Easy Peanut Butter Cookie Bars
Do you love peanut butter and trying easy recipes? Then these dessert bars have your name written all over them! Peanut butter cookie bars are super easy to make and have the best texture. They are perfectly soft and chewy. You can add chocolate chips or m&m’s for some extra fun too!
I love a good salty, sweet snack. Whenever you bake with peanut butter you are almost always guaranteed that flavor combo. These cookie bars are so satisfying. I like them plain, but if you’re feeling like you need a little something extra, try adding chocolate chips!
Why this recipe works
These bars use melted butter and creamy peanut butter for a soft, chewy consistency that melts in your mouth. The dough is quick and easy to make too! The recipe is versatile so you can add mix-ins such as chocolate chips, m&m’s or nuts!
Ingredient notes
- Peanut butter: Use no-stir creamy style is best. I prefer Skippy all natural peanut butter. Do not use peanut butter that has oil sitting on the top. It will cause the bars to become greasy and crumbly.
- Butter: Use unsalted since the peanut butter is already adding additional salt. Allow the melted butter to cool a bit before making the dough.
- Flour: I used all purpose flour, but I’m sure a gluten-free flour such as cup-4-cup would work in this recipe. I do not recommend nut flours as they would cause the bars to become dense to to their higher protein content.
Recipe variations
You can make these bars with chocolate chips, M&M’s or nuts. Reese’s pieces or peanut butter chips would also be good! I suggest 3/4 cup of whatever mix-in you choose. Stir them in by hand once the the dough is made.
Another option is to add chocolate frosting on top of the bars after they have cooled. If you want even more peanut butter, try the frosting on my peanut butter brownies.
For a fruity twist, try my peanut butter and jelly bars. They have a similar cookie dough base to these bars.
How to make peanut butter cookie bars
- Whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- Mix together melted butter and peanut butter until smooth, then add the brown sugar and sugar. Beat until well combined. Add the egg and vanilla and mix until incorporated.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix just until combined.
- Transfer dough to 8×8 baking pan lined with parchment paper. Press dough down into an even layer. Bake at 350 F for 20 to 22 minutes.
Expert tips
Do not over-bake the bars. Trust me, you want the center a little under-baked in order for you to get the nice gooey, chewy texture. Also, let the bars cool completely. They need time to set so they aren’t messy when you cut into them.
If you don’t have a kitchen scale, here’s how to to easily measure peanut butter: Grease a measuring cup before adding peanut butter to it. That way when you dump the peanut butter in the mixing bowl it slides right out. You don’t have to scrape the measuring cup!
Frequently Asked Questions
The cookie bars were probably over-baked and therefore dry. Another reason is too much flour. Either use a kitchen scale or spoon a level your flour into a measuring cup (never pack it down).
Creamy no-stir peanut butter is best for baking cookie bars and cookies.
Yes, double this recipe to make it in a 9×13 baking pan. Baking time will be around 35 minutes.
Yes, but you will need some arm strength! Mixing the butters and sugar together will take some time to get a smooth and well combined mixture.
Related recipes
If you love cookie bars as much as I do, here are some similar recipes you may enjoy:
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Get the Recipe: Peanut Butter Cookie Bars
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 6 Tablespoons (85 g) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- ½ cup (130 g) creamy no-stir peanut butter
- ¾ cup (150 g) packed light brown sugar
- ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- ¾ cup chocolate chips, m&m's or nuts, (optional)
- 1-2 Tablespoons milk, if needed (see notes)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Line a 8×8-inch metal baking pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or using a hand mixer), combine melted butter with peanut butter until smooth, about 1 minute. Add brown sugar and granulated sugar and mix until well combined. Add vanilla and egg. Mix well, about 2 minutes.
- With the mixer on low, slowly add dry ingredients. Mix just until combined. The dough should be soft and slightly crumbly (that’s okay). If adding mix-ins, stir them in by hand.
- Place dough in prepared pan and press, smoothing out the top until dough is firm. Gently press into the dough.
- Bake bars at 350° F for 20 to 22 minutes. Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then transfer onto a cooling rack to cool completely. Cut and serve.
13 Comments on “Easy Peanut Butter Cookie Bars”
Love how you took a classic and put it into bar form! I actually think I prefer it this way vs. the cookie
These are really good. It was my first time with this recipe and my family loved them
Thank you for sharing this easy and delicious recipe! I made these for the first time over the weekend, exactly as the recipe is and they were a huge hit in my house! I got a request to make them again last night and even though I followed the recipe exactly, I only had chunky peanut butter and I added in milk chocolate chips and mini peanut butter chips and they came out great! This time I pulled them right out of the oven at 20 minutes because when I baked them the first time at 21 minutes they came out a little on the dry side, but still addictively delicious! Thanks again!
Unfortunately I didn’t put any add-ins in?! Without adding something they are pretty bland and lackluster. Would probably be great with peanut butter cups as I was missing the peanut butter in them! I didn’t make a peanut butter icing to try and save them
Simple and got rave reviews. I usually have trouble with bars cooking evenly – too done on the edges and not done enough in the center. These were perfect. I used a mix of dark and light brown sugar since that was all I had, but will do that again.
I didn’t add anything and think they don’t taste very peanuty! My grandson is allergic to chocolate. I think it would be better with peanut chips added in my case. Thanks for the recipe.
Hi Deb – I’m sorry they didn’t have as much peanut butter taste as you would have liked. You can definitely add peanut butter chips or chopped peanuts to the dough to increase the flavor.
These have a very weak peanut butter flavor. So I compared my peanut butter cookie recipe and now I know why. Twice the peanut butter and half the flour goes into the cookies. This recipe reverses that. I won’t make them again.
I made the recipe just as instructed but doubled it. I took it out at 26 minutes not 35 and it is just as dry as it can be. Also, it doesn’t have much flavor as other people have mentioned. I’m sorry this one’s just not worth making.
I followed the recipe exactly and even baked for only 17 minutes, but they were so dry.
I have read alot of these reviews & have to say that it seems as if they can’t follow a recipe. I made it & it came out perfectly. I LOVE peanut butter. It’s better than any store bought dessert in my opinion. I’ll probably make for the holidays. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Hi Sylvia – Thank you for this review! I was a little puzzled by others having issues too. I’m glad it worked out well for you!
These were amazing and simple. I read other reviews saying these were dry, but mine came out perfect. I will definitely make these again!