Showing posts with label peanut butter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label peanut butter. Show all posts
Peanut Butter Crunch Bars!!! These delicious bars are an easy no bake dessert recipe with a crisp and crunchy base made from crunchy peanut butter, Rice Krispies, corn syrup, peanut butter baking chips. This is topped with a layer of melted semi-sweet chocolate for a dessert bar that tastes very much like one of your favorite candy bars!
This is a recipe I bookmarked from a page called This Is Not Diet Food several weeks ago. I have only just not gotten around to making them as I kept forgetting to pick up the peanut butter baking chips when I went to the shops!
Does anyone else do that? Go into a shop for a specific ingredient and come home with six other things, but having forgotten the initial thing you went in for? Tell me I am not alone in this! Please!
Anyways, I finally did pick up the chips and I finally did make the bars. I did a small batch however, making half the amount in a lined loaf tin rather than a full sized square tin. Good thing too, as these are FAR too dangerous for the peanut butter lover that I am to have hanging around for very long!
They are rich and peanutty, and moreishly crunchy! The semi-sweet chocolate coating on top of the bar helps to keep them from being overly sweet. They tasted very much like one of my favorite chocolate bars, but not quite as sweet! I can see these being a popular addition to the holiday cookie tray!
Very simple and quick to make as well. Other than the set up time you can have these totally put together in about fifteen minutes time. I do believe that they would also freeze well once set up. Simply thaw overnight on the counter to serve.
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE PEANUT BUTTER CRUNCH BARS
Just a few simple ingredients. I have endeavored as best as I can to provide European substitutions/equivalents for each ingredient.
- 1/2 cup (90g) crunchy peanut butter
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (87.5g) white corn syrup or golden syrup
- 3/4 cup (135g) peanut butter baking chips
- 2 cups (43g) crisp rice cereal
To top:
- 3/4 cup (135g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 TBS butter
Most of the ingredients are quite available in the U.K and Europe, with the one exception being the peanut butter baking chips. Those can be very difficult to find, although you can sometimes find them in ASDA, the Reese's brand. You can also buy them in online American candy/baking supply shops. They can be rather pricey however.
My suggestion is to use white chocolate chips in their place. You could also use milk chocolate chips which would work very well, but your base of the bar would not be as light in color as the base with the peanut butter chips. You will still have a very delicious bar!
HOW TO MAKE PEANUT BUTTER CRUNCH BARS
These are really very simple to make. Do keep a watch on the initial mixture however as it can catch very easily and will burn if you are not attentive!
Butter a 9 by 5-inch loaf tin and line with baking paper. Butter the baking paper. Set aside.
Measure the peanut butter, sugar and corn syrup into a saucepan. Heat gently over medium heat, stirring until everything has melted and amalgamated. Do not allow to catch on the bottom.
As soon as the mixture starts to bubble remove from the heat. Str in the peanut butter chips until melted and smooth.
Stir in the rice cereal until it is completely coated and mixed together. Press into the prepared loaf tin.
Heat the semi-sweet chocolate chips along with the butter in the microwave at 30 second increments on high, until melted and smooth.
Pour this melted chocolate over top of the crisp peanut butter rice cereal base and smooth it out.
Leave at room temperature for about 3 hours until set. Cut into bars to serve and store any leftovers in an airtight container.
I put mine in the refrigerator to chill overnight. DON'T do this. It will become as hard as a rock and very difficult to cut.
These were incredibly yummy and not quite as sweet as I expected them to be! The semi-sweet chocolate on top helps to cut down on some of the sweetness. You could also use smooth peanut butter if you wished.
They reminded me of my favorite crispy crunch chocolate bars. They were also somewhat reminiscent of the British rocky road squares without the raisins and cherries. Sort of. They were delicious in any case! Very moreish!
If you are a smaller family or are just wanting smaller batches of treats to enjoy you may also enjoy the following small batch recipes!
SMALL BATCH CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE BARS - Golden brown and studded generously with plenty of semi-sweet chocolate chips. So good with a glass of ice-cold milk, or a cup of tea, a cup of coffee, or whatever beverage that floats your boat! This recipe makes 8 delicious servings.
SMALL BATCH JAM CRUMBLE BARS - These Small Batch Jam Crumble Bars are the bomb! With their plain buttery cake bottoms, sweet jam filling and buttery crumble topping, they never fail to please! This recipe makes 8 bars.
SMALL BATCH MAGIC COOKIE BARS - Everything you love about the full sized recipe but in a much smaller batch. 8 delicious bars layered with 7 layers of graham cracker crumbs, butter, sweetened condensed milk, coconut, toasted pecans and three kinds of chocolate chips! Very yummy!
