When I was pregnant, I craved sweets. Not like candy bars, but baked goods. Think cakes, cookies, muffins, things of that nature. The only problem was I was pregnant through the summer, and we didn’t have air conditioning. My husband didn’t appreciate coming home from a hot day at work to sit in a house that I heated up by running the oven for hours. I didn’t really enjoy it much either, but I wanted those baked goodies and I was willing to deal with the heat to get them.

After one particularly hot and long baking session, my sister came over for a visit. When she walked into the house, she turned around and walked right back outside. “What on Earth are you doing in there!” Is all she said. When I told her about my cravings she said, “Haven’t you ever heard of no-bake?”

Oh my gosh. Pregnancy brain. I had forgotten all about those kinds of sweets. I instantly took this recipe for peanut butter and chocolate bars off of NeighborFood to make the next time they need for something like that hit me.

Quick Tip: Make them crunchy with crunch peanut butter.

My husband was pretty happy I found these too. Not only did I stop heating up the house to unbearable temperatures, he really enjoyed the flavor. He loves the peanut butter and chocolate combination, and we serve these fresh right out of the refrigerator. It’s a nice cool treat on those hot summer days. I like to take these to potlucks and things like that now too. They are so simple and you only need a few ingredients. I just keep them on hand just in case those old cravings come back… pregnant or not!

• Prep Time: 12 minutes
• Refrigerate: 2 hours
• Total Time: 12 minutes

NO BAKE CHOCOLATE OAT BARS

To Make this Recipe You’Il Need the following ingredients:

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter
• ½ cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3 cups rolled oats
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup dark chocolate chips
• ¾ cup chunky peanut butter

Instructions

1. Line an 8-inch-by-8-inch baking dish with parchment paper, and set aside.
2. In a medium saucepan, combine the butter, brown sugar, and vanilla extract. Heat over low heat, until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved.
3. Add the oats, cinnamon, and kosher salt. Cook, stirring constantly, for 4 to 5 minutes.
4. Pour half of the oat mixture into the prepared baking dish. Spread out the mixture evenly, pressing down.
5. In a small microwave-safe bowl, combine the chocolate chips and the peanut butter. Heat on high in the microwave, in increments of 40 seconds, stirring in between each increment, until melted and fully combined.
6. Pour ⅘ of the chocolate mixture into the pan over the pressed oats, reserving about ¼ cup for drizzling. Top with the remaining oats and drizzle with the remaining ¼ cup chocolate mixture.
7. Refrigerate for 4 hours, or until set.

Enjoy!!