Homemade Snickers Bars

Have you ever tasted Heaven? I have, it was caramel-y and chocolatey and luscious. This weekend, I made homemade snickers bars and they were amazing. Little pieces of chocolate joy and love. I found the recipe on instructables.com which offers all kinds of how-tos when it comes to pretty much anything. The process wasn't hard, but it was very time consuming. There are four layers and each one has to freeze before adding the next layer. It took over two hours, but a lot of it is just waiting time. I was very pleased with the final result though. Gooey, rich, decadent, melty-ness... The perfect treat.

Begin by lining a 9 x 13 baking dish with plastic wrap or wax paper.

In a bowl, combine 1 cup of milk chocolate chips, 1/4 cup of butterscotch chips, and 1/4 cup of peanut butter. Microwave in 20 second intervals until melted

Pour chocolate mixture into prepared dish. Place in refrigerator or freezer.

Meanwhile, place 4 tablespoons of butter, 1 cup of sugar, and 1/4 cup of evaporated milk in a pot over medium heat. Cook until smooth, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and add 1 teaspoon of vanilla, 1/4 cup of peanut butter, and 1 and 1/2 cups of marshmallow fluff. Stir until combined.

Pour nougat mixture over chocolate layer and place in fridge or freezer.

Prepare caramel mixture by placing 1 pound of caramels, 1/4 cup evaporated milk, and 1 1/2 tablespoon of butter in a pot over medium-low heat, stirring frequently. Once melted, remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.

Chop up 1 1/2 cups of salted peanuts

Add peanuts to the caramel and stir until combined. Add peanut and caramel mixture over the nougat mixture. Place in fridge or freezer.

In a microwave safe bowl, melt 1 cup of chocolate chips, 1/4 cup butterscotch chips, and 1/4 cups of peanut butter in twenty second intervals. Pour the mixture over the caramel and peanut mixture. Freeze or refrigerate until set

After the bars have hardened (I kept mine in the freezer overnight), cut them into your desired size.

If you'd like, you can melt 1 cup of chocolate chips, 1/4 cup of butterscotch chips, and 1/4 cup of peanut butter in a microwave safe bowl and coat the sides of the bars. If you decide to do this, refrigerate or freeze them again so they are able to harden.

Homemade Snickers Bars (from instructables)

Makes about 60 1 in by 1 in bars

Ingredients

• 14 ounces milk chocolate (1 bag or 2 cups), divided in half (1 cup each)
• 3 1/2 ounces butterscotch chips (1/2 cup), divided in half (1/4 cup each)
• 3/4 cup of creamy peanut butter, divided into three parts (1/4 cup each)
• 5 1/2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, divided into 4 tablespoons and 1 1/2 tablespoons
• 1 cup of sugar
• 1/2 cup evaporated milk
• 1 1/2 cups marshmallow fluff
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups salted peanuts(or nuts of your choice), chopped
• 1 pound of chewy caramels (1 bag)

          Optional (for coating the sides of the bars)

• 7 ounces milk chocolate (1 cup)
• 1 3/4 cup butterscotch chips (1/4 cup)
• 1/4 cup peanut butter

Method

1. Line a 9 x 13 baking dish with plastic wrap or wax paper. Make sure the edges of wrap go over the edges of the dish so you are able to remove it more easily.

Bottom Chocolate Layer

1. In a microwave safe bowl, combine 1 cup of chocolate chips, 1/4 cup of butterscotch chips, and 1/4 cup of peanut butter. Microwave the mixture in 20 second increments, stirring each time, until melted.
2. Pour mixture in the prepared pan, spreading in an even layer. Place in refrigerator or freezer until set.

Nougat Layer

1. Meanwhile, prepare the nougat layer by combing 4 tablespoons of butter, 1 cup of sugar, and 1/4 cup of evaporated milk in a pot.
2. Heat the mixture of medium heat until the mixture melts and begins to bubble, stirring occasionally.
3. Remove from heat and add 1 teaspoon of vanilla, 1/4 cup of peanut butter, and 1 1/2 cups of marshmallow fluff. Stir until smooth and let cool slightly
4. Pour nougat layer on to chocolate layer, spreading in an even layer. Place in refrigerator or freezer until set.

Caramel Layer

1. Combine 1/4 cup of evaporated milk, 1 1/2 tablespoons of butter, and caramels in a pot.
2. Heat the mixture on low, stirring frequently, until melted. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.
3. Sprinkle peanuts in caramel mixture, stirring to combine.
4. Pour over the nougat layer, spreading in an even layer.
5. Place in refrigerator or freezer until set.

Chocolate Layer

1. In a microwave safe bowl, combine 1 cup of chocolate chips, 1/4 cup of butterscotch chips, and 1/4 cup of peanut butter. Microwave the mixture in 20 second increments, stirring each time, until melted.
2. Pour mixture on top of caramel layer, spreading in an even layer. Place in refrigerator or freezer until set. They will be soft set in about an hour, but hard set (and much easier to cut) after 8-10 hours or overnight.

Cutting Bars and Optional Coating

1. Remove bars from dish by lifting the plastic wrap or wax paper out of the dish.
2. Cut strips longways, cutting the bars between 3/4 to 1 inch.
3. Place bars in the freezer, so they can harden again
4. Cut the strips into smaller bars. I cut mine into a "fun-size" (about 1 in by 1 in).
5. In a microwave safe bowl, combine 1 cup of chocolate chips, 1/4 cup of butterscotch chips, and 1/4 cup of peanut butter. Microwave the mixture in 20 second increments, stirring each time, until melted.
6. Dip the edges of the bars in the chocolate coating.
7. Refrigerate or freeze until set.
8. For storage, I would recommend the refrigerator or freezer. I kept mine in the fridge, that way they were not rock hard, or completely melty. I would not keep them at room temperature for extended periods of time, or you will have Snicker's Soup, another one of my favorites, though...

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