Yield: 8 squares
Peanut Butter Crunch Bars (small batch)
Cook time: 15 MinInactive time: 3 HourTotal time: 3 H & 15 M
Crisp, crunchy, rich and peanutty. The chocolate topping makes these taste almost like a candy bar.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (90g) crunchy peanut butter
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (87.5g) white corn syrup or golden syrup
- 3/4 cup (135g) peanut butter baking chips
- 2 cups (43g) crisp rice cereal
To top:
- 3/4 cup (135g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 TBS butter
Instructions
- Butter a 9 by 5-inch loaf tin and line with baking paper. Butter the baking paper. Set aside.
- Measure the peanut butter, sugar and corn syrup into a saucepan. Heat gently over medium heat, stirring until everything has melted and amalgamated. Do not allow to catch on the bottom.
- As soon as the mixture starts to bubble remove from the heat. Str in the peanut butter chips until melted and smooth.
- Stir in the rice cereal until it is completely coated and mixed together. Press into the prepared loaf tin.
- Heat the semi-sweet chocolate chips along with the butter in the microwave at 30 second increments on high, until melted and smooth.
- Pour this melted chocolate over top of the crisp peanut butter rice cereal base and smooth it out.
- Leave at room temperature for about 3 hours until set. Cut into bars to serve and store any leftovers in an airtight container
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With some grandsons coming for the weekend, I wanted to bake them some goodies that they would enjoy. I had seen a recipe for something called an Oh Henry Bar on Simply Recipes that not only looked delicious but also very quick and easy to make.
With a delicious sweet buttery oaty base and a peanut butter and chocolate topping. They sounded like a kid's dream come true! A bit wholesome because of the oats, but not so wholesome that children would turn their noses up!
The base actually reminded me very much of a typical bar that is very popular in the U.K. called a Flapjack. Contrary to the North American idea of a flapjack, I can promise you that British ones are not pancakes!
In fact in looking at the recipe ingredients, I could see no difference really from the base of these and a British flapjack. Same ingredients. Butter, oats, golden syrup and sugar. They are the same.
The difference however comes in the topping which is applied after baking. A simple mixture of chocolate chips and peanut butter that are melted together. Easy peasy. This is spread on top and then chopped peanuts are sprinkled over top. Altogether very scrumptious indeed!
The only thing was I did not need a full sized recipe of these bars. I set about small batching the recipe and it worked out beautifully.
What you end up with is only 8 delicious bars. Just enough to please two grandsons without going over the top! It is important to note however, you can freeze these if you wish, tightly covered, for up to six months.
They taste just like the ever popular Oh Henry candy bar as well. A very popular candy bar in Canada with sweet caramel, peanuts, chocolate etc. Easy to make and delicious these are. You are going to fall in love!
Simple baking cupboard ingredients and not a lot of them. I like that.
- 1/4 cup (50g) soft light brown sugar, packed
- 2 TBS butter
- 2 TBS liquid honey or corn syrup (can use golden syrup)
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- pinch salt
- 1 cup (80g) rolled oats (not quick cooking)
- 1/3 cup (60g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 2 TBS smooth peanut butter (don't use the natural one)
- chopped peanuts to garnish
I used the President's Choice decadent Chocolate Chips. Kirkland chocolate chips from Costco would be my other choice. You can use any chocolate chip you want, but do use semi-sweet and not milk chocolate to get that lovely rich candy bar flavor.
I used liquid honey, Greek honey. You can use any liquid honey you have or even corn syrup if that is all you have. Golden Syrup would really impart a lovely caramel-like flavor to the bars.
Do not use an all natural peanut butter for the topping. I am not sure why, but I suspect it won't set up properly if you do. I used Kraft. Skippy would be great as would any commercial peanut butter. Do not use chunky peanut butter. Only use smooth.
I used chopped salted roasted peanuts to sprinkle over top. You can leave them off if you wish, but they really do add a nice bit of extra texture and flavor.
HOW TO MAKE OH HENRY BARS
These are really simple to make. The hardest part is waiting for them to chill. Seriously!
Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/gas mark 4. Butter a 9 by 5 inch loaf tin and line with baking paper, leaving an overhang on two sides long enough to lift out the bars when done.
Melt the butter together with the brown sugar, honey, vanilla, and salt. Stir in the rolled oats, combining everything well. Press this mixture into the bottom of the loaf tin.
Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Do not overbake. It will not change color, but it will smell toasty nutty and sweet.
While the oat base is baking melt the chocolate chips and peanut butter together in a heat proof bowl which has been set over a saucepan of gently simmering water. Do not allow the water to touch the bottom of the bowl.
Mix well together and then spread this mixture over top of the baked base. Sprinkle with chopped peanuts to taste.
Leave to cool to room temperature then cover and chill for about an hour until the topping has set.
Remove from the tin and peel off the baking paper. Cut into 8 squares. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days or in the refrigerator for up to a week.
