Nutella & Peanut Butter Graham Bars with Chocolate Frosting

I love peanut butter.  And I love Nutella.  Two great loves of my life.

And these bars combine those two loves.

The finished product is like eating the inside part of a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup that’s been spiked with a bit of Nutella.

All coated with chocolate frosting.

Make no mistake: It’s very fast and easy to get Project Ooh and Ahh going.

They are no-bake, and no mixer is required.  In just a few minutes and you’ll be oohing and ahhing, too.

 

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Nutella & Peanut Butter Graham Bars with Chocolate Frosting

For the bars:

1 c butter (2 sticks), melted

1/3 c brown sugar

2 c powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1.5 c graham cracker crumbs

1/2 c Nutella

2/3 c peanut butter

For the chocolate frosting:

1.5 c chocolate chips

1/4 c butter

1/4 c cream or milk

1/2 c powdered sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Directions: In a large microwave safe bowl, melt the butter.  Then add the brown sugar, powdered sugar, vanilla extract and stir by hand until combined (will look lumpy and strange).  Then add the graham cracker crumbs and stir until combined.  Finally, add the Nutella and peanut butter and stir until combined.   Press the mixture into a sprayed 9 x 9 pan (for thinner bars, use a 9 x 13 pan but I prefer thicker bars).  Place in freezer.

While the bars are cooling, make the chocolate frosting by melting the chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl, taking care not to scorch them and checking every 15-30 seconds or so.   After the chocolate chips are melted add in butter and cream and stir to incorporate.  Then add powdered sugar and vanilla extract and stir to incorporate.  If mixture becomes too thick to work with and the chocolate begins to set up, microwaving it again for 15 seconds will soften it.

When the frosting is ready, remove the bars from the freezer, frost them, and put bars back into the freezer to set up for a half hour before slicing them.

I store my sliced bars in the freezer or fridge in an airtight container and take them out about 20 minutes prior to eating.  As they come up to room temperature, the flavor intensifies and they are more delicious and creamy but they will keep for weeks/months in the freezer as a make-ahead dessert.

Notes & Substitutions:

To make this vegan, replace all butter and cream with margarine and almond or soy milk.  Rather than using Nutella use all peanut butter, use chocolate peanut butter that is vegan-safe, or add some cocoa powder to the nut butter of your choice.

To make this gluten free, use GF graham cracker crumbs.

If you don’t like Nutella, don’t have it, have a peanut allergy, want to use different ratios or types of nut butters, etc. feel free to try them.  More than likely most substitutions will work just fine.  You’re looking for approximately 1 to 1.5 cups of nut butter, total, in whatever type and combination you prefer.

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A Visual Guide

First melt the butter in a microwave-safe bowl

Add in the sugars & stir

Then add the graham cracker crumbs & stir

Then, add in the Nutella and PB & Stir

Didn’t I tell you, these were calorie free?

The bowl weighed about 5 pounds at this point. Butter, sugar, graham cracker crumbs, Nutella & PB. What’s not to love?

Press the mixture into the sprayed pan and freeze.

Make and apply the chocolate frosting, and put the whole thing back into the freezer to set up for a half hour or so.

The finished bars are rich, decadent, fattening, sweet, peanut buttery with a hint of Nutella, too.  Everything I want in a dessert.

I don’t want “healthy” desserts.

I want these.

It’s like the bar version of a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup.  The graham cracker crumbs, combined with the sugar, butter, and Nutella, make a really close approximation of a Reese’s PB Cup.

And that’s a beautiful thing.

This is the type of dessert I’d recommend cutting the pieces fairly small.  They are like lead balloons of sugar and butter and nut butter in your belly, which is wonderful.  And filling.

But suit yourself and cut them big, by all means!

This recipe looks longer and far more complicated than it is.  It took me longer to type this up than make these bars.  Truly, a 5-minute special of active prep time.  I was just being extra thorough with the directions and notes based on questions I anticipate receiving.

Similar & Related Recipe Suggestions:

If you like Peanut Butter, check out my entire section of Peanut Butter Recipes

If you like Chocolate, check out my Chocolate Recipes

If you like Chocolate + PB, try Raw Vegan Peanut Butter Cups

If you like Nutella, check out my Fudgy Nutella Brownies with Cream Cheese Frosting

If you like Peanut Butter + Chocolate + In Bar Form, check out No Bake Nutter Butter & Special K Bars with Chocolate Frosting

and No Bake Special K Bars with Chocolate Frosting

From my last post featuring our Aruba Vacation Highlights, thanks for saying it was fun for you to see.  It was fun for me to post!  And I loved hearing about your favorite vacation memories and stories.

Questions

1. Best thing you’ve ate or done so far this weekend?

These bars rank right up there and Sunday I plan to take lots of pictures.  I love planning and scheduling photo-making time for myself.  It’s like a date with myself and my camera. It’s such a nice thing for me to have that penciled in on my mental calendar and I look forward to it but it’s weather dependent so we shall see.

2. Do you like Nutella? Peanut Butter?  Chocolate?

If you say no, I may question your sanity.

3. Any favorite desserts you’ve had lately?

P.S. If you’re just catching up on posts from the weekend, here are mine since Friday

• Aruba Vacation Highlights
• Health & Beauty Mall Trip
• A First Time For Everything
• Rising Food & Grocery Prices
• Eating the Rainbow Recipes