Chocolate Recipe: Chocolate Peanut Butter Love Bars

Chocolate Peanut Butter Love Bars

I love peanuts. Peanuts are one of my vices. The only thing better than peanuts is peanuts with chocolate. Add peanut butter to that, and the only thing missing from this picture of Nirvana is my soulmate and a South Pacific setting. But I digress....

This batter is pretty sticky, so you'll need a rubber spatula to remove batter stuck between the strands of the whisk during the mixing.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Love Bars will keep for a week or so at room temperature in a tightly sealed plastic container. Truth is, these bars are nearly indestructible, so if you are planning a cozy ocean crossing for two, be certain to stock up.

Belly Up To the Bars

Yields 4 dozen 1-inch bars

Ingredients

2 cups unsalted peanuts
2 cups creamy peanut butter
2 cups tightly packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 pound semisweet chocolate, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces

Equipment

Measuring cups, measuring spoons, cook's knife, cutting board, baking sheet, stiff whisk, 7-quart bowl, rubber spatula 9x13x2-inch nonstick rectangular baking pan, serrated knife with rounded tip, plastic cookie storage container with lid.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Toast the peanuts on a baking sheet in the preheated oven until golden brown, about 8 to 10 minutes. Cool the nuts to room temperature before chopping by hand with a cook's knife into 1/4-inch pieces.

Use a stiff whisk to blend together the peanut butter and brown sugar in a 7-quart bowl. Add the eggs and vanilla extract and whisk until thoroughly blended. Add the peanuts and the chopped semisweet chocolate and use a rubber spatula to mix together until thoroughly combined. Transfer the mixture to the 9x13x2-inch nonstick baking pan. Use your fingertips to press the mixture onto the bottom of the pan and into the corners and sides, creating an even layer. Place the pan on the center rack of the preheated oven and bake for 22 minutes until set in the center. Remove from the oven and cool at room temperature for 1 hour before cutting.

Use a serrated knife with rounded tip to cut the Chocolate Peanut Butter Love Bar into 24 2-inch squares, then cut each square in half to make 48 bars. For clean edges, heat the blade of the knife under hot running water and wipe the blade dry before making each cut. Serve immediately or store the bars in a tightly sealed plastic container.

From: Death by Chocolate Cookies
by Marcel Desaulniers
Photos by Michael Grand
Simon & Schuster, $30.00
144 pages; November 1, 1997
ISBN 0-684-83197-X
Recipes and photos reprinted by permission.