These no bake peanut butter crunch bars can be made in one bowl and are a perfect dessert to whip up on a hot day when you don’t want to turn on the oven or do a bunch of dishes. My peanut butter crunch bars are both kid and adult approved!
This recipe is a cross of one of my all time favourite chocolate bars, the Crunch bar, and a rocky road bar which I grew up eating at local bakeries back in Newfoundland. Rocky road bars were one of my family’s favorites’ but are definitely very sweet with all the marshmallows’. These crunch bars won’t be as sweet and will have a lovely crunch from the Rice Krispie’s. The addition of coconut on top adds a lovely little extra flavour and just makes them look a little prettier. If you’re not a coconut fan though, you can absolutely leave it off. Also, if you’re worried the kids might not enjoy the addition of coconut, I told my son they were coconut sprinkles and he loved them :p!
These peanut butter crunch bars can get quite messy with all of the chocolate so if it’s a hot day out there, I recommend storing them in the fridge before serving. These bars are nice and versatile as they can be eaten straight from the fridge, and won’t crack you teeth off, or at room temperature. I prefer them from the fridge, even though I usually hate cold chocolate, as they are less sweet when cold. With the addition of peanut butter and butter, these won’t get super cold and crumbly like a regular piece of chocolate from the fridge, which I personally can’t stand.
Baking Tips:
- Store these in the fridge to keep them firm, especially in the summer. The cold also helps to reduce how sweet they taste. If you like them a bit more melty and gooey, you can also keep them at room temperature, but they’ll definitely be messy.
- Don’t push them down to hard into the pan, just gently press them into the square shape. If you work them too hard or push down too hard, they will be more firm and harder to eat.
- These peanut butter crunch bars can easily be made gluten free by using certified gluten free Rice Krispies
- I create my recipes based off weights so I recommend measuring by weights if you own a scale. It’s actually so much easier and makes for much less cleanup. I wish I had baked by weight from the beginning, I could never go back now.
Today’s song is one I listened to so much while I was pregnant with my daughter. So catchy and fun to sing along with. Here’s City of Angels by 24kGoldn. Happy Baking!! **Disclaimer: Liv’s Little Muffins owns no rights to this song.
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Peanut Butter Crunch Bars
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup (56g) unsalted butter
- 3/4 cup (165g) smooth peanut butter
- 2 cups (320g) semi sweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 cups (105g) Rice Krispies (certified gluten free if making gluten free)
- 2 tbsp shredded unsweetened coconut
Instructions
- Line an 8×8 pan with parchment paper or saran wrap. Set aside.
- Add butter, peanut butter and chocolate chips to a large microwave safe mixing bowl. Heat in 30 second increments until fully combined and melted.
- Stir in the vanilla extract. Then add your rice krispies and gently fold together until completely coated.
- Dump the mixture into your lined 8×8 pan and gently spread and flatten the mixture. Don't push down too hard or you will end up with hard bars.
- Sprinkle the shredded coconut over the top. Cover and chill for at least 3 hours until set. Store in the fridge or at room temperature *(see notes) for 5 days and enjoy!
Ohhh I need to make these soon😍