No-Bake Peanut Butter Pretzel Bars


These bars might be your new favorite snack.

peanut butter pretzel bars

Peanut butter snack bars!

Salty and sweet, these no-bake bars taste even better than peanut butter pretzel Luna Bars. But they confuse me: How can a recipe with absolutely no chocolate taste so good?

It just doesn’t make sense.

pb lunas

You know what else confuses me?

Moles. And protons and neutrons and electrons. But mostly, moles. I sat through an entire year of AP Chemistry and still don’t understand moles. Not in the slightest.

Until I learned to cook, I thought I disliked science. Only recently did I realize the reason for my animosity towards the subject: I just couldn’t figure out how our school science experiments applied to real life. (Even the more exciting experiments, such as growing plants in 7-up or red food dye… how on earth was I ever going to use the information gleaned from that study?)

But it turns out I do like some branches of natural science, such as the science of nutrition, and the science of cooking. (Edible experiments are the best!) My advice to science teachers: Ditch the moles.

Focus on pretzels and peanut butter!

peanut butter pretzel bars

Peanut Butter Pretzel Bars

(No-bake!)

Category: Healthy Peanut Butter Recipes.

  • 1 cup rice crispies (30g) (either brown or white)
  • packed 1/2 cup oat flour (70g) (see instructions for substitution)
  • 1/4 tsp salt (my pb also has salt)
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 5 tablespoons agave (Pure maple syrup will probably work)
  • 3 tablespoons pb (or other nut butter) (Or you can switch the proportions of peanut butter to agave.)
  • optional: handful of broken-up pretzels (I didn’t measure)
  • optional: double batch PB Magic Shell

Combine all dry ingredients. In a separate (large) bowl, combine wet and stir to form a thin paste. (If you store your pb in the fridge, you should warm it a little for easier mixing.) Pour dry into wet (not the other way around), and stir until evenly coated. Line a baking dish or tupperware container with a large piece of wax paper and pour the mixture into the dish. Fold the extra paper over the mixture and squish down as hard as you possibly can! Use a heavy object to really press it down. (The mixture will fill a 7×5, or about 2/3 an 8×8.) Stick the mixture in the fridge or freezer to harden before cutting into bars. Makes 6 bars. (If you can’t find oat flour, you can make your own by blending oats in the food processor. Just be sure to measure after blending.)

View Nutrition Information

peanut butter luna bars

For authentic Luna Bars, top with: Peanut Butter Magic Shell.

As stated earlier, you should make a double batch to coat the bars. Spread it on evenly. When the bars cool in the fridge/freezer, the tops will magically harden.

Question of the Day:

Did you have a least favorite subject in school?

Growing up, I dreaded science class, whether it was chemistry or biology or physics. People always told me how lucky I was to get good grades on Spanish and English tests without studying… Little did they know I once studied for an AP Chem test and still got a 25 (my worst-ever test grade). But you know what? I’m more proud of the C I earned in Chem than the As in subjects that came more easily. I worked hard for that C; it could have so easily been an F! Link of the Day:

oat-bars_thumb_3

Oatmeal-Raisin Cookie Bars

Meet Katie

Chocolate Covered Katie is one of the top 25 food websites in America, and Katie has been featured on The Today Show, CNN, Fox, The Huffington Post, and ABC’s 5 O’clock News. Her favorite food is chocolate, and she believes in eating dessert every single day.

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187 Comments

  1. Irina @ ChocolaTeaTime says:

    I loved Chemistry! But I was always a math/science person so to each their own I guess! And these bars look so so so delicious. I’m currently loving the salty+sweet combo…I’ve been buying spelt pretzels and nesting them into juicy dates for a quick snack.

    1. Sara Dane says:

      Spelt pretzels sound great…where do you get them?

  2. Sharan {College Girl Eats} says:

    Totally making these asap.

  3. Katelyn says:

    I made these today but I was just wondering, are the rice krispies suppose to go slightly soft? Mine are never quite as crunchy as Luna bars and I never know why :S

    1. Liz says:

      Mine were awesome!
      Crispy, chewy, perfect!
      Maybe you got stale crispies? lol

  4. Katie says:

    I actually liked (not loved) Chemistry. I think my favorites were Pi day and Mole day. On “Mole Day” (10/23 from 6:22am to 6:22pm), our teacher would bring us cookies! And we calculated the moles of flour and chocolate chips in them. Then we got to eat them. Food always makes class better.

    1. Chocolate-Covered Katie says:

      Wha? I want to go back to high school and be in your science class. Why did we not get to eat chocolate-chip cookies for mole day??? I definitely would’ve liked moles then ;).

  5. Liz says:

    These were AWESOME!!!!
    THANK YOU!

  6. LizAshlee says:

    What a fun snack!

  7. Anonymous says:

    Very good. I used honey instead of the syrup and crunched Special K cereal. I also used a tablespoon of applesauce instead of oil gor your hard shell. Healthier substitutions make this a guilt-free snack. Yum

  8. Fizziks says:

    For any of the confused, I can solve moles 🙂

    You know what a dozen is – just a count. 12. If it’s 12 it’s a dozen, be it doughnuts or shoes or pens in a pack. You may even remember a “gross” which is a dozen dozen, or 144, since it was a joke made at Bilbo’s birthday party in the book of LOTR.

    That’s all a mole is, except it’s a very large number. It’s useful in chemistry to compare groups of atoms or compounds because you can multiple the count (mole) by the mass of the atom or compound.

    And forgive me for using the term “gross” anywhere near this fantastic dessert!! Looks so nummy. But my science nerd couldn’t resist defending moles.

    1. Chocolate-Covered Katie says:

      I think if someone had explained it to me in terms of chocolate chips, I would’ve been much better off. My science teacher just was brilliant and the problem was he thought WE were all brilliant too. He skipped right over the basics!

  9. Kaydee says:

    Just finished up making these, I ended up substituting puffed rice for the rice crispies and you’re Better Than Nutella for the peanut butter. They are in the freezer right now, can’t wait to try them 🙂

  10. Lexi @ Cura Personalis Foodie says:

    Genius! I’m definitely making these soon. Love pb/pretzels !