Starting this week, Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays (MWF) will be my new posting schedule. You may have grown used to seeing new recipes five days a week, Monday through Friday, but as the year draws to a close I have more travel and commitments, so I need to scale back the frequency of posts.
No worries—I won’t disappear the way I did during the early months of my pregnancy when even thinking about my food blog made me feel ill. I can’t do that to you or to myself again. Instead, I’ll be publishing three times a week: Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Even on the days I don’t post, I’ll still check comments and email daily, so please keep the conversation going. I love hearing from you. I also enjoy the sweet baby babble from my 11-month-old son, but until he’s speaking in full sentences I’ll rely on our grown-up chats for meaningful conversation.
Now, onto this delightful dessert. I found this recipe recently and brought the bars to a game night with friends. I worried at first that they might be overly sweet, but they were perfectly balanced—rich but not cloying. The texture and flavor reminded me of an oatmeal chocolate chip cookie, only in bar form.
The aroma felt nostalgic while I was preparing the filling and every time I took a bite. The filling’s chocolatey, fudgy note brought to mind holiday dinners with family. Everyone who tried the bars loved them and many went back for seconds. Ben couldn’t stop eating the portion I kept at home—or maybe that was me.
Chocolate Peanut Butter Revel Bars
Printable Recipe (from the original author)
Yield: 20 large bars
Ingredients:
14 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
2 cups packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
3 cups quick-cooking oats
For the filling:
1 ½ cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
½ cup peanut butter
½ cup chopped peanuts
2 teaspoons vanilla
Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Butter the bottom and sides of a 9 x 13-inch baking pan and line it with parchment paper; set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, brown sugar and baking soda until creamy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating until incorporated, then stir in 2 teaspoons vanilla.
3. With the mixer on low, gradually add the flour and mix until fully incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Stir in the quick-cooking oats—this may require a little extra effort. Set the oat dough aside.
4. Using your hands, press about two-thirds of the oat mixture evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan. Reserve the remaining oat mixture for the topping.
5. For the filling, combine the peanut butter, chocolate chips and sweetened condensed milk in a medium microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in 20-second intervals, stirring between each interval, until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth. Stir in the chopped peanuts and 2 teaspoons vanilla.
6. Spread the chocolate-peanut filling evenly over the oat crust with a rubber spatula. Crumble or dot the reserved oat mixture over the top of the filling.
7. Bake for 22–25 minutes, until the top is lightly browned. The chocolate may still look slightly moist—allow the bars to cool completely on a wire rack before cutting into squares so they set up properly.
These bars are a crowd-pleaser: chewy, chocolatey, with a pleasant peanut butter note and nostalgic flavor. They travel well and are great for potlucks, game nights or holiday gatherings.
Source: Blue Eyed Bakers (original recipe)