
I love it. I made it the other night! I just love coming here and learning more about cooking and baking! Thanks for sharing!!
Oh, I've made these before and they are to DIE for!! So easy. And you make them look so lovely!!
Do you think I could use natural peanut butter in these? Would they still turn out ok?
It worked just great with natural pb for me. We find the bars too sweet and mushy (even with conventional pb) so I alter the recipe: 2cups: (natural) peanut butter, powdered sugar, crushed graham crackers and 1/2 cup butter. We love ’em!
Kayla- it would probably work with natural PB. It tends to be a bit more gooey, so you may need some extra graham cracker crumbs to hold it all together.
what about oatmeal? do you think oatmeal (like, blended to almost a powder) could be substituted for graham crackers? would they still taste as good i wonder?
I made the peanut butter bars this weekend. SO good! Thanks for another great treat! 🙂
Clarks- I know I read a comment somewhere (here or on facebook) where someone said they used oats and it worked. I would imagine it would taste better with the crackers, but oats would work!
I made these for a function we went to Saturday and they were half gone before it began! Some old men were nibbling ahead of time. 🙂 They taste like a pb fudge to me! Yum yum! Thanks!
I bet if you blend the oatmeal WITH brown sugar the crust would taste divine. We, however, are about to try them with oreos as the crust. It's what I've got. 🙂
I made these for the second time tonight. Everyone loves them!! The tip about the peanut butter was great!
I have made these 2 times(I have some cooling now)and I think the 1 cup butter is too much.I always have to add some more powdered sugar to them,but my family loves them.I would suggest using 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup melted butter.
I know I'm a little late commenting on these, but I wanted to post one more tip for everyone. If you let them sit on the counter for about five minutes and then lightly score the chocolate, you can chill them as long as you need to and it will still cut just fine.
Thanks for all your great recipes. I'm fairly new to your blog and I'm having such a great time just going through your recipe index!
WOW! These are so great! Alot like the ones we used to have at our H.S. cafeteria (and that's a compliment because they were Awesome and there were never any left overs!!). I didn't have enough semi-sweet chocolate chips so I made 1/2 that way and then on the other half I patted some toffee bits into the peanut butter and covered it with melted Almond Bark mixed with a little peanut butter. They turned out Wonderfully! So fast, so easy, so tasty! Thank you!!
yum… i'm very happy to have bumped into your blog! mucho gracias!!
I MAY have just made a mini batch of these by scaling everything down to fit a grab-it bowl. I MAY have desperately subbed in crushed PB puff cereal for the graham crackers and found out they were delicious. And I MAY have scarfed down the entire mini batch in one sitting.
Or I may not have…
PS – I realized as I made these that it's essentially the recipe for the PB balls (aka, buckeyes) that my mom makes at Christmas every year, only without all the tedious dipping. This is a VERY dangerous realization, as those have always been my favorite Christmas treat.
These are to die for! I started making these years ago when I got the recipe from my sister-in-law who is from Utah. =D
I just found your blog today… read about it in the Mormon Times that I just got today. Already saved!!as
It looks very delicious and you have a very beautiful and interesting blog!
I would like to ask you if you are agree with a banner change. My email adress is pecheanu_iulia@yahoo.com.
Kisses with all my heart!
Iulia
To be alittle healthier make the peanut butter part with: peanut butter, as much honey as you want to make it sweet enough and enough powdered milk to make it into the dough consistency. Then apply the chocolate 🙂
These Peanut Butter bars are amazing! They are easy to make and a hit with guests. If you are a peanut butter fan, you will love these!
So is there if I have zero shortening and zero creamy peanut butter left is there another alternative to making the chocolate smooth?
Could I add a little veg or canola oil?
Yes, a little oil will work!
I just have to stop somewhere and tell you that since I stumbled upon your blog about 2 hours ago, I've read and bookmarked at least 20 of your recipe! They all sound SO good – and doable!
Thank you so much!
These were so easy to make and how can you beat a no-bake recipe? I didn't have any regular graham crackers, nor did I have nutter butters (but I LOVE that idea), but it still works with chocolate graham crackers (and tastes great too!)
