| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 1 hr 55 min |
| Prep: | 10 min |
| Inactive: | 1 hr |
| Cook: | 45 min |
| Yield: | 24 bars |
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 cups (18 ounces) creamy peanut butter (recommended: Skippy)
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 1/2 cups (18 ounces) raspberry jam or other jam
- 2/3 cups salted peanuts, coarsely chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Grease a 9 by 13 by 2-inch cake pan. Line it with parchment paper, then grease and flour the pan.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed until light yellow, about 2 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, add the vanilla, eggs, and peanut butter and mix until all ingredients are combined.
- In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the flour mixture to the peanut butter mixture. Mix just until combined.
- Spread 2/3 of the dough into the prepared cake pan and spread over the bottom with a knife or offset spatula. Spread the jam evenly over the dough. Drop small globs of the remaining dough evenly over the jam. Don’t worry if all the jam isn’t covered; it will spread in the oven. Sprinkle with chopped peanuts and bake for 45 minutes, until golden brown. Cool and cut into squares.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 24 servings |
| Calories | 390 |
| Total Fat | 21 g |
| Saturated Fat | 7 g |
| Carbohydrates | 45 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 2 g |
| Sugar | 25 g |
| Protein | 8 g |
| Cholesterol | 38 mg |
| Sodium | 168 mg |
Reviews
Used strawberry jam, used chunky peanut butter and skipped the nuts on top. They have been a big hit every time I make them. Someone always asks for the recipe
Looks delicious
Yum! I made these as a treat for my son to have after taking the SAT and they were a hit! Really easy to make. The only change I would make next time is to use more jelly/preserves. It’s a very thin layer and I think it would better with a thicker layer. But great as is!
I finally made these the other day after having them bookmarked for over a year and wow, I wish I wouldn’t have waited so long! I made the recipe itself exactly as is using strawberry jam, but I took them out about 5 minutes early because they were starting to get a little too brown on the top. The middle is dense, but it seems thoroughly cooked. I can definitely see how these may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but I can’t stop eating them, which is a problem because they are dense and heavy! I actually weighed the dough before I put it in the pan so I could do exactly 2/3rds on the bottom and it was about 3.5 pounds lol! As others have said, definitely wait until they are cool to cut. I tried to cut a little piece after coming out of the oven because I couldn’t wait to taste them and it all crumbled apart. After letting them cool overnight, they cut fine though the peanuts fall off pretty easily. Next time I may press them into the dough/jam a little bit. The dough is very peanut buttery and does taste just like a PB&J sandwich. I liked the dough so much I actually may try to use it to make peanut butter bars with chocolate on top.
I have made these for years as a treat for the teachers I have worked with. They always request these bars. Also bake them for gifts. Yummy
Made this gluten free, vegan and keto. Used organic unsweetened peanut butter, sugar free raspberry preserves, a mix of three parts almond flour and one part coconut flour, egg substitute powder, olive oil butter and allulose. I was worried but it came out amazing. Really delicious chilled… I did not pre-bake crust because of my substitutions. It did start to brown quickly so I covered it after the first 15 minutes of baking.
Will be making again! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Will be making again! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Do these freeze well? I want to make ahead. Thanks!
Made these exactly as written and they were fabulous.
Made recipe with a few changes. There was no raspberry jam in my grocery store. So I used grape jam. OMG. Brings back memories of my childhood. Delicious. Did take the suggestion of another reviewer and prebaked my crust for 15 minutes. So worth the extra time. I used more peanuts than recommended—about 1cup. This recipe will definitely be on my repeat list. It’s easy to make. I’m unsure why it’s considered intermediate. A very versatile recipe that you can make your own with a different jam or nut. Thanks Ina.
Yummy! Made these exactly as written, num num. As for some questions about her measurements in reviews..she used a 2 cup measuring cup and a 1 cup for the flour, it is 3 cups total. As for the raspberry preserves, she used a 12 ounce jar and half of the other 12 ounce jar, 18 ounces total. Pretty sure she meant to say a jar and a half. I love that this recipe allows for easy changes, like personal choices of jam, jelly, preserves. Or parbaking the bottom crust for about 10ish minutes for a less ‘doughy’ bottom crust. No matter the changes, this is a Big Hit and a keeper exactly as she made it!! I recommend a light 13×9 metal pan like she used versus a glass one.