Whole Wheat PB Dark Chocolate Bars

These bars are schizophrenic.

One one hand, they’re all “oooh, I’m a dessert, all soft and chocolately and chewy”, and then the next minute they’re all “respect me because I’ve got whole wheat in me, and powdered peanut butter which is fat-free and yet still fantastically tasty”.

Can a dessert be crave-worthy and low-fat/high-fiber at the same time? Yes, and yes. Resoundingly so.

So the trick is the PB2 powdered peanut butter, which I’ve been using a bit of a lot of lately (so I’ll stop for a bit because it must be really irritating for you if you don’t happen to have a container of this at home. One solution is to buy some, but I don’t want to get bossy with you.). Taking the fat out of peanut butter and leaving it full of its peanutty goodness (protein and TASTE) is great, but add in some whole-wheat pastry flour and then you have a healthy party happening. When dark chocolate enters the scene, well- enough said.

Adapted from the PB2 recipe…

1/2 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup PB2 powder (or any brand of powdered peanut butter)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup light brown sugar, packed (or Sucanat)
1/3 cup melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips or chunks
1/2 cup nuts, chopped and toasted (optional)
1. Preheat oven to 350° and grease a foil-lined 8″ pan.
2. In a medium bowl, combine flour, PB powder, salt, baking powder & soda, and sugar.
3. In a medium bowl, melt butter, then stir in egg and vanilla until well combined. Add to flour mixture and stir until combined. Pour into prepared pan.
4. Bake for about 20 minutes and remove from oven to cool on a rack. Cut into bars and enjoy!
Tips:
- No whole-wheat pastry flour? Shame on you, baker! Get some! (But if you are stubborn and won’t buy any, then use real whole-wheat flour, but take out 3-4 teaspoons before adding to the recipe since it’s so much heavier.)
- No peanut butter powder? Hm. This might work (although it’s so not recipe tested, so sorry about your luck if it’s a colossal screw-up. If it’s a magnanimous success, I want all the credit. Naturally.): melt a half cup of real PB in with the butter, and add an extra 1/4 cup of flour.
- Sucanat? Yes! It’s a healthier sugar- and although it does taste “healthy”, it’s good for people in this world who are really okay with healthified desserts. (All six of you.)
- What if I want thicker bars? Use a smaller pan and bake for 5 minutes longer. Voila.
- Enjoy. You don’t even need to eat in moderation since these are so not bad for you. :)
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March 13th, 2013 | More Sweets Please | 2 Comments | Tags: Brownies & Bars, Chocolate, Peanut Butter

2 Responses and Counting...

dottie 03.13.2013

just had my 11 year old make this. love how easy it is to make!
More Sweets Please

I love to hear about 11-year olds baking- start ’em early!!