Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Crumble Bars

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Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Crumble Bars – These bars are soft, chewy, dense and buttery! And when topped with Peanut Butter cups, it makes for a delicious treat!

Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Crumble Bars averiecooks.com

It’s been awhile since I’ve made a gooey pan of bars.

Or baked peanut butter cups into something. These make up for lost time.

They’re the best bar I’ve made in recent memory, and I can’t keep my hands off them. If you’re looking for a fast and easy layer bar with results that far exceed the minimal effort spent, these are the ones.

Prep and assembly takes 10 minutes, no mixer is required, and you can stir everything together in one bowl. I love bars and desserts that come together in no time and that create a minimum amount of dishes.

Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Crumble Bars averiecooks.com

They have a cookie dough base layer, which is topped with mini peanut butter cups. Sweetened condensed milk is poured over the top and handfuls of cookie dough are crumbled before baking. So easy.

Begin by melting one stick of butter. Stir in an egg, sugars, vanilla, flour, and baking soda. The dough is thick and dense.

Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Crumble Bars averiecooks.com

Press the dough into an aluminum foil-lined and cooking sprayed baking pan, but not all of it. Reserve one-half cup of dough and set it aside. It’ll be crumbled on the top later.

I urge you to line your pan, leaving overhang, so you can just lift the bars out. Plus, it makes cleanup a breeze. Nothing says dealbreaker on a quick and easy dessert like sweetened condensed milk that caramelizes all over your baking pan and you have to literally chisel it off.

Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Crumble Bars averiecooks.com

Sprinkle the mini peanut butter cups over the dough base. Or use diced full-size peanut butter cups, or other diced candy bars. Use up leftover Easter candy, or whatever odds and ends you have. Candy is candy, it’s all going to be good, use what you have. Rolos, Snickers, Milky Way, Three Musketeers, or similar.

Pour just over half of one can of sweetened condensed milk over the top. Use the other half to make 7-Minute Microwave Caramels. You can make those in the microwave while the bars bake in the oven, which is exactly what I did. My house smelled wonderful from caramels in the microwave with peanut butter, chocolate, and cookie dough in the oven. And this is why I run, every day.

Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Crumble Bars averiecooks.com

After flooding with sweet milk, lightly crumble the reserved cookie dough in irregular, marble-sized chunks.

Try not to sample too much along the way. Easier said than done.

Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Crumble Bars averiecooks.com

The hardest part of the recipe is that you must let the bars set up for about 3 hours before slicing or you’ll have a literal hot mess. Let them cool on the counter for an hour, then place the pan in the fridge for at least two hours, or overnight. Lift out with the foil overhang and make nice, clean, pretty squares.

Alternatively, you could just dig in with spoons as soon as they’re cool enough from the oven if you don’t care about clean cuts or devouring this, family-style. As in, the whole family dives in with a spoon.

Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Crumble Bars averiecooks.com

The cookie dough base is squishy soft in the middle, dense and buttery. The edges raise while baking and turn firmer and chewy. They’re no chocolate chips added and the richness and pure cookie dough flavor really shines. These are for cookie dough lovers who can appreciate a really flavorful slab of dough.

There’s just enough golden cookie dough on top to sandwich in some of the gooey filling, but not so much that the dough overpowers the other flavors. I prefer crumbles and crisps to double-crusted pies because that top layer of crust is just too much dough. I like things sprinkled rather than totally enclosed with dough.

Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Crumble Bars averiecooks.com

The peanut butter cups provide texture and a nice pop of peanut butter and bit of chocolate in every bite.

The creamy, rich, sweetened condensed milk takes on caramel and vanilla tones while baking. It cloaks the cookie dough and peanut butter cups in a sweet, milky, luscious bath.

Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Crumble Bars averiecooks.com

Gooey and sticky, sweet and creamy, soft and chewy, chocolate and peanut butter, vanilla and caramel, all in one.

Please pass the napkins.

Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Crumble Bars averiecooks.com

Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Crumble Bars - Soft, chewy, gooey & loaded with Peanut Butter Cups! Easy recipe at averiecooks.com

Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Crumble Bars - These bars are soft, chewy, dense and buttery! And when topped with Peanut Butter cups, it makes for a delicious treat!

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4.43 from 7 votes

Peanut Butter Cup Cookie Dough Crumble Bars

By Averie Sunshine
The bars are fast, easy, and a cinch to make. They come together by hand with just one bowl in minutes. There's a soft, chewy, dense and buttery cookie dough base before being topped with peanut butter cups. Creamy, rich, sweetened condensed milk coats the cookie dough and sends the peanut butter cups on a sweet, milky, luscious bath. Gooey and sticky, sweet and creamy, soft and chewy, chocolaty and peanut buttery, all in one.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 12
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Ingredients  

  • ½ cup unsalted butter, melted (1 stick)
  • 1 large egg
  • ¾ cup light brown sugar, packed
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • pinch salt, optional and to taste
  • 1 heaping cup mini Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, or diced full-size cups; or substitute with another type of diced candy bar such as Snickers, Milky Way, Butterfinger, Heath, Rolos
  • about 1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk, just slightly more than half of one standard 14-ounce can

Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 350F. Line an 8-by-8-inch baking pan with aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray; set aside.
  • In a large microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter, about 1 minute. Allow the butter to cool momentarily so you don't scramble the egg.
  • Add the egg, sugars, vanilla, and stir vigorously to combine, for about 1 minute.
  • Add the flour, baking soda, optional salt and stir until just incorporated. Batter will be quite thick.
  • Reserve 1/2 cup batter; set aside. Turn remaining batter out into prepared pan, smoothing it lightly with a spatula.
  • Evenly sprinkle the peanut butter cups over the batter. Pour sweetened condensed milk over the top. Using your fingers, lightly crumble the reserved cookie dough over the top in irregular, marble-sized chunks.
  • Bake for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out without cookie dough batter clinging; it may not be clean because you're going through other layers and you may have to peck around to find a testing place. Edges will be firm and golden. The sweetened condensed milk should nearly be set in all places, and possibly only a little jiggly in the very center of the pan. Bars will firm up more in pan as they cool.
  • Allow bars to cool in pan for at least 3 hours before slicing and serving. Expediting this by placing pan in the refrigerator is okay if you're in a hurry. Extra bars will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 1 week, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Notes

Tip - Bars may be kept gluten-free by replacing the flour with your favorite gluten-free baking blend. Take care any ingredients used are suitable for your dietary needs.

Nutrition

Serving: 1, Calories: 331kcal, Carbohydrates: 45g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 15g, Saturated Fat: 8g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 7g, Cholesterol: 41mg, Sodium: 158mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 31g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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About the Author

Welcome to AverieCooks! Here you’ll find fast and easy recipes that taste amazing and are geared for real life. Nothing fussy or complicated, just awesome tasting dishes everyone loves!

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Please note: I have only made the recipe as written, and cannot give advice or predict what will happen if you change something. If you have a question regarding changing, altering, or making substitutions to the recipe, please check out the FAQ page for more info.

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Comments

  1. In step 3, it says to use my fingers and lightly crumble the reserved cookie dough over the top in irregular, marble-sized chunks. I haven’t made that yet but what cookie dough is this referring to? The 1/2 cup of reserved batter? Is this supposed to solidify and that’s why I’m breaking it apart with my fingers? Thanks!

    1. Reserve 1/2 cup batter/dough, put the rest in pan, then later crumble the reserved cup of batter/dough over top.

  2. LOVED these! But I think my cooking time was off, I think I’ll cook it for 5-10 minutes longer. But they were delicious! So glad I found your website!

    1. All ovens and ingredients vary, so just bake a bit longer next time if you think they need it – but if you LOVED them…then maybe not :) Whatever you think is best!

  3. I just made these PB cup bars and my husband and oldest sone LOVE them. However, mine look nothing like yours. Can’t see the pb cups at all.You can taste them though. They did rise pretty high especially on the edges. I will be taking them to a church lunch tomorrow. My husband has already eaten all the ones I left for him. The not so pretty ones. HA!! I had also baked some of your cranberry while chocolate chip cookies. I made the dough a few weeks ago and froze the rest. I was hoping they wouldn’t spread out as much but they did.

  4. Hey! Thanks for nice recipe. I just wanted to ask canI somehow incorporate extra peanut butter into the batter or somehow top the mixture with it before baking? Its just that the peanutbutter cups are not enough for me.
    NEED MORE PEANUT BUTTER!!! Hahaha :)

    Thanks!

    1. You could add extra peanut butter cups, you could drizzle melted peanut butter on top after the bars have cooled out of the oven, you could make peanut butter frosting and frost them. Many ways to boost the flavor. Glad you enjoyed the recipe and that you’re a true PB fan like me!

  5. Ahhhh my whole mouth has just filled with saliva!! All of these peanut butter/chocolate treats I’ll be here for hours!

    x

    1. Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you each time, and that you won a baking competition with my recipe!

  6. Thank you so much for replying. I actually googled mini’s and realized the wrapped ones are ‘miniatures’. Before I went to store. Much easier with the minis. I also read where someone tried gluten free and it just made them mushy. I am making two batches as we speak, the second gluten free. I used a combo of gluten free cooking flour and coconut flour. The dough was definitely a different consistency. So they may be a gooey mess. . . but a delicious gooey mess so I’m sure they will still be appreciated. And they are being sent in the mail. I’ll let you know the reviews from my friends receiving them. Both batches.
    Thanks again. Your blog is fantastic.
    E

    1. Coconut flour is NOT like regular flour AT ALL and doesn’t behave like it since it’s not a grain. On a hope-and-a-prayer, it may work for you since you used it in combo w/ another flour (using it by itself requires some serious recipe modification with the liquid/dry ratios) so hopefully it kind of works but w/out any gluten in the recipe, the whole thing could be pretty darn gooey and messy. Not sure what will happen but good luck :) LMK how things go!

  7. Hi Averie ~ love your website and drool with each and every recipe. I made these bars and they were so amazingly delicious that I had to put them in the freezer so I wouldn’t founder. . . my question is do you use the mini cups that require being unwrapped or the next size smaller? I didn’t even realize there was a next size smaller until i was at the store and as I look at your pics, I’m thinking that was the size to use. Mine worked but needed to be kind of ‘placed’ into the dough. Making another batch for friends so will wait for your reply. Thank you so much!!
    E

    1. In this recipe I used the smallest ones they make that come in a pouch and don’t need individual unwrapping but really, you can use the next size up (what used to be the smallest size they make til a few years ago)…the pouch ones are just even more bite size and no unwrapping necessary which I like. Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you!

  8. I was hoping to make these for Christmas in a 9×13 pan, how should I adjust the measurements? Would doubling everything be too much? Let me know when you have a moment – Thanks!