Best Homemade O’Henry Bars Recipe
Are you looking for a easy dessert bars recipe? Try these homemade O’Henry bars. They feature a chewy base layer of oats topped with a delicious peanut butter chocolate mixture. You will love this homemade bar recipe!
O’Henry bars are a family favorite recipe of ours. It’s a popular recipe that has been around for a long time. I originally got the recipe from an old church cookbook, and it’s one of those recipes with a 10 marked beside it. It is definitely one of my favorite recipes – and based on the comments I get when I make them, many others agree!
Every time I bake O’Henry bars, I think that I should make them more often. In a way, this recipe reminds me of a delicious granola bar – except the chocolate is thickly layered on top. That’s important because I am a chocolate girl.
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I mean, really! Is there a better flavor combination then chocolate and peanut butter? I’ll eat it any time of the day. Lately, I will grab a spoon of smooth peanut butter and top it with a couple chocolate chips for a quick snack. But, if I have a pan of bars like these with chocolate and peanut butter together already, this will definitely be the treat I choose every time!
There is something to be said for the convenience of a good homemade bars recipe. Bar recipes are so simple because it’s one pan and you are done! The hardest part is waiting for these cookie bars to cool so you can enjoy them!
I like to make O’Henry bars when I need a dessert for a potluck. They are also great for an after school snack or when you want a sweet treat for dinner later tonight. I even make these bars around Christmas time to add to my holiday cookie trays.
If you’re looking for an easy dessert recipe with simple ingredients, try these O’Henry bars. Whether you call them Oh Henry Bars or O Henry Bars or O’Henry Bars, it’s all the same recipe. Make them soon. You’ll be glad you did!
O’Henry Bar Ingredients:
3/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 tablespoon vanilla
4 cups quick oats
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
How to Make O’Henry Bars:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 by 13 pan.
In a large bowl in your mixer, cream butter and sugars. Beat in corn syrup and vanilla. Add in the oatmeal, a little bit at a time.
Pat oat mixture into an even layer in your greased 9 by 13 pan. Bake the bars at 350 degrees for 15 to 18 minutes, or until slightly browned. Let cool.
Melt chocolate chips and peanut butter in a double boiler over medium heat. Stir chocolate and peanut butter mixture occasionally until the chocolate and peanut butter are completely melted and combined. You are making a milk chocolate-peanut butter ganache that is so good!
When bar mixture is cooled slightly, spread the melted chocolate chips mixture evenly over the top.
Chill. Cut into bars. Store at room temperature in an airtight container. You can refrigerate these bars as well, but they will be a little firmer when cutting.
Additional Notes:
The oatmeal cereal mixture can sometimes be sticky on the bottom of the pan when it comes time to cut and serve. Consider lining your pan with parchment paper instead of greasing it, to help reduce the stickiness.
I recommend using a mini serving spatula (like this one) to remove the bars. I love my mini serving spatulas and own multiples of them!
O’Henry bars can be made with creamy or crunchy peanut butter. Since I normally use creamy peanut butter, this is what I typically use in these delicious bars. Crunchy peanut butters adds a nice bit of crunch to the bars that many people enjoy!Â
Variations can also be made with the chocolate chips. I use semi-sweet chocolate chips almost exclusively. I think they have the perfect bit of sweetness for all my baking recipes, or, ahem, for snacking. However, you could certainly substitute milk chocolate chips or dark chocolate chips if you prefer.
However you make the bars, I hope you like these O’Henry bars as much as we do!
If you want a different recipe made with peanut butter and chocolate, try these rice krispy treats made with peanut butter and topped with chocolate.Â
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Easy O’Henry Bars Recipe
O’Henry Bars feature a sweet and chewy layer of oats topped with the perfect combination of peanut butter and chocolate. You will love this easy bar recipe!
- Prep Time: 10 m
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 0 hours
- Yield: 24 bars 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup butter, softened
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup light corn syrup
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
- 4 cups quick oats
- 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Grease a 9 by 13 pan.
- In a large bowl in your mixer, cream butter and sugars. Beat in corn syrup and vanilla.
- Add in the oatmeal, a little bit at a time.
- Pat oat mixture into an even layer in your greased 9 by 13 pan.
- Bake the bars at 350 degrees for 15 to 18 minutes, or until slightly browned. Let cool.
- Melt chocolate chips and peanut butter in a double boiler over medium heat. Stir chocolate and peanut butter mixture occasionally until the chocolate and peanut butter are completely melted and combined.
- When bar mixture is cooled slightly, spread the melted chocolate chips mixture evenly over the top.
- Chill. Cut into bars. Store bars in an airtight container – on the counter or the refrigerator – until serving.
Notes
O’Henry bars can be made with creamy or crunchy peanut butter. Variations can also be made with the chocolate chips. I use semi-sweet chocolate chips almost exclusively. However, you could certainly substitute milk chocolate chips or dark chocolate chips if you prefer.Â
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 piece
- Calories: 285
- Sugar: 20.3g
- Sodium: 76mg
- Fat: 15.6g
- Saturated Fat: 7.9g
- Carbohydrates: 34.8g
- Fiber: 2.8g
- Protein: 3.6g
- Cholesterol: 15mg
These look so delish!!! Do you have a copy of your church cookbook you would like to sell? Thank you!
Lisa
They are delicious, Lisa, but unfortunately I don’t have a copy of my church cookbook to sell. I’ve included some of the other recipes on my blog from the cookbook, including Parmesan Garlic Rolls, Runzas, Poppy Seed Chicken, Chicken Enchiladas and Buckeyes, to name a few. You can find all my recipes here – https://joyfullythriving.com/recipe-index/.
3sticks of margarine, is that 1 1/2 cups?
Yes, 3 sticks is 1 1/2 cups. BUT, the recipe calls for 1 and 1/2 sticks which is 3/4 cups of margarine. I don’t want your bars to turn out wrong! 🙂
Thank You! I just can’t thank you enough for posting this recipe. I have been looking for it for years. My mother used to make it when I was a kid 40+years ago. When we moved I lost track of that cookbook. But I kept searching. I couldn’t believe it when I saw your post. Thank you again for sharing. It’s those little things in life that just make you happy, isn’t it? Lol!
Oh, I’m so glad! Your comment made my day. I hope the bars taste as delicious as you remember!
Yum! Our family is trying out going gluten-free for the week, so glad to see these would still make the cut. 😉 Of course, cutting out sugar is a different story, but…
These look great! I don’t think I’ve had them before.
Exactly, Keren! I served them to a gluten-free friend at book club, and she loved them too. Cutting out sugar would be hard. Chocolate is simply too delicious! 🙂
And wouldn’t you know, I just made these tonight as a treat to eat with a friend! I went through all my chocolate recipes, and thought, “Hmmm, O’Henry bars are exactly what I need right now.” Just ate a couple, trying not to eat more. They’re SO GOOD!! Oh, and I know we both use regular PB a lot. . .just as good that way, if ya like!
Have you ever done the parchment paper trick–layering parchment paper in the pan instead of or before greasing the pan–so you can lift the whole thing out easily? I’ve seen it done with brownies, but if the oatmeal sticks, this seems like an ideal recipe to try it on.
That’s a good idea, Bethany. I have parchment paper on hand from buckeye cake, so I’ll have to remember that for next time, so I can give it a try.