Lunch Lady Peanut Butter Bars

Do you remember these peanut butter bars from school? Back in the day when school lunches we’re actually good.

Not too long ago, school lunches were all homemade. I remember the lunch ladies infamous chocolate cake, cinnamon rolls, and the famous peanut butter bars.

But today is a different story. Everything has to be made in bulk and laws have been passed to ensure the kids have “healthy” lunches.

That’s when dessert was taken off the menu. Along with a number of other regulations that have most kids wrinkling their noses.

In elementary school I actually looked forward to lunch, but by the time I got to high school, I started packing my own.

I’d love to hear about your own experience in the comments below.

But today I thought we’d take a little trip down memory lane. Back in the ‘ol days when lunch ladies made everything from scratch.

One of my favorite desserts were these no-bake peanut butter bars.

I’ve heard peanut butter treats were quite popular back in the day because it was a government commodity and provided in large quantities to lunchrooms.

All you need is some creamy peanut butter, graham crackers, confectioner’s sugar, butter, chocolate chips, and a dash of sea salt.

This recipe is fool-proof and one of my go-to’s when I need something to whip up for a family get-together, birthday party, or a weekend treat!

Lunch Lady Peanut Butter Bars

Servings

14

servings

Prep time

25

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minutes

Calories

450

kcal

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 sticks of butter

• 2 cups graham cracker crumbs

• 1 cup confectioner’s sugar

• 1 1/2 cups peanut butter

• 2 cups Hershey’s Special Dark chocolate chips

• 4 tablespoons peanut butter

• 1/2 tsp sea salt

Directions

• Place the graham crackers in a food processor and mix into a fine powder.
• In the microwave, melt the butter WITH 1 1/2 cups of peanut butter.
• In a large bowl, add the butter and the 1 1/2 cups of peanut butter that you just melted. Add the graham crackers, confectioners’ sugar, salt and mix well.
• Line a 9×13 inch pan with parchment paper. Pour the mixture into the pan and spread evenly.
• Place in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
• While the bottom layer is chilling in the refrigerator, prepare the top layer.
• For the top layer, melt the chocolate chips with 4 tablespoons of peanut butter in the microwave. Stir occasionally until smooth.
• Spread the melted chocolate over the prepared crust. Refrigerate for at least one hour before cutting into squares. This prevents the chocolate topping from cracking.
• Enjoy!