Charlie Brown Bars
Charlie Brown bars are chewy peanut butter and crisp rice cereal bars topped with a melted chocolate-butterscotch layer. A no-bake treat (a cousin of Scotcheroos) that sets up in the fridge into sweet, crunchy squares.
YIELD
4 servingsPREP
20 minCOOK
20 minREADY
20 minIf you grew up loving Scotcheroos, meet your new favorite name for them. These no-bake bars marry chewy peanut butter cereal squares with a glossy chocolate-butterscotch topping, and they come together without ever turning on the oven.
The base hinges on the sugar syrup. Bring the sugar and corn syrup to just a light boil, not a long hard one, before stirring in the peanut butter, so the bars stay chewy rather than hardening into candy. Fold in the crisp rice cereal off the heat, working fast before it starts to set, then press it gently into the pan. Press too hard and the bars turn dense and tough.
The topping is the crowning touch: equal parts chocolate and butterscotch chips melted together and spread over the cooled base. As it chills, that layer firms into a snappy shell over the soft, chewy bars beneath.
Kitchen Tips
- Don’t over-boil the syrup. A brief light boil keeps the bars chewy instead of hard and brittle.
- Press the cereal in gently so the bars stay soft, not packed and dense.
- Chill just until the topping sets. Over-chilling can make the chocolate layer crack when you cut.
Variations
- Use all chocolate or all butterscotch chips if you prefer one over the other.
- Sprinkle flaky salt over the topping for a salty-sweet finish.
- Swap in crunchy peanut butter for extra texture.
Ingredients
2 cups of peanut butter
1 cup of white sugar
1 cup of corn syrup
3/4 of a cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 1/4 cup of butterscotch chips
5-6 cups of crisp rice cereal
2 tsp of vanilla extract
Directions
in a large sauce pan, combine white sugar and corn syrup. mix well. bring to a light boil over medium heat. remove from heat, add peanut butter and mix well. then stir in vanilla extract. fold in crisp rice cereal and gently press into a oiled 9×13 glass pan. let cool.
either over a double-broiler or in a microwaveable glass bowl, melt ss chocolate chips and butterscotch chips. spread evenly over pan.
let stand in fridge for 15-20min until firm, cut into medium sized pieces. return to fridge and let topping solidify.
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