Peanut Butter Bars for a Crowd

When you need to feed a crowd, this is the recipe that delivers. Three sheet pans, 8 dozen bars, and a straightforward press-and-bake method that’s hard to mess up. These peanut butter bars are dense, chewy, and absolutely loaded with peanut flavor.

The scale of this recipe is designed for bake sales, potlucks, church suppers, and school events. Twelve eggs, 2 cups of peanut butter, and 9 cups of sugar (white and brown combined) go into a dough that’s stiff enough to press into three 15×10 inch pans. Don’t try to mix this by hand. You need a stand mixer or serious arm strength to cream that volume of ingredients smooth.

Press the dough evenly into the greased pans. Uneven thickness means the thin spots overbake while the thick spots stay raw in the middle. Use the back of a wet spatula or your hands dipped in water to get a uniform layer.

Bake until the tops are golden brown, not just set. That golden color means the edges are slightly crispy while the centers stay chewy and soft. A dusting of powdered sugar after cooling adds sweetness and a clean, finished look.

Chef Tips

• Use creamy peanut butter for an even, smooth dough. Chunky works but makes pressing into pans harder.
• Let the bars cool completely in the pans before cutting. Warm bars crumble and stick to the knife.
• Cut with a sharp knife dipped in hot water for clean edges.
• These freeze well. Stack between layers of parchment paper and freeze for up to 3 months.

Variations

• Chocolate drizzle: Melt chocolate chips and drizzle over the cooled bars instead of powdered sugar.
• PB&J bars: Spread a thin layer of raspberry jam over the dough before baking.
• Half batch: Use 1 ½ sheet pans with halved ingredients for a more manageable quantity.