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Home / Dessert

Salted Caramel Peanut Bars

5
/5
32 minutes
12 Comments
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By: The Chunky Chefpublished: 02/26/2017

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.


These salted caramel peanut bars are easy to make, and taste like a favorite candy bar!  Perfect to give away as gifts, or savor all for yourself!


If you’ve never made candy bars, these are the perfect way to ease into it!  These salted caramel peanut bars use common ingredients, have easy to follow steps, and are very easy to customize!

Salted Caramel Peanut Bars | These easy to make bars taste like a great candy bar! A soft pretzel flavored base is covered with a creamy nougat layer, sprinkled with peanuts, and coated in dreamy salted caramel! | http://thechunkychef.com
Do you have a favorite candy bar?  I honestly don’t know if I could pick just one… but one that’s definitely on the list is a Payday.  That sweet/salty combination is just so mouthwatering! 

These salted caramel peanut pretzel bars taste like a fun mixture of several candy bars.

Salted Caramel Peanut Bars | These easy to make bars taste like a great candy bar! A soft pretzel flavored base is covered with a creamy nougat layer, sprinkled with peanuts, and coated in dreamy salted caramel! | http://thechunkychef.com

The base layer is a tender shortbread base, with crushed pretzels mixed in for some extra crunch, then the middle layer reminds me of the nougat in the center of a Snickers bar.  The top layer reminds me of a Payday!

Salted Caramel Peanut Bars | These easy to make bars taste like a great candy bar! A soft pretzel flavored base is covered with a creamy nougat layer, sprinkled with peanuts, and coated in dreamy salted caramel! | http://thechunkychef.com

While these salted caramel peanut pretzel bars would be perfect to give away as gifts, (just wrap them in wax paper so the caramel doesn’t stick), you may find yourself just unable to part with them.  Yep, they’re that GOOD!!

Salted Caramel Peanut Bars | These easy to make bars taste like a great candy bar! A soft pretzel flavored base is covered with a creamy nougat layer, sprinkled with peanuts, and coated in dreamy salted caramel! | http://thechunkychef.com

You might think that something so delicious would be hard to make, but not in this case.  The hardest part is spreading the nougat layer over the shortbread/pretzel crust, as it can be a bit tough to spread without tearing the base layer.  But trust me, if I can do it, so can you 🙂

Salted Caramel Peanut Bars | These easy to make bars taste like a great candy bar! A soft pretzel flavored base is covered with a creamy nougat layer, sprinkled with peanuts, and coated in dreamy salted caramel! | http://thechunkychef.com

I’m pretty sure that whoever you share these bars with, well, I sure hope you like them, because they’re going to be your new best friend!  Or at least ask you for the recipe 😉

Salted Caramel Peanut Bars | These easy to make bars taste like a great candy bar! A soft pretzel flavored base is covered with a creamy nougat layer, sprinkled with peanuts, and coated in dreamy salted caramel! | http://thechunkychef.com

I like to let these bars sit at room temperature about 30 minutes before eating them, since the caramel gets reallllly hard when you refrigerate them.

For some extra decadence, try popping a bar into the microwave for a few seconds to soften it up… it’ll get super gooey and is perfect topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!

Salted Caramel Peanut Bars | These easy to make bars taste like a great candy bar! A soft pretzel flavored base is covered with a creamy nougat layer, sprinkled with peanuts, and coated in dreamy salted caramel! | http://thechunkychef.com

Do yourself a favor and try making these salted caramel peanut pretzel bars… you definitely won’t regret it!

Recipe originally published on Real Housemoms (where I’m a contributor), and republished here with permission.

Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!

Salted Caramel Peanut Bars | These easy to make bars taste like a great candy bar! A soft pretzel flavored base is covered with a creamy nougat layer, sprinkled with peanuts, and coated in dreamy salted caramel! | http://thechunkychef.com

Salted Caramel Peanut Bars

5 from 2 votes
Author: The Chunky Chef
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 12 minutes
Total Time: 32 minutes
Calories: 167
Servings: 48 bars
(hover over # to adjust)
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These salted caramel peanut bars are easy to make, and taste like a favorite candy bar! Perfect to give away as gifts, or savor all for yourself!

