Cookie or candy? That was my first thought when I took a bite of these bars. After I finished my portion and could feel the sugar racing through my body, I decided on candy. Definitely candy. In fact, I would describe these as crunchy Reeses Peanut Butter Cups gone extreme. If you love the pairing of chocolate and peanut butter, these intense bars will calm that need for quite awhile.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge Crunch Bars

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Ingredients

6 oz semisweet chocolate chips

2 sticks + 1 Tb salted butter

16 oz jar creamy peanut butter

3 C crispy rice cereal

2 C confectioners sugar

Instructions

1. Line an 8″ square baking pan with parchment paper. In microwave, melt half the chocolate and 1 Tb of butter, about 1 minute. Stir together until smooth and add 1 C of peanut butter. Stir until smooth, then add 2 C of rice cereal. Spread mixture evenly over the pan and refrigerate until set, about 15 minutes.

2. Rinse out bowl and melt 2 sticks of butter in microwave, about 1 minute. Add remaining peanut butter and powdered sugar and stir until smooth. Spread half of this mixture over the chilled chocolate layer. Sprinkle on remaining 1 C of cereal and press into peanut butter layer.

3. In a small bowl, microwave remaining chocolate chips for 1 minute. Stir melted chocolate into the remaining peanut butter mixture until smooth. Spread evenly over the top of the bars. Refrigerate until completely set.