Are there any foods you didn’t care for as a child that you find yourself loving (so much it is almost an obsession) as an adult? For me, that’s peanut butter bars. Couldn’t get me to touch them with a ten-foot pole as a kid, but as an adult, I have a hard time not polishing off an entire pan by myself. I could even eat this Peanut Butter Cookie Pie all by myself. 🙂
Load some already delicious Peanut Butter Bars with Reese’s and chocolate chunks and I’m a goner! These Loaded Peanut Butter Reese’s Bars are the bomb! The bar is soft and chewy, and the fun mix of chocolate chips, colorful mini-M&M’s, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, and Chocolate Chunks make it like a party for your eyes and your mouth!
Best of all, the dough is super simple to mix up–it even has some oatmeal in it. So good news; these are “healthy.” 😉
Some of My Favorite Cookie Bars
- Lemon Swig Cookie Bars
- Cowboy Cookie Bars
- Soft Batch Cream Cheese Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
- Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Bars
- Swig Sugar Cookie Bars
Really, though. How much do we love a good bar cookie? …just press the dough down in the pan, throw it in the oven, and BAM, you’re done. Not that I’m against traditional cookies in any way, but I just love having a few awesome bar cookies in my back pocket to throw together when I need a quick treat to take somewhere…or to satisfy my own sweet tooth.
Just typing this post is making me want to make another pan right now! The texture of these bars is perfection! I hope you will give them a try soon!
HOW TO MAKE LOADED PEANUT BUTTER REESE’S BARS
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Lightly grease a large 12×17 cookie sheet pan.
- In a mixer or with a hand mixer, combine butter, peanut butter, 1 cup of white sugar, and brown sugar. Cream together for 2-3 minutes.
- Add eggs and vanilla. Continue mixing until well combined, about 30-45 seconds.
- Next, add salt and baking soda. Then mixing at a low speed, slowly add flour and oats a half cup at a time. Mix until well combined.
- Add chocolate chips, M&Ms, Chocolate Chunks, and Reese’s Cup pieces last. Mix until just combined.
- The dough will be thick. Evenly distribute it by the spoonful onto a greased cookie sheet pan.
- Next, sprinkle the top with 2 tbsp of granulated white sugar and decorate the top, if desired, with reserved pieces of chocolate and peanut butter cups.
- Bake in a 350-degree oven for 18-22 minutes, careful not to overbake. The bars will be barely starting to brown on the edges when they are done. You can test the center with a toothpick if desired.
- Let cool completely before cutting.
- Enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions about Loaded Peanut Butter Reese’s Bars
Will Semi-Sweet or Milk Chocolate Chips be best in this recipe?
Personally, I like the mix of milk and semi-sweet, so I use regular size milk chocolate chips and then add semi-sweet chunks or mini chips. Remember the Reese’s cups are milk and the mini-M&Ms are milk, too, so it’s nice to add a little semi-sweet in there.
Do I have to put the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups in this recipe?
Of course not. These bars are going to be delicious even without them. The extra peanut butter flare is super yummy, though. Another option would be to add some peanut butter chips or to use Reese’s Pieces instead of M&Ms.
More peanut butter favorites
- 1 cup butter, softened
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1 cup white sugar, + 2 tbsp divided
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 3 eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla
- ½ tsp coarse sea salt (regular salt is fine if you don't have coarse)
- 1½ tsp baking soda
- 3 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cup quick oats
- 1 cup milk chocolate chips
- ½ cup mini M&Ms
- ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chunks, chips, or mini chips
- 1 cup chopped Reese's Peanut Butter cups (Approx. 10 fun-size cups)
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Lightly grease a large 12x17 cookie sheet pan. (I use the butter wrapper for this.)
- In a mixer or with a hand mixer, combine butter, peanut butter, 1 cup of white sugar, and brown sugar. Cream together for 2-3 minutes.
- Add eggs and vanilla. Continue mixing until well combined, about 30-45 seconds.
- Next, add salt and baking soda. Then mixing at a low speed, slowly add flour and oats a half cup at a time. Mix until well combined.
- Add chocolate chips, M&Ms, Chocolate Chunks, and Reese's Cup pieces last. Mix until just combined. (I like to save a few of each type of chocolate to arrange on top once the dough is pressed in the pan to make it look pretty.)
- The dough will be thick. Evenly distribute it by the spoonful onto a greased cookie sheet pan. In order to spread it evenly, you may need to spray your hand with cooking spray and press it down carefully until it is evenly distributed in the pan.
- Once dough is evenly spread in the pan, sprinkle the top with 2 tbsp of granulated white sugar and decorate the top, if desired, with reserved pieces of chocolate and peanut butter cups.
- Bake in a 350-degree oven for 18-22 minutes.
- You do not want to overbake. The bars will be barely starting to brown on the edges. You can test the center with a toothpick if desired. Remember bars will continue to cook a little as they cool in the pan. In my oven, it takes exactly 19 minutes.
- Let cool completely before cutting.
- Enjoy
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