These easy keto peanut butter bars are the ultimate low carb treat! They are completely sugar free and grain free, and my kids swear they taste like Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.
Trigger warning! If peanut butter is your kryptonite, you may just want to look away for a while. Because these keto peanut butter bars are bound to make you weak in the knees. They are no bake bars, and so easy to make, even your kids could do it on their own.
If you’ve followed me for a while, you know that peanut butter is my jam. I have so many delicious keto peanut butter recipes, and about a zillion ideas in my brain for more. I’m never ever going to stop making delicious sugar free treats with peanut butter. Never ever. Don’t even TRY to convince me otherwise.
Some of my most popular keto peanut butter desserts include: Keto Peanut Butter Brownies, Keto Peanut Butter Dirt Cake, and the brand new but insanely popular Keto Peanut Butter Pie.
My recipe for these no bake peanut butter bars has been around forever, almost from the moment I started blogging. It used to be part of a very old collaborative low carb cookbook, but I decided to share it on the blog back in January of 2016. And today, I decided to update it with a new new video.
So now I can show you just how insanely easy these are to make.
Is peanut butter keto?
This is a question I get from readers frequently. And it stems from a misunderstanding about what the keto diet really is.
The most basic definition is as follows: a keto diet is any diet that keeps you in ketosis. The food itself is not “keto” because anything in tiny quantities will not kick most people out of ketosis. This means that even a small bite of banana or potato could be part of a keto diet, if you really wanted to work it into your macros.
This is not something I really recommend, since tiny amounts of old high carb favorites are not very satisfying. They may also trigger cravings and you could easily find yourself overeating.
So why do some people say peanut butter is not keto? Because there are many specific keto “programs” and keto “coaches” that have approved and not approved food lists. And because peanuts are technically legumes similar to beans, some programs have put them on the naughty list.
There is nothing about the lowly peanut that makes it keto or not keto. It’s actually quite a low carb food choice. So if you are like me, and simply do keto your own way (which is whatever way that keeps you in ketosis), then peanuts and peanut butter can be part of your healthy diet.
I don’t recommend eating it by the spoonful or even eating it every day. But the occasional keto peanut butter treat is usually not a problem for most keto dieters.
How to make easy keto peanut butter bars
Did I mention how easy these no bake bars are to make? Yes? Well let me say it again: they are ridiculously easy. They take only 6 basic ingredients, and come to together in about 15 minutes.
My recipe for keto peanut butter bars takes peanut flour, and I get a number of questions about what that is and whether you can use other keto flours instead. Here’s what I can tell you:
- Peanut flour is a good choice for a number of reasons. Peanut flour is basically peanuts that have been roasted and ground to a fine powder, so it helps intensify the peanut butter flavor of the bars.
- The powdery consistency is what gives these bars their unique texture. The dough becomes like cookie dough and is soft enough to be pressed into a pan but firm enough that the bars are solid at room temperature.
- Peanut butter powder and PBFit are essentially the same thing and work just as well. Just make sure that whatever you choose, it does not contain any added sugars. The original PBFit has sugar, but there is also a sugar-free version made with monk fruit. This will make your bars sweeter so you may want to cut back on the powdered sweetener.
- You can use almond flour but it has a higher fat content than peanut flour, so you will need more of it to achieve the same dough-like texture. I actually recommend a combination of almond and coconut flour to get the right consistency: about 2 cups almond flour and ¼ cup coconut flour.
- You will know you have the right consistency, no matter what flour you use, when the dough holds together and really feels like cookie dough. Actually, the consistency is more like play dough. A big edible ball of low carb play dough!
How to store Keto Peanut Butter Bars
The great news is that because these bars have nothing in them that spoils easily, they can be made well in advance.
I recommend storing them in the fridge in a covered container, so that they don’t get overly soft. They do stay firm at room temperature for a few hours, if you don’t live in a hot climate. The chocolate topping could get mighty soft and melty in the summer!
They can last up to 3 weeks, if properly stored and refrigerated. To freeze, I would wrap up the bars tightly in plastic wrap, to avoid freezer burn. They can be frozen for several months.
Ready to make these delicious and easy No Bake Peanut Butter Bars?
