• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
The Incredible Bulks
  • Ingredients
  • Tutorials
  • Recipes
  • About Us
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Ingredients
  • Tutorials
  • Recipes
  • About Us
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Ingredients
    • Tutorials
    • Recipes
    • About Us
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • ×

    Home » Recipes

    Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars

    Published: Jan 30, 2020 · Modified: Sep 7, 2020 by Emily

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Peanut butter and chocolate, aka-the perfect pair, help make these oatmeal bars amazing! Chewy and soft. Sweet and salty. What more could you ask for?

    3 Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars stacked on top of each other and shown from the side.  Brought to you by TheIncredibleBulks.com

    Bulk items used: oatmeal, cocoa powder

    It's funny because I often see similar recipes for these chocolate peanut butter oatmeal bars called things like "Lunch Lady Peanut Butter Bars" or "School Lunch Peanut Butter Bars." I'm sure this is reminiscent of what was served in elementary schools back in the '90s. I know I definitely ate them for school lunch.

    I doubt anything like this would be served at any school today! My kids have attended 4 different elementary schools, and at every single one of them there was a large sign on the front door that said, "PEANUT FREE ZONE."

    And I know it's for good reason. It's crazy how peanut allergies are so much more prevalent today than "back in the day." Actually, 2 of my 3 kids are allergic to PB. Luckily they both have just a mild allergy, so we keep it away from them, but can still have PB in the house. I think my husband would die if we couldn't have peanut butter.

    Whether they are allowed in schools anymore or not, the truth is these peanut butter bars are DELICIOUS. The bottom layer is perfectly chewy. Next comes a creamy layer of peanut butter. And the crowning layer is soft, fluffy chocolate butter cream frosting. Oooo, that frosting!

    A close up photo of a sing Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bar.  A bit has been taken out of one side.  Brought to you by TheIncredibleBulks.com

    Tips for Making Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars

    • These bars start like so many other great desserts, by creaming butter and sugar together. To me, this is the most important step in making a dessert taste great and have the perfect texture. There are 2 things you can do to ensure success at this step.
      • 1: Make sure the butter is at room temperature! This blog post does a great job at explaining why room temperature butter is important in baking. The Sparknotes version, however, is that butter greatly affects the density in baked goods and room temperature butter tends to result in the best texture! I absolutely believe this.
      • 2: Let your butter and sugar cream together until light and fluffy. You don't want to just barely combine the butter and sugar and then move on to adding the next ingredients. If you let the butter and sugars really blend together until they are light in color and very fluffy, you will have softer and more velvety bars in the end. Do all the long creaming at this step. Flour should only be mixed in just until incorporated. The longer you mix the flour in, the denser the bars will become.
    the 3 layers of Peanut Butter bars are shown: layer 1-peanut butter oatmeal bar.  layer 2-peanut butter.  layer 3 chocolate frosting. By TheIncredibleBulks.com
    • The best part of these bars, in my opinion is the frosting. Chocolate butter cream! The bars themselves are chewy, so the light and fluffiness of this frosting is the perfect juxtaposition.

    These bars are so easy make and even easier to enjoy! So go sink your teeth into one of these and reminisce about the simple days of elementary school, where kids were served delicious peanut butter bars along side their "chicken" "chunks." (Lol, that was legit something that was regularly served to us. Why were both words always listed in quotation marks? I was suspicious of those "chicken" "chunks" even as a 4th grader).

    Let me know in the comments about any other random food you remember from school lunch. It's so fun to look back and remember the past!

    6 chocolate peanut butter oatmeal bars arranged on a white background.  One has had a bite taken out of it. Brought to you by TheIncredibleBulks.com

    Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars

    Peanut butter and chocolate, aka the perfect pair, help makes these oatmeal bars amazing! Chewy and soft. Sweet and salty. What more could you ask for?
    Prep Time: 15 minutes
    Cook Time: 15 minutes
    Servings: 24 bars
    Calories: 378kcal
    Print

    Ingredients

    Peanut Butter Bars

    • ¾ cup brown sugar
    • ¾ cup white sugar
    • ¾ cup creamy peanut butter
    • ¾ cup butter room temperature
    • 2 eggs
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla
    • 1 cups flour
    • 1 ½ cups old-fashioned oatmeal
    • ¾ teaspoon baking soda
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • 1 cup peanut butter