I was very impressed with these simple yet very tasty bars. I had never made Oh Henry bars before, or if I did it was a very long time ago. These were scrumptious.
The base reminded me very much of British Flapjacks. With their peanut butter chocolate topping and those chopped peanuts, they went down a real treat!
I am no stranger to small batch recipes. I try to small batch my old favorites all the time and do so with success. Here are some other small batch baking recipes for the smaller family that you might enjoy!
SMALL BATCH CHOCOLATE CHIP BARS - I think of all the cookies and bars in the world Chocolate Chip bars have to be my absolute favourite! Golden brown and stogged full of semi sweet chocolate chips. This smaller batch may be small in size, but thy are HUGE on flavour! These incredibly moreish bars lack none of the tastiness of their larger sized counterpart!
Recipe makes 8 bars.
SMALL BATCH BAKEWELL BLONDIES - This recipe makes 8 fabulous bars. With a buttery fudgy almond cookie base. Rich, fudgy, sweet . . . dense and filled with white chocolate chips and almond flavors . . . with a swirl of raspberry jam and then that almond glaze and those flaked almonds. Incredibly moreish with a hot cuppa or an ice cold glass of milk!
Yield: 8 squares
Oh Henry Bars
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 15 MinInactive time: 1 HourTotal time: 1 H & 25 M
A small batch recipe for a small sized family. Every bit as tasty as the full sized recipe. Peanut Butter and Chocolate are perfect partners.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup (50g) soft light brown sugar
- 2 TBS butter
- 2 TBS liquid honey or corn syrup (can use golden syrup)
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- pinch salt
- 1 cup (80g) rolled oats (not quick cooking)
- 1/3 cup (60g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 2 TBS smooth peanut butter (don't use the natural one)
- chopped peanuts to garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/gas mark 4. Butter a 9 by 5 inch loaf tin and line with baking paper, leaving an overhang on two sides long enough to lift out the bars when done.
- Melt the butter together with the brown sugar, honey, vanilla, and salt. Stir in the rolled oats, combining everything well. Press this mixture into the bottom of the loaf tin.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Do not overbake. It will not change color, but it will smell toasty nutty and sweet.
- While the oat base is baking melt the chocolate chips and peanut butter together in a heat proof bowl which has been set over a saucepan of gently simmering water. Do not allow the water to touch the bottom of the bowl.
- Mix well together and then spread this mixture over top of the baked base. Sprinkle with chopped peanuts to taste.
- Leave to cool to room temperature then cover and chill for about an hour until the topping has set.
- Remove from the tin and peel off the baking paper. Cut into 8 squares. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days or in the refrigerator for up to a week.
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com
Thanks so much for visiting. Do come again!
One thing which I always try to keep in my freezer are flat breads of some sort. You can get rectangular ones (like you see here) or round ones. I also like Lebanese Pita breads and Indian Naan.
Not only do they come in handy to serve with meals, especially soups, stews and tagines, but they also make fabulous pizza bases!
Today I used a rectangular one to make a Peanut Chicken Flatbread Pizza. I am not sure if this would be considered fusion cooking or not, but I like to think that it combines something Italian with something Thai.
I adore pizza. I adore Peanut Chicken. The two together? Fantabulous!
You could of course make your own pizza base or flatbread from scratch and there are no end to the recipes available to do just that. It all depends on what you are looking for.
For ease and speed, I highly recommend a good store bought one. This one is Presidents Choice Original flatbread. It is plain and simple and just the right size to feed four.
From there I slathered it with a delicious homemade Thai peanut sauce, topped it with some mozzarella cheese and a scattering of chicken breast cubes I had marinated and cooked in a Thai marinade.
I baked it and then finished it off with a scattering of chopped roasted peanuts and spring onions and I have to say, it was very delicious! Not to mention, very quick and easy to make!
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE PEANUT CHICKEN FLATBREAD PIZZA
The ingredients for this are actually quite simple, and if you are like me and keep an assortment of oriental condiments, etc. in your store cupboard, it won't take a special trip to the shops, but if it does, trust me when I say it is worth it.
For the chicken:
- 1 large free range boneless skinless chicken breast
- 2 tsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp liquid honey
- 1/2 tsp cornstarch
For the peanut sauce:
- 1 tsp cooking oil
- 1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
- 1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger
- 1 1/2 TBS sweet chili sauce
- 1 TBS hoisin sauce
- 1/3 cup (80ml) water
- 1 1/2 TBS smooth peanut butter
In a pinch you can sub powders for the fresh garlic and ginger. I would use 1/4 tsp each of powdered ginger and garlic powder (not salt).
Also if you don't have sweet chili sauce, then you can make a suitable substitute by subbing 1 TBS plum sauce whisked together with 1/2 TBS sriracha sauce. It is pretty hard to find a substitute for hoisin sauce. I would try equal parts of BBQ sauce, molasses and dark soy sauce.
