Peanut Butter Squares are the classic school lunchroom treat from your childhood. This no-bake dessert has a thick layer of peanut butter topped with a layer of chocolate.
Jump to Recipe
Peanut Butter Squares
Summer is coming. Warmer weather is almost here which can sometimes mean that you don’t feel like turning on the oven when that sweet craving hits.
No Bake Dessert
Today I have a no-bake recipe for you that was one of my mom’s favorite childhood treats. She says that these Peanut Butter Squares were served in the lunchroom cafeteria several times a week, and she absolutely loved them. She tells me sometimes instead of buying a lunch, she’d use her lunch money to just buy Peanut Butter Squares.
She’d never let me get away with that!
Even after my mom got married, she still got to enjoy this sweet treat. Her mom (my grandma) taught at the school so every now and then she got some to take home to my mom. And then…my grandma got the lunch ladies to give her the recipe!
Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars
When I first tried these chocolate-peanut butter-dreams, they reminded me of the peanut butter balls that my family makes every Christmas season. Peanut butter balls require careful and tedious work, dipping each separate ball into a saucer full of rich chocolate. The result is a sugary peanut butter ball coated with milk chocolate that melts in your hand if you hold it too long. It amazed me how easy it was to make these Peanut Butter Squares. They basically tastes the same as the peanut butter balls that I love so much and are so much easier to make.
Easy Peanut Butter Bars
This recipe is easy, but let me give you a few hints to help things go smoothly.
- Mix the peanut butter, butter, sugars and vanilla in a stand mixer until nice and creamy. It would probably be good to mix this on medium speed for 2-3 minutes. A note here that the peanut butter “batter” is very soft. These do not have a firm texture like a brownie bar. The bottom layer is meant to be soft. If you’d like to make the bars firmer, add a little more powdered sugar. (You can see us make these bars on Facebook Live here.)
- Put foil or wax paper in the bottom of a 9×13 pan. And you can use a pan that is a little bit bigger or a tad bit smaller …it will just mean your peanut butter will be either thicker or thinner. The foil keeps the pan nice and tidy. Plus, if you use foil, these bars are super easy to remove and cut neatly. Spread out the peanut butter mixture evenly over the foil. It is perfectly OK to use your hands.
- Then you simply use some melted chocolate and spread it out on top. I used semi-sweet baking squares so that the chocolate would melt easily and smoothly. You can put on more chocolate if you’d like a thicker layer, but I only put on enough to hold it together. The peanut butter is the most important part for me:)
- Let the chocolate harden slightly by putting the dish in the fridge for about 20 minutes. Remove the dish from the fridge pull the foil out of the pan. You can then lay the bars on a flat surface and use a knife or pizza cutter to cut the bars into squares.
By letting the chocolate set only for a short time, you’ll get a nice clean cut. If the chocolate completely hardens, you might end up with some broken chocolate. Which is still completely edible, but just not quite as perfectly pretty.
Lock these bars up somewhere safe. I’m telling you….they’re addicting. And I’d love to hear if you have a favorite school lunchroom food that you remember enjoying!
Peanut Butter Squares
Ingredients
- 3 1/2 cups peanut butter creamy
- 3/4 cup butter softened
- 3 3/4 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Mix peanut butter, butter, sugars and vanilla in a stand mixer. Beat on medium speed for about 3 minutes. The peanut butter will be very soft. If you feel it is too sticky, feel free to add a little more powdered sugar for a firmer bar.
- Put waxed paper (or aluminum foil) in an 9x13 pan (allowing the waxed paper to hang over the sides of the pan) and press the peanut butter mixture down in it evenly.
- Melt the chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl in 20 second increments, stirring between each interval. Be careful to melt the chocolate slowly...chocolate will burn quickly if it gets too hot.
- Spread the chocolate evenly over the peanut butter mixture. Allow the bars to set in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes.
- Remove the dish from the refrigerator. Pull up on the sides of the wax paper and place the bars on a flat surface.
- Cut into 24 bars and allow the chocolate to set completely.
- Store the bars in an airtight container.
Kristine says
I tried this recipe today and followed it to the tee. My peanut butter layer was not setting up at all. It was super soft and when you cut into the bars the peanut butter stucked to the foil and oozed out under the chocolate layer. It was a mess. Do you have any suggestions on how to remedy the problem? I used creamy peanut butter and real butter. Thanks for your time!