    Chocolate Frosting

    • ½ cup butter
    • 4 tablespoon milk
    • 4 cups powdered sugar
    • 4 tablespoon cocoa powder
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla

    Instructions

    Peanut Butter Bars

    • Preheat oven to 350°. Spray a 9x13 baking sheet with cooking spray.
    • Cream brown sugar, sugar, ¾ cup peanut butter, butter, eggs, vanilla in large bowl for 2 minutes.
    • Add flour, oatmeal, baking soda, and salt.  Mix until just combined.
    • Press dough into prepared baking sheet and bake for 12-15 minutes.
    • Let bars cool slightly, then spread a thin layer of peanut butter (approx 1 cup) over the cooked bars when still warm.  Then spread chocolate frosting over warm bars.  Enjoy!

    Chocolate Frosting

    • Add all the ingredients, except powdered sugar to a bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat until well combined. Mix in powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time. If frosting is too runny, add more powdered sugar, if it's too thick, add in a bit more milk.
    Please give this recipe a rating!Or leave me a comment to let me know what you think

    Nutrition

    Calories: 378kcal | Carbohydrates: 40g | Protein: 6.7g | Fat: 21.9g | Saturated Fat: 9.6g | Cholesterol: 44mg | Sodium: 265mg | Potassium: 185mg | Fiber: 2.1g | Sugar: 32.2g | Calcium: 17mg | Iron: 2mg

    More Recipes

    • Instant Pot Brown Basmati Rice
    • Cooking Wild Rice in a Rice Cooker
    • How to Cook Wild Rice
    • How to Cook Wild Rice in the Instant Pot

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Alice @MommytoMom says

      February 21, 2020 at 7:33 pm

      These look delicious! My daughter actually has a very severe peanut allergy so I definitely wouldn’t be able to make them. I wonder if using a substitute like Wowbutter or Sunbutter would taste good?

      Reply
      • Emily says

        February 21, 2020 at 8:32 pm

        I haven't personally tried it, but that is a great idea! My daughter is also allergic to peanuts, but she loves Sunbutter, so maybe I'll try it next time and let you know. From everything I've heard about Wowbutter, it seems like it would be a good substitute for sure.

        Reply
    2. Cristina Ioana says

      February 22, 2020 at 1:38 am

      5 stars
      This is yummy! It tastes divine and so easy to make. I know what I'll be doing this afternoon.

      Reply
      • Emily says

        February 22, 2020 at 4:31 pm

        Thanks! I hope you enjoy them!

        Reply
    3. Gloria says

      May 04, 2020 at 6:41 pm

      This is great! I actually can’t wait to try to make some for myself!!!

      Reply
      • Emily says

        May 06, 2020 at 12:10 pm

        Sweet! Let me know how they turn out!

        Reply
    4. Sheryl says

      May 05, 2020 at 7:34 pm

      Yummy I can't wait to try this recipe looks sooo good =)

      Reply
      • Emily says

        May 06, 2020 at 12:11 pm

        Thanks! I hope you like them!

        Reply
    5. Megan | The ABC Mom says

      May 06, 2020 at 9:31 am

      5 stars
      These sound amazing! I just have to do a little switching to make them sugar and gluten-free for my husband. My kids will love them 🙂

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    woman holding tray of breads

    Hi! I'm Emily!

    I'm a mother of 4, trying to expand my kids' taste palate beyond buttered noodles. Shopping in the bulk section of the grocery store has helped us try new and healthy ingredients, and I hope to spread the bulk shopping love to you! Enjoy! 

    More about me →

    Popular

    • How to Cook Barley in the Instant Pot
    • Quick and Easy Air Fryer Apple Chips
    • Fried Chicken Meatballs with Carrots and Apples
    • Easy Instant Pot Wheat Berries

    Seasonal

    • Easy Instant Pot Vegetarian Chili with Wheat Berries
    • Sweet and Sour Chicken
    • Mexican Bean and Barley Soup
    • The Best Whole Wheat Bread

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy
    • Web Stories

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Contact

    • Contact

    As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2022 The Incredible Bulks