I call these lovelies my Golden Crunch Peanut Butter Caramel & Chocolate Bars. Or just Peanut Butter Caramel Bars for short. Since the peanut butter caramel filling is really the star of the recipe show here. These squares are perfect for a nibble-style treat. A little nibble goes a long way. Simply cut out a cube, straight from the fridge or freezer, and peanut butter-chocolate crunch bliss is yours..
I call this a nibbler's dessert. You can store these sweet squares in the freezer (or fridge) and grab a nibble whenever you crave a sweet treat. I love nibbling a square of these bars after dinner in place of a big or fancy dessert, or as an energizing afternoon sweet treat.
The creamy coconut oil-infused dark chocolate gently hugs the velvet-y, chewy peanut butter caramel as a thick crunch of crushed cereal flakes lines the bottom edge. This is a no-bake dessert that is gluten-free and rich in healthy fats from the extra virgin coconut oil and nut butter.
You can use any size dish to make these bars. Square or circular. Just make sure that the bars are layered thickly enough. I like at least a ⅓ inch for the top and bottom layers and at least ¾ inch for the nut butter middle.
If you just want to make a small amount, use a small dish. For a large crowd, you can make a giant casserole dish filled with these bars. The recipe below filled a 4" mini round cake pan, generously. Since I just know we will all be using different sized pans and dishes here, you can guesstimate how much of each layer you want. Simply double, halve, triple (or more!) of my recipe below. This recipe is very forgiving in measurements!
Start with the crunchy crust, add as much as you'd like, then add the peanut butter filling. You can always make more filling if you want a thicker layer.
For the caramel, you can make as much or as little as you need, follow this basic ratio recipe..
1 part extra virgin coconut oil
1-2 parts agave syrup
4 parts nut butter
Golden Crunch Peanut Butter Caramel & Chocolate Bars
vegan, no-bake, makes about 20 small cubes
corn crust layer:
1 cup crushed corn flakes (lightly sweetened)**
1 tablespoon agave syrup
1 teaspoon melted coconut oil
**You could also use other 'flaked' cereals like ancient grains or spelt.. I used Kashi's 'Simply Maize' cornflakes because they are nice and crunchy, lightly sweetened
chocolate layer:
1 cup vegan chocolate chips (semi-sweet chips)
1 tablespoon coconut oil
Peanut Butter Caramel Layer:
1 cup peanut butter, softened (or almond butter)
¼ cup coconut oil
⅓ cup agave syrup
In-between:
crunchy cereal, puffed cereal or nuts
I used ¼ cup puffed millet cereal and 1 teaspoon peanuts
Directions:
1. Blend the cereal in a blender until finely processed. Pour cereal crumbs into a bowl. Toss the crumbs with the melted oil and sweetener. They should get thick and sticky now.
2. Grease your dish or pan with coconut oil. Pour the crushed flakes into the dish and press down until a thick layer forms. If the crumbs are not sticking and patting down, add another drizzle of sweetener or oil to help wet them so they can easily be pressed down.
3. Add the pb caramel ingredients to a small bowl and microwave until warmed. Stir briskly until a thin and silky mixture forms. Heat again if there are still clumps. Under a minute should fully melt the caramel ingredients.
4. Pour the caramel over top the flaked crust, you want about ¾ inch thick layer. Place this dish in the freezer until firm.
5. Melt the chocolate ingredients in a small bowl. Pull the firmed caramel-layered dish from the freezer and slowly pour the chocolate layer over top, about ⅓ inch layer. Sprinkle the "in-between" ingredients over top and press them into the chocolate. They should sink a bit.
6. Place the container back i the freezer until all the layers have fully firmed up - about 30 minutes should do it for a small dish like mine.
7. Warm the dish by placing it in a hot water bath, loosen the edges with a butter knife, them place a plate over top the dish, flip it and allow the entire dessert to fall onto a plate for slicing. You could also slice though the bars still in the dish if you have trouble removing the entire thing at once. Note: As the bars warm they soften. You want to serve your bars still chilled, but slightly warmed so the chocolate is soft to bite and the caramel nice and creamy to chewy. Store leftovers in the freezer or fridge, covered.