You will also need:
- 1 4-serving sized prepared flat bread (you can also use 2 medium naan bread)
- 2 TBS light olive oil
- 8 ounces (225g) grated mozzarella cheese
- 1 spring onion, trimmed, washed and finely chopped
- 3 TBS chopped roasted peanuts
You could use chopped coriander instead of the spring onions. (Cilantro) I happen to think that spring onion works perfectly here. I think also you want the mild flavor of the mozzarella cheese rather than another cheese. It melts beautifully, quickly and won't take away from the flavors of the other ingredients.
HOW TO MAKE PEANUT CHICKEN FLATBREAD PIZZA
This goes together very quickly and simply once you get each element sorted. You will have more peanut sauce than you need, but trust me when I say that you can drizzle the leftover sauce over the cooked pizza as desired and nobody will be complaining.
I could eat that sauce with a spoon and be quite happy.
Begin by preparing your chicken. Cut it into cubes. This is best done if the chicken is semi-frozen. You can get nice clean cuts. I cut mine into a 1/2 inch dice.
Whisk together the ingredients for the marinade in a bowl and pop the diced chicken into it. Leave to sit for about 10 minutes while you make the sauce.
To make the sauce, heat the oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and ginger. Cook until quite fragrant.
Whisk in the remaining ingredients, bring to the boil, and then simmer until it has thickened. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
Heat a small skillet over medium high heat. Add the marinated chicken and cook, stirring frequently, until golden brown and cooked through.
Preheat your oven to 375*F. 190*C/ gas mark 5. Place your flat bread onto a baking sheet. Brush around the edges with the olive oil.
Spoon about 1/2 cup of the peanut sauce in the middle of the flat bread and spread it around up to the edges. Sprinkle the cheese evenly over the peanut sauce. Scatter the cooked chicken pieces over top of the cheese.
Pop the baking tray into the preheated oven and bake until the cheese has melted, the crust is crisp and golden brown and the chicken is heated through.
While the pizza is baking chop your spring onions and peanuts for the topping.
Remove the baking sheet from the oven and let sit for a few minutes, then sprinkle the chopped peanuts and spring onions over top.
Cut into wedges to serve! Prepare yourself for praise and accolade, because you will surely receive them!! This is some good!!
Like I said, you can serve any additional peanut sauce for people to dip their pizza slices in, or you can drizzle it over top.
You could also cut it into smaller squares and serve it as appetizers or game night bites for your friends and family with sauce for dipping.
No matter how you decide to serve this one thing is for certain, everyone is going to love, Love, LOVE it!! I guarantee!!
Peanut Chicken Flatbread Pizza
Yield: 4
Prep time: 20 MinCook time: 8 MinTotal time: 28 Min
Favorite Thai Peanut Chicken flavors on a flatbread pizza. This is incredibly deliciously moreish.
Ingredients
For the chicken:
- 1 large free range boneless skinless chicken breast
- 2 tsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp liquid honey
- 1/2 tsp cornstarch
For the peanut sauce:
- 1 tsp cooking oil
- 1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
- 1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger
- 1 1/2 TBS sweet chili sauce
- 1 TBS hoisin sauce
- 1/3 cup (80ml) water
- 1 1/2 TBS smooth peanut butter
You will also need:
- 1 4-serving sized prepared flat bread (you can also use 2 medium naan bread)
- 2 TBS light olive oil
- 8 ounces (225g) grated mozzarella cheese
- 1 spring onion, trimmed, washed and finely chopped
- 3 TBS chopped roasted peanuts
Instructions
- First prepare and marinate your chicken. Whisk the soy sauce, honey and cornstarch together in a bowl. Cut the chicken into bite sized cubes. Add to the marinade in the bowl and leave to sit on the counter for about 10 minutes.
- To make the peanut sauce, heat the oil in a small saucepan over medium low heat. Add the garlic and ginger. Cook until very fragrant. Add the sweet chili sauce, hoisin sauce, water and peanut butter. Whisk together until smooth. Simmer until thickened.
- Preheat your oven to 375*F/190*C/ gas mark 5.
- Heat a small skillet over medium high heat. Add the chicken. Sauté the chicken pieces until cooked through and golden brown. Set aside.
- Place the flat bread (naans) onto a baking sheet. Brush the edges with the olive oil. Spread about 1/2 cup of the peanut sauce over top of the bread evenly.
- Sprinkle the cheese over the peanut sauce. Scatter the cooked chicken over top of the cheese.
- Bake for about 10 minutes in the preheated oven until the cheese has melted, everything is heated through, and the crust is golden brown around the edges.
- Remove from the oven. Scatter the spring onion and chopped peanuts over top. Cut into wedges to serve. Serve hot with or without additional peanut sauce for dipping if desired.
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