I made a double batch of these tonight. I followed the recipe exactly as written (with the pb in chocolate tip.) They are unbelievable. I boxed them up into Valentine boxes to give as gifts. My family thought they tasted exactly like Reeses PB cups. I had to hide the extras from myself in the back of the fridge.
Oh I'm so happy! I am going to make these tonight. I do NOT like peanut butter. I will occassionally eat a PB&J sandwich but any sugared peanut butter thing – ick. Which means these are PERFECT considering I am on a low carb diet and my family and a friend we have visiting this weekend will love them. It's a win win! I will just eat my sugar free jello.
I made these for my boyfriend for valentines day using PB in the chocolate. They turned out quite yummy!
Rather than cutting them into squares though, I used my tall heart shaped cookie cutter to make him pb/reeses hearts. I haven't given them to him yet, but they look absolutely cute wrapped up in my fridge 🙂 AND I got to snack on the trimmings.
Great tip to use a shaped cookie cutter! Thanks!
I made these the other day (for the hundredth time it seems) but with a twist…I made them on top of a marshmallow treat base. They were fantastic!!:) I was going to take a photo and post in on your FB page but they were gone before I got a chance.
This looks amazing! I see that it calls for real butter, would that be salted or unsalted? Thanks for this recipe!
I made these and sold them at a church “bake” sale. It went well, and they tasted amazing. These were eaiser to make than the peanut butter cups i make at christmas time. I had a slightly hard time getting the peanut butter layer evenly in the pan, any suggestions? By the way ladies, i just wanted to say agian how much i love your blog, and i appreciate the lovely pictures and step by step instructions. I dont watch t.v. or videos, so the pics really help me out! Thank you agian, you ladies are awesome!
P.S. just purchased your book, and i am in love! will purchase more, to give out as gifts!
suggestion for spreading the peanut butter layer evenly::::
you could try coating a rubber spatula with either melted butter wiped on with a paper towel, or spray with butter flavored cooking spray, and use that to smooth the peanut butter mixture evenly..
it helps, because it stops the peanut butter mix from sticking to the spreading implement…
: )
hope this helps
Just wanted to add another tip: Instead of melting the chocolate chips you can just sprinkle them on, then pop them in the oven on broil for a few minutes until they’re shiny and spread them with a spatula. Even easier! 🙂
These were a little slice of heaven!!!
They look so yummy cant wait to make them:)
These are SO delish!! I’ve made then twice and the kids go crazy for them. I wanted to comment that the conversion for the powdered sugar is wrong. 2 cups=1 lb (16 oz).
One pound of water is 2 cups, powdered sugar is less dense than water and it is 3.5 cups of powdered sugar is a “box” (or pound) of powdered sugar. Since “cup” is a volume measurement you cannot assume a constant 8oz of everything per cup. Darn density…
This is also really good with white chocolate chips melted on top!!
very easy and fun, tasted great…peanutbuttery yum!
De-licious! They taste identical to Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups! Thanks so much for this recipe. I have a feeling I will be making these a lot! 🙂
We tried these and they are wonderful. We are going to make them with our ESL students!!!
Thanks so much!!! You are awesome! I have looked for this recipe for a long time! I loved those in school!! People keep giving me the wrong recipe. Now I have it!!
Do I need salted or unsalted butter?
When ever we call for butter we’re referring to salted butter. If we ever use unsalted, we’ll call for it specifically. If you use unsalted butter, just add a pinch of salt to the dough as well.
Just made these now for the 3rd time in two months! For a friends house, ward potluck, and now for a family dinner tomorrow 🙂 these are SO good
We love these at our house. My 14 year old son makes the peanut butter part (scaled down to 2 servings) and eats it as a snack right out of the bowl! He has gotten to the point where he just knows what it needs and doesn’t use a recipe to make it anymore. Theses are our “go-to” recipe for potlucks and such. The kids are always requesting them.
