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5 from 6 votes

Small Batch Oatmeal Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars

It doesn't get any better than oatmeal chocolate peanut butter bars! To put it simply, they're the perfect cookie bar: soft and chewy, packed with oats and peanut butter, and stuffed with chocolate. This small batch recipe will satisfy your sweet tooth cravings, and it can be easily doubled to satisfy a crowd!
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time50 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Servings: 8
Calories: 339kcal

Ingredients

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookie Dough:

  • 9 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • cup old-fashioned oats
  • ¼ teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 pinch baking soda
  • 1 pinch fine sea salt (plus more for sprinkling on top)
  • 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
  • 3 Tablespoons creamy peanut butter
  • ½ cup light brown sugar
  • 1 egg yolk
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (plus more for topping bars)

Chocolate Filling:

  • ¼ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • ¼ cup creamy peanut butter
  • ¼ cup confectioners' sugar

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line a standard loaf pan (8.5 in. x 4.5 in.) with parchment paper and set aside.

Make the cookie dough.

  • In a small bowl, whisk together flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  • Melt butter in a large, microwave-safe bowl. Add peanut butter and brown sugar and stir until blended and smooth.
  • Add egg yolk and vanilla to the butter mixture and whisk until combined.
  • Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, and fold in the dry ingredients just until combined.
  • Add the chocolate chips and stir until evenly distributed throughout the dough. Set the dough aside.

Make the chocolate filling.

  • Add the chocolate chips and peanut butter to a small, microwave-safe bowl. Melt the mixture in the microwave in 30 second increments on 50% power, stirring after each stint in the microwave until smooth and glossy.
  • Add the confectioners' sugar and stir to combine.

Bake the bars.

  • Press half of the dough into the prepared pan. Use an offset or mini spatula to spread the chocolate filling over the dough in an even layer. Break up the remaining cookie dough into small, blackberry-sized pieces and scatter them over the chocolate filling so that it's completely covered. Sprinkle a few extra chocolate chips and a pinch of salt over the top. 
  • Bake for 20 minutes or until the edges are a light golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the bars comes out with just a few moist crumbs. Let the bars cool in the pan on a wire rack before removing them from the pan. Slice into 8 squares to serve.

Notes

Storage: Store leftover bars in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.
This recipe can be easily doubled and baked in an 8 in. x 8 in. metal pan (you may need to add a couple of minutes to the baking time). If doubling the recipe, you can chose to use 1 whole egg or stick with 2 egg yolks for extra chewiness.
Original Filling Recipe: The filling for these bars has been updated because the original filling was made using chocolate spread (like Hershey's Chocolate Spread, which has a consistency similar to creamy peanut butter), which has become difficult to find at grocery stores. The original chocolate filling called for 1 Tablespoon (g) of unsalted butter, ¼ cup of chocolate spread, and ½ cup of confectioners' sugar. The butter was melted and mixed with the chocolate spread before adding the confectioners' sugar. The filling was then spread over half of the cookie dough in the pan before topping with the rest of the cookie dough and baking.

Nutrition

Serving: 1bar | Calories: 339kcal | Carbohydrates: 38g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 37mg | Sodium: 120mg | Potassium: 220mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 25g | Vitamin A: 172IU | Calcium: 44mg | Iron: 2mg