Easy 4-ingredient chocolate covered peanut butter bites make the perfect afternoon treat or mini dessert for any time of day.
Maybe it’s the change of seasons or simply the post-work snack attack, but having a little something sweet in the late afternoon has become a necessity as of late.
And a little bit does just the trick. So when brainstorming something that would be chocolatey, crunchy, salty, and downright irresistible, these mini 4-ingredient chocolate covered peanut butter bites were born.
The crunchy sweet inner layer of brown rice crispy cereal is candied with peanut butter and maple syrup and then frozen for a short time before cutting into mini squares. Using melted bittersweet dark chocolate, the peanut butter squares are dipped quickly in chocolate and sprinkled with sea salt.
A few things to note:
- The recipe uses a 9×9 inch baking pan to create a thin peanut butter crispy layer that is easier to dip, flip, and coat. I have tried this in an 8×8 pan, which makes for thicker squares that require a longer time in the freezer to harden and don’t coat quite as “neatly”.
- If your all-natural peanut butter is already salted, you may want to reduce the amount of sea salt called for in the peanut butter mixture.
- The recipe instructs you to allow the coated squares to dry and harden on top of a piece of parchment and not on a wire rack as seen in the photos. This makes for a smoother bottom and infinitely easier removal.
So, whether you have that late afternoon snack attack or need a fun after-school treat, these chocolate cover peanut butter bites fit the bill (if they make it that long!).
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- Yield: 40 pieces 1x
Ingredients
- ½ cup maple syrup
- ½ cup all-natural unsalted peanut butter**
- 2 cups brown rice cereal (I use Erewhon brand)
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 12 ounces bittersweet non-dairy dark chocolate (broken into pieces or in chip form*)
- 1 tablespoon sea salt (for sprinkling)
Instructions
- Line an 9×9 baking pan with parchment paper.
- In a small saucepan, combine maple syrup, peanut butter, and ¼ teaspoon sea salt over low heat stirring occasionally until mixture is completely incorporated and smooth.
- In a medium bowl, place brown rice cereal and pour peanut butter mixture on top. Stir mixture until the rice cereal is completely coated. Transfer rice cereal mixture to prepared baking pan and using an extra sheet of parchment paper, press mixture into pan. Be sure to pack the mixture down firmly into an even layer. Place pan in freezer for 30 minutes to an hour until layer has hardened. Remove from freezer, use parchment to lift hardened layer out of baking pan and place atop a cutting board (layer will be thin). Cut into squares about an inch or slightly larger.
- Place chocolate into a microwavable safe bowl and melt chocolate in microwave for 30 second intervals, stirring after each interval until mostly melted.Stir until lumps are smooth. Allow chocolate to cool for a few minutes before coating squares.
- Chocolate coating: Cover a cookie sheet with a piece of parchment paper. Place square in bowl of chocolate, flip with fork to coat, allow extra chocolate to drip off from fork, and place onto prepared piece of parchment paper. Wiping the bottom of the fork against the side of the bowl is helpful. Sprinkle with sea salt. Repeat until all squares are coated. Place cookie sheet in refrigerator until chocolate has hardened. Your hands will inevitably get sticky and chocolatey – it helps to have a wet paper towel nearby.
- Store in an airtight container.
- NOTES
- *I used Baker’s bittersweet chocolate bars. Enjoy Life Brand chocolate chips would be a good alternative.
- **If using salted peanut butter, you may want to reduce amount of sea salt called in the recipe.
- Category: Dessert
