Gluten Free and Dairy Free Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars
These chewy and gooey vegan and gluten free bars are loaded with peanut butter flavor and topped with a THICK chocolate layer to satisfy any craving!! Best of all, they don’t heat up the house and only use one bowl, you just add everything in the pot! No corn syrup, no gluten and no dairy!
Equipment
- Large stockpot
- Glass measuring cup or bowl that is microwave safe this is for making the chocolate topping
- 1 13x 9 inch pan
Ingredients
- 1 cup Agave Syrup
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 6 cups gluten free crispy rice cereal- read the label to make sure they are gluten free
- 3 cups semi sweet chocolate chips dairy free or regular if you aren’t dairy free
- 1 tsp avocado oil or other neutral flavored cooking oil
- flaky sea salt really enhances the peanut butter and chocolate flavor
Instructions
- First, grab a large stockpot and add the agave and white sugar to the bottom. Stir to combine.
- Next, heat the agave and sugar mixture on medium heat stirring occasionally to help dissolve the sugar.
- Then, heat until the sugar mixture comes to a full boil. DO NOT STIR.
- Set your timer for exactly 1 minute.
- Once the sugar and agave mixture has boiled for one minute, turn off the heat and add the vanilla extract and peanut butter into the pot.
- Stir until the peanut butter is all combined and smooth.
- Next, add the rice cereal into the pot and stir gently until the cereal is coated fully with the peanut butter mixture.
- Grab the 13×9 inch baking pan and dump the cereal mixture and evenly spread it into the pan. Set aside.
- Next, while the cereal mixture is cooling in the baking pan, take your glass microwave safe dish or measuring cup and add 3 cups of chocolate chips and 1 tsp avocado oil.
- Microwave the chocolate chips and oil for 1 minute on HIGH. Stir and then microwave it for 30 seconds or until it’s smooth.
- Spread the chocolate on top of the peanut butter bars.
- Sprinkle with flaky sea salt. My favorite is celtic sea salt. So good! It really enhances the chocolate and peanut butter flavor.
- Place in the refrigerator to allow to fully cool. 2-4 hours. Once the chocolate is set, remove from the fridge and serve at room temperature. If your house is hot or it’s summer time, you may need to keep it in the fridge to prevent the chocolate from becoming too melty. This only happens for me in the peak of summer here.
- Cut into 15 squares and enjoy!!
Notes
Variations:
Can I make these with a different nut butters? Yes, you can use almond butter, cashew butter or any other nut butter or sunflower seed butter interchangeably. They all taste amazing and have very similar results in the chewy layer in the bars. Storage:
Once the chocolate layer is cooled and set, you can store them at room temperature. Cover the pan with a lid or plastic wrap. If it’s summer or your house is particularly warm, you may need to store them in the refrigerator to prevent the chocolate layer from being melty. Though, melty isn’t bad (flavor-wise) until you go to cut them and the chocolate sticks to the knife and your fingers as you eat them. If you don’t mind the meltiness during the summer months, don’t worry about keeping them chilled. If you want the chocolate layer to stay firm, I recommend putting them in the fridge- at least during those peak summer months.
Can I make these with a different nut butters? Yes, you can use almond butter, cashew butter or any other nut butter or sunflower seed butter interchangeably. They all taste amazing and have very similar results in the chewy layer in the bars. Storage:
Once the chocolate layer is cooled and set, you can store them at room temperature. Cover the pan with a lid or plastic wrap. If it’s summer or your house is particularly warm, you may need to store them in the refrigerator to prevent the chocolate layer from being melty. Though, melty isn’t bad (flavor-wise) until you go to cut them and the chocolate sticks to the knife and your fingers as you eat them. If you don’t mind the meltiness during the summer months, don’t worry about keeping them chilled. If you want the chocolate layer to stay firm, I recommend putting them in the fridge- at least during those peak summer months.