What's better than peanut butter and jelly? How about peanut butter jelly brownie bars! Layers of raw brownie topped with silky peanut butter and fruity jam all encased in a chocolate shell.
The perfect combination of peanut butter jelly and chocolate. Perfect for those of you who can't decide which one you like better. Because they are no-bake, they are really easy to make. These bars are also gluten-free.
WHAT'S IN THESE BARS?
RAW BROWNIE: The base is really easy to make and contains mainly whole food ingredients such as almonds, cacao powder, dates, and 100% peanut butter.
PEANUT BUTTER AND JELLY: Peanut butter can easily be substituted with alternatives if you or someone you know suffers from an allergy. Try tahini (sesame seed paste), sunflower seed butter, or other nut butter of your choice.
For the jelly, I used raspberries and strawberries. However, you can keep it to all strawberries or raspberries if you prefer. You could also try some different varieties to switch things up.
CHOCOLATE COATING: The chocolate layer is simply vegan-friendly chocolate melted with a little coconut oil. If you'd prefer to make your own chocolate you could try out my Dairy-free coconut milk chocolate recipe.
HOW TO MAKE THIS RECIPE
BROWNIE BASE
To make the brownie base, simply add the almonds, cacao powder, and salt to your food processor and blitz to a fine crumb. Next, add in the pitted dates and peanut butter and blend again until all the ingredients come together to form a dough.
Lastly, check the consistency of the dough, it should stick together between your fingers. If it's too crumbly at hit point then add the water if needed and blend again for about 30 seconds.
Press the brownie dough into the base of the baking pan using a spatula. Use the bottom of a flat glass to even out and compact the dough. Set aside in the freezer.
PB & JELLY LAYERS
For the peanut layer, you can use smooth or crunchy peanut butter. I like to use brands that are 100% peanuts and don't have any added oils. You'll want to melt the peanut butter and oil together so that it's easier to spread it on top of the brownie base. Add the peanut butter and coconut oil to a bowl and gently heat over a double boiler. Whisk well until they have melted together.
Remove the brownie base from the freezer and spread the peanut butter on top in an even layer, then place it back in the freezer to set for about an hour.
If you're using frozen berries, I'd recommend taking them out of the freezer about an hour in advance to allow them to defrost a little.
Prepare the jelly by adding the frozen strawberries and raspberries to a saucepan and bringing them to a simmer on medium heat. Allow the berries to continue to simmer for about 25-30 minutes, stirring every so often to prevent them from sticking to the pan. Then add in the maple syrup and stir well.
Lastly, add in the agar-agar and bring the mixture to a boil. Whisking continuously, bring the temperature down to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes.
Remove from the heat and pour the jelly on top of the peanut butter layer. Allow it to cool for 5 minutes before transferring the baking pan back to the freezer to set for 4 hours (or preferably overnight).
Once set, remove the brownie slab from the baking pan and cut it into 16 bars.
CHOCOLATE COATING
Make the coating by melting the vegan-friendly chocolate and coconut oil together over a double boiler.
Next line your counter with parchment paper, as you'll be resting the bars on it to set later.
Carefully dip each bar into the chocolate. Use a fork to rest the bars on and use a spoon with the chocolate on top to coat each side evenly.
Sit the chocolate-coated bars on the parchment paper and sprinkle with some sea salt for garnish.
Store in the fridge in an airtight container, or freeze and defrost before serving.
WHY MAKE THIS RECIPE?
- Plant-based and vegan-friendly
- Full of flavor
- Fruity, nutty, and chocolatey!
- Guaranteed crowd pleaser
- Perfect for peanut butter jelly lovers
- Easy to make
- Minimal ingredients
- No-bake
- Egg-free
- Dairy-free
- Free from any animal-derived products
More no-bake brownies
Love this recipe? Please leave a 5-star ★★★★★ rating in the recipe card below and consider leaving a comment as well, thanks!
Stay in touch with me through social media @ Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok, and Facebook. And subscribe via email to get all our new recipes!
Description
Equipment
Ingredients
BROWNIE BASE
- 2 cups (286 g) almonds
- ½ cup (43 g) cacao powder
- ½ teaspoon (2.5 g) sea salt
- 12 (288 g) medjool dates, pitted
- 2 tablespoons (30 g) peanut butter
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) water
PEANUT BUTTER LAYER
- 1 ⅛ cups (290 g) peanut butter
- 1 tablespoon (15 g) coconut oil, solid
JELLY LAYER
- 1 ⅓ cups (192 g) frozen strawberries, use fresh if preferred
- 1 ¼ cups (150 g) frozen raspberries, use fresh if preferred
- 3 tablespoons (44 ml) pure maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons (9.86 g) agar-agar powder
COATING
- 11.3 oz (320 g) vegan-friendly chocolate
- 1 teaspoon (5 g) coconut oil, solid
Instructions
- Line a 7" x 11' baking pan with parchment paper.
- If using frozen berries, take them out of the freezer at this point to allow them some time to defrost a little.
- To make the brownie base, add the almonds, cacao powder, and salt to your food processor and blitz to a fine crumb.
- Add the pitted dates and peanut butter and blend again until all the ingredients come together to form a dough.
- Lastly, check the consistency of the dough and add the water if needed. Blend again for 30 seconds.
- Press the brownie dough into the base of the baking pan using a spatula. Use the bottom of a flat glass to even out and compact the dough. Set aside in the freezer.
- For the peanut layer, add the peanut butter and coconut oil to a bowl and gently heat over a double boiler. Whisk well until they have melted together.
- Remove the brownie base from the freezer and spread the peanut butter on top in an even layer. Place back in the freezer to set for about an hour.
- Meanwhile, prepare the jelly by adding the frozen strawberries and raspberries to a saucepan and bringing them to a simmer on medium heat.
- Allow the berries to continue to simmer for about 25-30 minutes, stirring every so often to prevent them from sticking to the pan. Add in the maple syrup and stir well. Lastly, add in the agar-agar and bring the mixture to a boil. Whisking continuously, bring the temperature down to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and pour the jelly on top of the peanut butter layer. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before transferring the baking pan back to the freezer to set for 4 hours (or preferably overnight).
- Once set, remove the brownie slab from the baking pan and cut it into 16 bars.
- Make the coating by melting the chocolate and coconut oil together over a double boiler. Line your counter with parchment paper and carefully dip each bar into the chocolate.
- Sit the chocolate coated bars on the parchment paper and sprinkle with some sea salt for garnish.
- Store in the freezer in an airtight container.
Nutrition
© addictedtodates.com. All content and images are protected by copyright. If you want to share this recipe, please do so using the share buttons provided. Do not screenshot or republish the recipe or content in full. instead, include a link to this post for the recipe.