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 2/3 cup packed brown sugar
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup crushed pretzels
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1 7oz jar marshmallow creme
  • 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
  • 1/4 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 - 1 1/2 cups salted cocktail peanuts
  • 2 14oz bags caramel squares, unwrapped
  • 5 Tbsp heavy cream, (or milk)

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 13x9x2-inch baking pan with heavy foil (or parchment paper), extending foil over the edges of the pan; set pan aside. 
  • In a large bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer on medium speed for 30 seconds, until fluffy. Add brown sugar, egg yolks, and vanilla. Beat until combined, scraping bowl occasionally if needed. 
  • In a mixing bowl, combine flour, crushed pretzels, baking powder, and baking soda. Beat in flour mixture. If mixture gets too thick for your mixer to handle, use a wooden spoon to incorporate all the flour. Press mixture evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan. Spray the bottom of a measuring cup with non-stick cooking spray and use it to pack the mixture down into that even layer.
  • Bake in the preheated oven for 12 to 14 minutes or until lightly browned.
  • While the base layer is baking, in a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine marshmallow creme and peanut butter. Microwave for 1 minute or until softened and slightly melted, stopping to stir after 30 seconds. Stir in powdered sugar. Spread mixture over warm crust. 
  • Sprinkle with salted peanuts.
  • To another microwave-safe bowl, add unwrapped caramels and heavy cream. Stir to coat the caramels in cream, then microwave, 30 seconds at a time, stirring after each 30 seconds, until melted and smooth. Pour caramel mixture evenly over peanut layer. 
  • Cool in pan on wire rack. Using the foil, lift the uncut bars out of the pan. Cut into bars or into bite-sized pieces. Makes 48 bars 3.0”x0.75” in size.

Want to save this recipe for later? Click the heart in the bottom right corner to save to your own recipe box!

Chef Tips

Keep bars covered and refrigerated for up to 1 week.  Leave at room temperature for 30 minutes before eating, or microwave in 5 second intervals until soft enough to eat.

Nutrition Disclaimer

The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.

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Salted Caramel Peanut Bars | These easy to make bars taste like a great candy bar! A soft pretzel flavored base is covered with a creamy nougat layer, sprinkled with peanuts, and coated in dreamy salted caramel! | http://thechunkychef.com

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Meet The Chunky Chef

Hey there! I'm Amanda. Wife, mother, photography nerd, and bacon lover! I believe that delicious meals should be easy to make. Now that you’re here, stay a bit, browse a few recipes, and let’s get cookin’!

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Recipe Rating




  1. Cecilia Fulton says

    Posted on 11/14 at 12:01 pm

    I am making 24 servings, do I use the same size pan?

    Reply
    • The Chunky Chef says

      Posted on 11/14 at 12:51 pm

      Since you’re halving the recipe, I would use an 8×8″ pan 🙂

      Reply
  2. cakespy says

    Posted on 7/6 at 6:31 am

    Oh my god. Paydays are my favorite, so this is an immediate bookmark for me! Beautiful and totally appetizing.

    Reply
  3. Eva Swain says

    Posted on 3/22 at 11:02 pm

    I’m a big fan of peanuts! OMGI You’re killing softly with this post! HAHHAA! I’ll try your recipe this weekend! Surely!

    Reply
  4. Carlos At Spoonabilities says

    Posted on 3/6 at 8:39 pm

    What a decadent bars!

    Reply
  5. Sandi (@fearless_dining) says

    Posted on 3/2 at 11:54 am

    I am drooling over that gooey caramel.

    Reply
  6. Krista says

    Posted on 2/28 at 10:17 pm

    You had me at salted caramel! These look amazing!

    Reply
  7. Melanie | Melanie Makes says

    Posted on 2/28 at 4:22 pm

    Love all those layers, Amanda – especially the caramel!

    Reply
  8. katerina @ diethood.com says

    Posted on 2/28 at 6:54 am

    Oh my goodness!! This is absolutely amaaazing!! YUM!!

    Reply
  9. Dee says

    Posted on 2/27 at 5:06 pm

    Snickers and Payday are two of my favorites! I know I’ll be making these soon, and hiding them from the kids! 😉

    Reply
  10. Anna @ Crunchy Creamy Sweet says

    Posted on 2/27 at 1:57 pm

    I am swooning over the caramel gooey pull shot! These bars look incredible!

    Reply
  11. Stephanie says

    Posted on 2/27 at 12:32 am

    Yum! Great recipe and pictures. Had no idea it could be that easy. I will have to try this soon. Found it on pintrest 🙂

    Reply

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