Kathleen Campbell says
How would you change the proportions to fit say an 8x8 square dish, or a 9x13? or a 10in round cake tin? It's for a large group of people, so I'd like to make a lot, but want to make sure the proportions are correct.
Leslie S says
I made this for my mom's 70th birthday party, she recently became a vegan. Everyone from the 3 year old to my mom loved it! Thanks for the great recipe.
Kathy Patalsky says
That is awesome Leslie!! My mom became vegan around her 70th bday too 🙂
Kathy Patalsky says
haha thanks lovely!!
RockMyVeganSocks says
Oh man these look SO GOOD! I still have dreams about your pb cup pie (my current favourite dessert)... this reminds me of that. YUM
Kathy Patalsky says
Thanks! Mmm pbcup anything 🙂
Chelsie DiPaolo says
These look stupid good!
Kathy Patalsky says
ha thanks!
Kathy says
These look fabulous! I don't think I could stop nibbling on these!
Kathy Patalsky says
It was hard! But actually a little nibble goes a long way with these
Katie @ Produce on Parade says
Oh. My. Goodness!!! I don't think they would be any nibbling going on in my house...okay, it's me...I mean me. I would devour. Period. 😉 Peanut butter caramel, droooool.
Kathy Patalsky says
haha 🙂
The vegan 8 says
OMG these look amazing! I'm drooling! I make an almond butter caramel, but hadn't thought to use peanut butter before... That sounds amazing!! I need to make these, stat.
Kathy Patalsky says
PB Caramel is one of my faves... I did a pb caramel apple post a while back!
cassattack says
These are amaze! Easy to make. And I agree - you only need to nibble a little to get the choc pb hit. Yum!
Kathy Patalsky says
thanks!
Alicia says
Oh my goodness these look s delicious! I think I am going to have to make us some of these tonight!
Kathy Patalsky says
Hope you did! thanks!
Sheila Fretwell says
Just whipped these up and they're 'chillin' in the freezer right now.
Kathy Patalsky says
woo hoo! Hope you liked
Herbivore Triathlete says
These look absolutely mouth watering!
Kathy Patalsky says
Thank you!
coconutandberries says
Drooling!! These look so so good though "nibbler's desserts" are dangerous for me as once I start I can't stop 😉
Kathy Patalsky says
haha. It is weird, I actually do better with nibble desserts! If I get a giant dessert I dive in and don't look back! In other words, I don't think I can "nibble" full sized desserts soo.. 🙂
Kelly says
Wow! These look so rich and delicious! Yum.
Kathy Patalsky says
thanks Kelly!
hannah says
OMG Kathy...your description&photos are making my mouth water!!! I just got a value-size bag of Nature's Path Heritage Flakes and have been looking for creative ways to use them. I can't wait to get home tonight and make these 🙂
Kathy Patalsky says
🙂 hope you did!
John Hartil says
My mouth is watering just looking!!!
Kathy Patalsky says
thanks John!
DawnCooks says
GIRL! These look amazing!!!!!!!!! I can't wait to try them.
Kathy Patalsky says
Thanks Dawn!
Marla Meridith says
This treat looks ahhh-mazing!!
Kathy Patalsky says
Thanks lovely Marla!! 🙂
A.L. says
Just made this and I have to say - a little goes a long way. Which is perfect, because sometimes I feel like I'm not hard enough on my sweet tooth. This is totally satisfying and super delicious--I don't have to convince myself that I don't need another bite, it just goes without saying. 🙂
Kathy Patalsky says
right? its true!
BabyJune says
You must have got inside my mind to know exactly what I wanted for dessert tonight! it's a bit late, but it's never too late to make peanut butter cup caramel bars, eh? 🙂 Looks nice and gooey!
Kathy Patalsky says
yes yes very gooey in a very good way 🙂
Maria Tadic says
These look so good! I think Im going to make a big batch and freeze them individually! Perfect for a night time snack!
Kathy Patalsky says
yup!! Store them in the freezer and they are good to go