PB&J Bars

These crumbly, buttery PB&J Bars have a nostalgic peanut butter and jelly swirl in the middle, and are really fun for bake sales!

When I get a craving for something, one of two things happens:

1. I eat that certain something, like a smart little lady should, and go on with my day.

Or 2. I decide to ignore my craving and stupidly end up eating everything else in the house–chocolate, chips, candy, and still feel unsatisfied (does anyone else do this?)

Fortunately, I’ve learned over time that I need to deal with the craving straight away.

So the other day when I really wanted peanut butter and jelly, I sat down with my notepad and thought, what do I want to make?

I didn’t want just a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. This craving demanded more than that.

I thought, what if you put peanut butter and jelly with shortbread?

And this recipe was born.

This is some serious peanut butter and jelly satisfaction.

You make one shortbread dough, then divide it in half. Take half of the shortbread, and press it into your pan:

Then take the other half, and add some oats to it (ya know, because you can).

Throw the shortbread pan in the oven for 25 minutes to give it a little head start, then spread on your jam. Add little dollops of peanut butter:

Then go to town with your spatula and swirl them together:

On goes the oat shortbread crumble:

And then into the oven until bubbly and slightly crisp. Cut into bars:

And you’ve got childhood nostalgia shortbread bar buttery deliciousness. Mmm.

And if you like milk, this is totally a “sit down and eat with a big glass of ice cold milk” kind of situation.

PB&J Bars

Servings: 16

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Cook Time: 50 minutes mins

Total Time: 1 hour hr 5 minutes mins

These crumbly, buttery shortbread bars have a nostalgic peanut butter and jelly swirl in the middle, and are really fun for bake sales!

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Ingredients

• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp almond extract
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 6 oz almond flour, by weight (1 cup, packed)
• 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
• 1 cup of your favorite jam
• 6 tbsp creamy peanut butter

Instructions 

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar for a minute or two, until the granulated sugar is no longer visible. Add the almond extract and salt and mix briefly. Add the flour and almond flour, and mix until the dough is crumbly. Split this dough in half. Take one half of the dough and mix in the old fashioned oats, and place it in the refrigerator. Take the other half of the dough and press it out into an 8×8 baking dish with your fingertips. Partially cook the dough by baking it for 25 minutes, then remove the shortbread from the oven.
• Spread the jam evenly over the top of the partially baked shortbread, then add the peanut butter by spooning on dollops. Swirl the two lightly with a spatula, then take out the reserved shortbread oat crumble, and sprinkle it all over the top. Bake for an additional 25 minutes, until the bars are lightly browned on top. Let the bars cool completely, then cut into squares. Enjoy!

Nutrition

Calories: 347kcal, Carbohydrates: 37g, Protein: 6g, Fat: 20g, Saturated Fat: 8g, Cholesterol: 31mg, Sodium: 46mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 17g

Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Author: Fifteen Spatulas