Whether you’re getting ready to take a ski trip, walk the dogs or taking in an active game of basketball, don’t forget to pack some energy packed bars.
My Peanut Butter Chocolate Granola Bar is jammed packed with nuts, granola, chocolate and wonderful flavors. Mix these in layers and you get a fun snack- just for fun or for a tough workout.
When you bite into these bars, the layer of peanut butter gives a delicious ooze between the hardened chocolate and the baked granola crust. And, it’s a delicious ooze!
Preheat your oven to 350F degrees.
Prep your 8”x 8” baking pan:
Line the pan with parchment paper, leaving enough over the edge for lifting it out of the pan.
Gather your Ingredients:
1 T Butter, melted
1 T Maple syrup, light
2/3 C Peanut butter, creamy, divided
1 C Oats, old fashioned
¾ C Walnuts, rough chopped, divided
½ C Dark chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate chips
Garnish Ingredient:
¼ C Walnuts, rough chopped
Bake it up:
- Melt butter in a microwave safe bowl.
- Stir in the maple syrup and 1/3 cup of peanut butter to combine.
- Add walnuts and oats, stirring to coat all completely.
- Press into the parchment paper lined pan to set up the granola crust.
- Bake at 350F degrees for 15-16 minutes. It should be golden brown on the edges.
- Cool on a rack.
- Spread 1/3 cup of peanut butter on the cooled granola crust. Set aside.
- Melt the semi-sweet chocolate in a microwave safe bowl, according to the package directions.
- Drizzle and spread the melted semi-sweet chocolate on top of the peanut butter.
- While the melted chocolate is still soft, sprinkle the walnuts over the top.
- Let the bark completely cool and harden on top before cutting or breaking. You might want to set it in the refrigerator for a few minutes.
- Lift the entire big bar out of the pan by lifting with the parchment paper edges.
- Place the big bar on a cutting board and cut into the sized bars you like. I like to cut it 4/4 to yield 16 bars.
Storage:
- I find that I don’t need to plan to store these bars for long because they just don’t last long, they are that good. However, I do keep them in the refrigerator if they last for up to a week.
- Otherwise, to freeze, I wrap them individually in plastic wrap, then place in a sealable plastic bag. I have frozen them for up to a month, letting them thaw in the refrigerator overnight. If you thaw them on the counter they can “sweat” water spots on top of the hardened chocolate.
Enjoy these flavorful Peanut Butter Chocolate Granola Bars for your workouts and, “Bake your own Memories!”