More keto recipes that use peanut flour
- Keto Peanut Butter Blossoms
- Keto Peanut Butter Cookies for Two
- Keto Peanut Butter Eggs
- Peanut Flour Cake
- Keto Peanut Butter Scones
Keto Peanut Butter Bars
Ingredients
Peanut Butter Bars:
- ¾ cup butter melted
- ¾ cup peanut butter melted
- ½ cup powdered Swerve Sweetener (more if you like it sweeter)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups peanut flour the roasted, defatted variety
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Chocolate Glaze:
- 3 ounces sugar-free dark chocolate chopped
- 2 tablespoon butter
Instructions
Peanut Butter Bars:
- Line an 8x8 or 9x9 pan with wax paper or parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, combine melted butter, melted peanut butter, sweetener, vanilla, and salt. Stir in peanut flour until dough comes together (it will be like a dough, not like a batter).
- Press dough firmly and evenly into prepared baking pan. To really get it even, cover it with more wax paper or parchment paper and use a flat-bottomed glass or measuring cup to press).
Chocolate Glaze:
- Set a heatproof bowl over a pan of barely simmering water, and add the chopped chocolate and butter. Stir until melted and smooth.
- Pour over bars and use a knife or offset spatula to spread to the edges. Refrigerate 1 hour until set.
Suzanne says
One of my all time favorites of Carolyn’s. These taste great, and are easy to make. Definitely a “go-to” recipe when I want something sweet. Great combo of chocolate and peanut butter.
Erin @ Dinners, Dishes, and Desserts says
Chocolate and peanut butter are my favorite together – love these bars!
Gerry Speirs says
Classic!!
Jennifer Blake says
Peanut butter – good, chocolate glaze – good, no bake – good! So simple and delicious!
Katie | Healthy Seasonal Recipes says
I love that these are no-bake and so simple!
Jennifer Farley says
These are delicious!
Claire says
I bought some peanut flour at a small whole foods store in a local town, just because I had never seen it before. But until I found this recipe I had no idea how to use it.
I admit I didn’t use sugar-free chocolate, just regular chocolate, but they were delicious!!!
And I have NONE left!!! So I think the family agree.
April says
oh my gosh, YUM. Making these ASAP!
Annie says
Hi Carolyn! These would be such a perfect Christmas treat! I am confused by the comments about the sweetener amount. Is it a total of 3.4C. sugar equivalent? I don’t see the stevia extract listed in the ingredients, just the 1/2C. Swerve. Could you clarify it for me? I would like to use a THM sweetener but not quite sure how to adjust the amounts. Thank you so much!
Carolyn says
Hi Annie…I ended up changing the recipe to just Swerve so sorry if that’s confusing. Swerve measures like sugar so you can just base it on that.
Annie says
Thanks for letting me know! Will be trying these out soon for Christmas treats!
Gerry Speirs says
Best combo ever!!!
Erin @ Dinners, Dishes, and Desserts says
Yes, chocolate and peanut butter is everything!
Jennifer Farley says
Obsessed!
Carolyn says
Aren’t we all?
Bridget says
Where do you get your sugar free chocolate? The link you have here says $52 for 3oz of chocolate. I’ve never bought sugar free chocolate so unsure if it will be at a local grocery store.
Carolyn says
Unfortunately, the sellers on Amazon sometimes don’t list things properly. Check out this link instead, it has the Lily’s Baking Bar for a much more reasonable price. http://amzn.to/2zCLkyc
Amy says
Just made these. I thought I had peanut flour, went to grab it and it was pumpkin seed flour….. so did 1/2 pumpkin seed flour and 1/2 almond flour. We are so limited in the UK to get good flour/sugar free stuff. They are surprisingly delicious and perfect for the fall season…. might add a touch of cinnamon next time. Nice alternative but I’m still a die hard peanut butter fan. Thanks for all you do! Love your recipes and your book is spectacular!!!!
Carolyn says
Sounds pretty great to me!
Michelle Gessner says
These were ABSOLUTELY delicious! My husband wanted more chocolate in the ratio, but I thought they were PERFECT! Thank you!
Susan says
Carolyn, how did you go about making and editing this video as you mentioned at this time it was new for you. Thanks!
Carolyn says
Premiere Pro.
Shari says
Liquid steve extract… I have Sprouts brand liquid stevia. Would that work???
Carolyn says
It certainly should!
Cory Dahlkamp says
OH MY GOSH!!!!!! These are amazing! Easiest and most delicious THM dessert I have ever had. Do these freeze well?
Carolyn says
I have no idea, they never last long enough for me to try. 🙂
Larissa Arias says
I want these bad. Lol. My kids got a lot of Reese’s eggs yesterday at easter. Can I use coconut oil in place of the butter? I also have butter extract I can add in for the flavor. Do you have any suggestion on how much? Thanks for the recipe!!
Carolyn says
yes, you certainly can. Just replace the butter in the same amount.
Diane says
Would THM Peanut Flour work in these?
Carolyn says
Probably!