Christel's Sweet and Salty No Bake Peanut Butter Bars

Christel describes these as, "Kind of like a peanut butter cup, but better."

Faith note: I came across a similar recipe that uses graham crackers instead of pretzels. These would not give the "salty" taste to the bars, though. I really like this recipe. It is best when the pretzels are completely pulverized.

6 Tbsp.               unsalted butter, melted
1/2 tsp.               pure vanilla extract
4 oz.                   pretzel sticks, crushed (about 1 cup of crumbs) [best if completely pulverized, no chunks]
2/3 cup (171 gr)  creamy peanut butter, sugar free or sweetened
1 cup                  confectioners’ sugar, sifted
3/4 cup (5 oz.)    Ghirardelli® 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Baking Chips
3 Tbsp. (48 gr)   creamy peanut butter, sweetened 

Line an 8x8 inch pan with aluminum foil or parchment paper and set aside.

Place pretzels in a heavy plastic bag and use a rolling pin to crush.

In a large bowl, stir together butter and vanilla extract. With an electric mixer on low speed, add in the pretzel crumbs, 2/3 cup peanut butter, and the confectioners’ sugar. Mix until thoroughly combined. Press mixture into the prepared pan to form an even crust layer.

In a 2 cup microwave-safe bowl, combine Ghirardelli® 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Baking Chips and peanut butter. Microwave on medium power (50 percent) for 1 minute. Remove and stir. If chocolate is not melted, return to microwave and repeat heating step, stirring every 30 seconds to avoid scorching. (Must be warm enough to flow when poured over crust approx. 3 min.) Stir until smooth.

Using an offset spatula, spread chocolate mixture over the prepared crust layer. Refrigerate bars for at least one hour before cutting into squares or sticks. 

(Yields: 40 “two-bite” rectangles if cut 1” X 1 ⅝” or  16 dessert-sized squares if cut 2” X 2”)