I just made these tonight and they are delicious! I did cut the butter down to see how it would work just a smidge healthier. But I mean really if you’re making these, it’s really just time to splurge on calories. 1 cube was to little, but 1 cube + 2 tbsp came out just fine. Thanks for the great recipe. 🙂
Love these! I’ve made these so many times this year that I barely have to look at the recipe 🙂 The last couple times I didn’t have graham crackers so I used shredded wheat cereal with my crunchy peanut butter and they were great!! The crunch was a nice touch, especially when I make them into cupcake sized cups 😉
I have an extra step that makes these so super-yummy….
before you begin…. crush a bunch of chocolate wafers in a bowl with a pestle, or the bottom of a drinking glass ( or you can use your new-fangled electric food processor-thingy ).. I have also placed them in a plastic zip-bag and crushed them with a glass used as a rolling pin……. and mix with melted butter to make a big, thick, mushy glob..
press this chocolaty-buttery-thick- gooey- glob into the bottom of the pan ( still lined with parchment , of course )
then…. proceed with the peanut butter part, and just follow the rest of the recipe…
you get: …chocolate cookie goodness in a bottom crust, peanut-buttery heaven in the middle, and chocolaty-gooey-mega-goodness on top !!
super-yummy !!!
… enjoy
: )
I’ve never met you, but you are AAAAdorable! I actually read the instructions twice just so I could giggle again. “That’s the good stuff”. Oh my – so funny, and great when humor and real recipes are combined. THANK YOU! My new favorite website!
I made this as soon as I seen it and it is amazing. This will definatly be a holiday dessert at my house!!!
These sound delicious! I would like to make these non-dairy. Do you think they will come out well if I substitute oil for the butter?
Since they’re not baked, I don’t think the flavor would taste very good with oil, but you could try it.
I tried substituting peanut oil for the butter. My husband and I thought they tasted great (maybe not as great as they would have been with butter, but still delicious), but the consistency was too mushy. I made a second batch recently with coconut oil, since coconut oil is solid at room temperature. The second batch came out perfectly! They are delicious, and cut into squares nicely. Thanks for the recipe, it’s now one of our favorite desserts!
I’ve been making these bars for quite some time, and agree to their absolute deliciousness. I have found that substituting creamy peanut butter for the shortening when melting the chocolate chips makes for even creamier choc topping, and adds to the flavor rather than just the fat content… Plus my lazy side loves getting out 1 less ingredient! Thanks for the great recipe, always a fave with my family!
Nothing better than a Reeses…lol I found that using Reeses Peanut Butter in jars is the best and makes it more authentic. I found this place and they seem to be the cheapest http://www.peanutbutterreeses.com try not to buy all the other Reeses they have. My girlfriend nearly killed me after spending almost $200 there 🙂
Those were great, thanks! What a genius idea. I sprinkled sea salt on some of them to be fancy, and that turned out pretty good, too. Next time I’ll leave bigger graham chunks for more crispy goodness.
I absolutely adore this recipe! My grandmother makes these every year for Christmas, and I’ve never been able to snake the recipe from her. So imagine how ecstatic I was to find it on your website! But the best part is I actually turned it into homemade Tag-alongs by putting your sugar cookies on the bottom and taking out the graham crackers, absolute perfection! Thank you so much!
These were way too sweet! I would knock the sugar back to about two cups if I were to make them again. Seriously, I like me some sweets but ugh these were too much, I couldn’t eat them.
These are great. I’ve used this recipe before. But, I find it’s less sugary if you use natural unsweetened peanut butter. Having sweetened peanut butter AND powdered sugar is just too much. For me anyway. But I love this recipe it’s JUST like a reese cup.
Great square but use milk chocolate instead of semi-sweet. Doesn’t even need the chocolate and this is from a die hard chocoholic. Great from the fridge chilled and at least a couple hours to marry the flavour. Easily cut and attractive plus little time to make. Great square but not quite Reese’s. Missing the salty aspect.
Tastes more like a crispy crunch bar
I’ve made something similar to this before, but I’m definitely going to give these a go… I’m catering my daughter’s sweet 16 party (almost 100 guests) and I’m looking for little sweets for the dessert table…Thank you for posting this oh so sweet and easy dessert….
These are LIFE changing!!
I tweeked the recipe though.
Cut down the butter to 3/4 c.
Cut down the sugar to 2 c.
Used chucky PB
And added 3 to 4 TBSP of heavy whipping cream to the melted chips. NO shortening!!!
They were glorious!!!
My kids LOVED them!!!
*Chunky PB….lol