Peanut Butter Cookie Bars • Food Folks and Fun

The recipe prices will vary based on fluctuating grocery costs. Please use what is posted as a guide.

Recipe Cost $8.46

Recipe Serving Cost $0.35

These Peanut Butter Cookie Bars are loaded with so much peanut flavor and dark chocolate chunks. They’re great for bake sales, get-togethers, and school lunches.

This recipe costs $8.46 to make twenty-four servings. That works out to be just $0.35 per serving.

If you love the peanut butter and chocolate combination as much as I do, then you need to try some of my other recipes! A few of my favorites include my Frozen Reese’s Peanut Butter Pie, my Deep Dish Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie, these Loaded Peanut Butter Cookies, and these Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Five Peanut Butter Cookie Bars stacked on top of each other.

These Peanut Butter Cookie Bars are SO good! They’re nice and chewy and packed with peanut flavor and dark chocolate chunks.

The star of these cookie bars is the dark chocolate chunks. They add a bit of sophistication to the humble peanut butter cookie bar.

I used dark chocolate in this recipe as opposed to milk chocolate because I like how the intense chocolate flavor cuts through the peanut butter.

If you’re feeling super decadent, then I suggest sprinkling the top of the cookie dough with some chunky sea salt right before baking!

A peanut butter cookie bar with a bite taken out of it with some milk in the background.

Ingredients and Cost

Per Serving Cost: $0.35

Recipe Cost: $8.46

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour – $0.30
½ teaspoon baking soda – $0.01
½ teaspoon baking powder – $0.02
¾ cup light brown sugar – $0.36
¾ cup chunky peanut butter – $0.78
½ cup granulated sugar – $0.12
1 large egg – $0.10
2 teaspoons vanilla extract – $1.36
½ cup lightly salted dry roasted peanuts – $0.50
8 ounces dark chocolate – $4.16

NOTE: The recipe prices are calculated by using grocery store websites. The actual cost of the recipe will vary depending on what ingredients you already have.

Instructions

First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a 9×13-inch pan with foil that you then spray with cooking spray.
Next, mix the flour and baking soda in a small bowl.
Beat the brown sugar, peanut butter, butter, and granulated sugar in a large mixing bowl until creamy.
Beat in the egg and vanilla extract. Then add the flour and pulse mixer until combined.
Stir in the peanuts and chocolate chunks.
Then press the dough into the prepared pan.
Bake for 18-22 minutes and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.
Cut into squares and serve.

Recipe Variations

You can double this peanut butter cookie bars recipe and bake them in a standard rimmed cookie sheet. You will need to increase the baking time by 4-8 minutes.
While I love dark chocolate in this recipe, you can use chopped milk chocolate, chocolate chips, mini peanut butter cups (I LOVE the ones from Trader Joe’s) or cut up peanut butter cups.
Instead of chunk peanut butter you can use smooth peanut butter but I do not suggest using reduced fat or natural peanut butter.

Storage Tips

SERVE: These are best served slightly warm when the chocolate is still slightly melted. You can serve these with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.

STORE: Cooled and cut peanut butter bars can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

FREEZE: Once cooled, place the bars in a freezer-safe container or Ziploc bag for 1-2 months. Any longer than 2 months and you run the risk of the bars getting freezer burn and/or drying out too much in the freezer. If I know I’m going to be freezing the peanut butter cookie bars, then I will slightly under bake them.

THAW: Thaw at room temperature for 2-4 hours.

REHEAT: These peanut butter cookie bars are best served warm. I suggest reheating individual cookie bars for 15 seconds at 50% power.

Cook’s Tools

Stand mixer
Mixing bowl
9×13-inch baking dish
Wooden mixing spoon
Measuring cups and spoons
Wire rack

An overhead picture of a Peanut Butter Cookie Bars on a white dish and then some on a wire rack in the background.

Recipe FAQs

Why are my peanut butter cookies dry and crumbly?

The cookie bars may taste dry as a result of too much flour. Be sure to double-check your measurements before mixing in the flour.

How do you cut dessert bars?

If you first spray the knife with cooking spray and then wipe it clean with a dry paper towel, it will help cut clean smooth lines in the cookie bar dessert. As you firmly press the knife down through the bar, cutting horizontal and vertical lines, to create square pieces, you can then use a spatula to lift the cut pieces out of the pan.

More Desserts

A close up of three Peanut Butter Cookie Bars stacked on each other with dripping chocolate coming out of one of them.

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A close up picture of five peanut butter cookie bars stacked on top of each other.

Peanut Butter Cookie Bars with Dark Chocolate Chunks

These Peanut Butter Cookie Bars are loaded with so much peanut flavor and dark chocolate chunks. They’re great for bake sales, get-togethers, and school lunches.

5 from 7 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: chocolate, cookie bars, peanut butter

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 20

Cooling Time: 45

Total Time: 1 20

Servings: Bars

US Customary – Metric

Calories: 260kcal

Author: Jillian – a Food, Folks and Fun original!

Ingredients

1 ½ cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
¾ cup packed light brown sugar
¾ cup chunky peanut butter
½ cup butter softened
½ cup granulated sugar
1 large egg at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
½ cup lightly salted dry roasted peanuts chopped
8 ounces dark chocolate cut into chunks

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

PREPARE OVEN AND PAN:

Move oven rack to middle position, and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 9×13-inch pan with heavy duty foil, and lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray.

MAKE COOKIE DOUGH:

Whisk together flour and baking soda in a small bowl.
Add brown sugar, peanut butter, butter, and granulated sugar in a large mixing bowl, and beat until creamy, about 3 minutes.
With the mixer on low, beat in egg and vanilla extract.
Stop the mixer, add flour, and pulse mixer until combined.
Stir in chopped peanuts and chocolate chunks until evenly distributed.
Press cookie dough into the prepared pan.

BAKE COOKIE BARS:

Bake for 18-22 minutes or until the center is set.

COOL, CUT, AND SERVE BARS:

Move the pan to a wire rack to cool completely, about 45 minutes.
Remove the cookie bars from the pan using the foil overhang, and cut them into 24 bars. Serve.

Notes

This recipe calls for 8 ounces of dark chocolate. I suggest using bars of Ghirardelli or Dove dark chocolate.

Nutrition

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Makes 24 cookie bars

Three No-Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars stack on top of each other with a glass of milk in the background.