This is what a Reeses peanut butter cup wants to be when it grows up.
It’s a good thing that I just recently figured out how to make these things because now they are all I can think about. It’s become an obsession that I suspect will last until I finish off the lot of them, stashed back there in the refrigerator in a ridiculously futile attempt to hide them from myself. Seriously easy, unbelievably decadent and full of healthy fats and fiber (but let’s not get crazy, health food they are not) these nibs of nutty butter are going to make you love them, too.
If you are a full out almond butter nut (get it? nut? harderhar – okay I’ll stop) like I am then you will want to try these. You don’t even have to turn the oven on. Bad habits made easy.
You’re welcome. 😇
Almond butter, unsalted butter (I love, love, love, Kerrygold grass-fed-happy-cow butter – because let’s face it, if you can feel good about eating butter – why wouldn’t you?), powdered sugar and graham cracker crumbs in nearly equal amounts will get you a gorgeous batter that defies you not to dive in head first. Try to contain yourself, it’s going to get even better in a minute.
Go ahead and spread that into a 13 x 9 inch baking pan that you have lined with wax paper. It’s going to be very thick and not particularly easy to spread, but that’s okay. This is worth your commitment, I promise. Make sure the wax paper hangs over the edge on both sides. Very helpful when you go to lift them out, and we want to keep it simple.
Now don’t get any crazy ideas and attempt to make this in a smaller 9×9 inch pan – which I must admit, crossed my mind for sure – but these guys are so rich that the limited level of thickness the bigger pan allows is absolutely perfect. Get the batter as smooth as you can….as in, do a better job than I did here! Go ahead and pop this in the fridge while you get your chocolate melted.
You’ll need about a cup of chocolate chips. I used the dark chocolate ones, but go ahead and use the semi-sweet (like the kind you would use in chocolate chip cookies) or even milk chocolate if that’s what gets you out of bed in the morning. If you are feeling confident in your skills go ahead and melt them in your microwave. If you are not feeling quite so cocky (I’ve messed up a lot of chocolate this way) get out a glass bowl that fits over a saucepan. Add about an inch or two of water to the saucepan and get it to a boil, then turn it down to a simmer. You have made yourself a double boiler and this is the foolproof way to melt your chocolate, just be sure not to let any water get into it. Perfectly melted chocolate every time!
Spread your chocolate evenly over the top of that beautiful almond butter batter,
and finish it off with a generous layer of sliced almonds and a liberal dusting of sea salt. Don’t skimp on the salt here……it brings out the flavors of the chocolate and the almonds like nothing else can AND adds a satisfying crunch. Oh, yum. Now, I know this is the hard part, but take this back into the refrigerator for some set up time. One hour is minimum….the longer they chill out the better.
Use those handy wax paper handles to cleanly pull out the entire slab of this work of art, and set it on a cutting board. Search out a sharp serrated knife and get to work! You can make these as large or small as you like, but remember, they are super rich so err on the more delicate side. Of course if you are anything like me the small ones only add up to a higher number consumed.
Gluttony Exposed.
Recipe below:
- 1 1/2 cups smooth almond butter (preferably natural, no sugar added)*
- 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup dark chocolate chips**
- 2/3 cup slivered almonds
- sea salt or kosher salt
- Prepare a 13 x 9 pan by misting with non stick spray and lining with wax paper, letting the paper hang over both sides.
- In a medium bowl, blend the first four ingredients together until smooth and well combined. Beaters will give you the creamiest results but you can do this by hand as well.
- Spread the almond butter mixture evenly into the prepared pan. Place in refrigerator.
- Melt the chocolate over a double boiler until smooth. You can also use a microwave for this.
- Spread the melted chocolate evenly over the top of the batter. Sprinkle liberally with the slivered almonds and sea salt.
- Place back in the refrigerator to chill for at least an hour, but the longer the better!
- Once the batter is cold and firm and the chocolate is set, remove the entire lot of it from the pan by pulling it up with the wax paper.
- Use a sharp, preferably serrated knife to cut into squares.
- This should give you about 24 bars! ***
- *Peanut butter would obviously work as well.....
- **Use milk chocolate chips if you want to go all the way Reese's old school style!
- ***I don't recommend cutting these any bigger....holy smokes...but do keep in mind they are a bit of a bugger to cut and may crack on you here and there, but who cares!
- Make sure to keep these stored in a cool place.