Julie Clark says
Oh, bummer! These are definitely soft, but should also not be oozing! I’d add a bit more powdered sugar next time.
Jessi says
That dessert looks amazing in those pictures!!! I just love chocolate and peanut butter !!! Definitely going to try making it. Thanks for sharing:)
Katherine says
These look so deliciously fudgey and peanut buttery!! Yum.
Joyce says
These sound fabulous, though I know we never had them in my schools, not even all those decades ago. I’ll have to make some to share here where I live…MAYBE share 🙂
My favorite school food–more than one, actually–was the macaroni and cheese the farm women who came in to cook would make. Oh, my! That was the most delicious stuff EVER! Kids in the sixth and seventh grades (we were a tiny rural community at that time, so didn’t attend high school until eighth grade) were chosen to work in the kitchen for a week at a time during the school year. I got to do it twice–believe me, it was considered a great honor to work in the kitchen!–and the best part was when the ladies made mac and cheese AND their homemade doughnuts on the same day. If they also made meatloaf…this girl would hugely enjoy the late lunch she was given after all the other kids and staff had gone out for recess.
To this day, a super good meatloaf, really great mac and cheese (both recipes which I’ve finally perfected myself), and of course, excellent doughnuts just make my entire week, not just the day. It’s been 52 years since I was last in that school–all the rules have changed, as has the “food” (just junk anymore, not good, nutritious, homemade food), and the kids are no longer able to work in the kitchen. My grandnephew, when he heard me talking about that wonderful experience, wanted to know why kids now can’t do it; government safety regs don’t permit, but he surely would have enjoyed the experience had he been around back in the 1960’s. I’ve never forgotten it, and all the great lessons the ladies taught their young charges about working cooperatively with a lot of other people, and how to work safely in a very busy environment–and how to make the best mac and cheese EVER!
Julie Clark says
Homemade mac ‘n cheese and doughnuts?? That may just make me want to go back to school! 🙂 I’d love if you shared the recipes you’ve perfected. 🙂 If they are secret, I totally understand! Thanks for sharing your memories!
Mrs H says
OMG – you’re mom must have gone to my school. In the 80s I swear if these were served I’d eat these over something healthy any day of the week. I have searched and searched for the recipe to no end. I even called my high school and spoke with the head cafeteria person and was told they no longer served this treat (apparently it’s the nut allergy phantom again in schools ha ha).
Thank you so much for posting these. I’m making them as soon as we receive our household goods (we’re currently in the process of moving overseas).
Julie Clark says
Awesome!! I know you’ll love them!!
Abby says
Hi,
these sound so good…. thinking maybe they would be good if I used a thin cookie type crust for the bottom layer or even a baked graham cracker crust ?? can’t wait to try these !
Thanks
Julie Clark says
You could definitely do that! Yum!
Mariya says
These PB squares are delish! they taste exactly like PB balls, except way less work with these! Very easy recipe!
Rebecca says
These look so good! (and so simple!) You mentioned favorite school lunchroom treats, and I definitely have some. When I was in elementary school, they did all the cooking on site. My mother knew the woman, Mrs. Near, who directed the cafeteria in my school. One of the most treasured treats was the peanut butter fudge. (My sister-in-law said, “There were FIGHTS over that fudge!!”) In any event, my mother was able to get the recipe from Mrs. Near, and the fudge has always been a hit wherever we’ve taken it. The cafeteria also served home made cinnamon rolls, deep dish pizza, homemade rolls and all sorts of goodies, but those are tops in my memory! Every morning, our teacher would ask for a show of hands as to who was buying their lunch that day. The number was written down and sent to the cafeteria via a volunteer. I used to love taking the paper to the cafeteria, so that I could smell what was for lunch that day, already in preparation. Wonderful memories!
Julie Clark says
OH my goodness my daughter LOVES peanut butter fudge and has such a hard time making it! She’d love your recipe if you were willing to share!
Peanut butter? says
Peanut butter? It’s my understanding that peanuts contain a considerable amount of lectins. I thought all of these recipes were supposed to be lectin free or at least low in lectins.
Julie Clark says
Nope, our recipes are not all lectin free. I’m not sure where you got that. We don’t really share diet specific recipes except for a few paleo recipes which are clearly marked.