Lunch Lady Peanut Butter Bars

These lunch lady peanut butter bars taste just like the cafeteria recipe back when everything was made from scratch! Soooo good and easy to make.

This creamy combo is made with peanut butter, graham cracker crumbs, and Hershey’s chocolate chips. It’s the perfect after school snack!

The Best 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 cookie 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!

Why You’ll Love These Peanut Butter Bars

• With just 6 ingredients, they’re super easy to make!
• No oven needed
• Loved by kids and adults alike
• Taste just like peanut butter cups (Yum!)
• You can freeze a batch and save for later.
• Chocolate + peanut butter = Need I say more

Tips & Tricks

• To make things easy, you can crush the graham crackers in your food processor.
• These are super easy to freeze. Simply put the lunch lady peanut butter bars in a freezer-safe container, label, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before serving. Makes the perfect midnight snack!
• I personally love using creamy peanut butter for the best texture. But if you want to add a little more crunch, you can also use crunchy. Or even just throw a few chopped nuts into the mix.
• The pinch of sea salt helps cut the sweetness and makes it taste even more like a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup!
• For more of a candy bar texture, you can also switch out the graham crackers with crushed pretzels. If you decide to go this route, you may want to leave out the extra salt and use unsalted butter.
• Another variation we love is to use half graham cracker crumbs and half crushed pieces of pretzels. Delish!
• Want to make this gluten free? Just use gluten free graham crackers. No one will ever know!
• If you want to use natural peanut butter, I recommend Skippy Natural. Just be sure to keep them in the fridge as they will soften quickly (when using natural peanut butter).

Lunch Lady Peanut Butter Bars

Course: DessertsCuisine: American

Servings

14

servings

Prep time

25

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minutes

Calories

450

kcal

Lunch Lady Peanut Butter Bars are the perfect combo of creamy peanut butter and chocolate. It’s like a homemade Reese’s Cup!

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!