Almost a Candy Bar
Because I love candy bars and marshmallows, this recipe was a cinch to invent—and I’ve yet to find anyone who doesn’t enjoy it! The quick bars make great individually wrapped treats for picnics, lunch boxes, or out-the-door snacking. And with all the different layers and flavors, they’re sure to please just about everyone.
Because I love candy bars and marshmallows, this recipe was a cinch to invent—and I’ve yet to find anyone who doesn’t enjoy it! The quick bars make great individually wrapped treats for picnics, lunch boxes, or out-the-door snacking. And with all the different layers and flavors, they’re sure to please just about everyone.
- 1 cup walnuts chopped
- 1/4 cup butter cubed
- 1 tube refrigerated chocolate chip cookie (16-1/2 ounces)
- 4 chewy s'mores granola bars chopped
- 1 package butterscotch chips (10 to 11 ounces)
- 2-1/2 cups miniature marshmallows
- 1-1/2 cups miniature pretzels
- 10 oz peanut butter chips
- 3/4 cup light corn syrup
- 1 package milk chocolate chips (11-1/2 ounces)
- Carbohydrate 11.2956943666512 g
- Cholesterol 4.12034722222222 mg
- Fat 8.03181699897696 g
- Fiber 0.832669836255864 g
- Protein 3.01623468009191 g
- Saturated Fat 2.20051646615715 g
- Serving Size 1 1 (25g)
- Sodium 85.6631975082207 mg
- Sugar 10.4630245303954 g
- Trans Fat 0.448094175772269 g
- Calories 127 calories
Step-by-step
- Let dough stand at room temperature for 5-10 minutes to soften. In a large bowl, combine dough and granola bars. Press into an ungreased 13-in. x 9-in. baking pan. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.
- Sprinkle with butterscotch chips and marshmallows. Bake 3-4 minutes longer or until marshmallows begin to brown. Sprinkle with walnuts; arrange pretzels over the top. In a small saucepan, melt the peanut butter chips, corn syrup and butter; spoon over bars.
- In a microwave, melt chocolate chips; stir until smooth. Spread or drizzle over bars. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until firm before cutting.
Crisp pretzels and toasted walnuts break through rich layers of melted milk chocolate and butterscotch, creating a structural contrast against a chewy base of baked cookie dough and chopped granola bars. Achieving clean cuts through multiple sticky layers requires chilling the pan in the refrigerator for a full hour so the fats in the butterscotch and chocolate chips resolidify completely. When peanut butter chips are gently melted with light corn syrup and cubed butter over low heat, the resulting mixture acts as a pliable adhesive that secures the miniature marshmallows and pretzels without dissolving their textures. As the oven bakes the initial dough and granola base at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for ten to twelve minutes, the starches gelatinize and brown, producing Maillard reactions that add deep toasty notes to balance the intense sweetness of the toppings. Sugar crystallization dictates the final mouthfeel of confections like this, meaning rapid cooling in the refrigerator prevents large sugar crystals from forming and yields a smooth, snappy bite instead of a grainy texture. Storing these bars in an airtight container at cool room temperature preserves the crispness of the pretzel layer by minimizing moisture migration from the marshmallows into the baked crust.
