Reese’s Peanut Butter Chocolate Ooey Gooey Bars are a dream dessert for all you chocolate-peanut butter lovers out there. The chocolate cake bottom and cream cheese top stay true to the ooey gooey cake recipes I have, and with the added peanut butter and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups nestled in there, it will be your new favorite sweet treat! For another chocolate-peanut butter delight, try my Chocolate Peanut Butter Ooey Gooey Cake!
Reese’s Peanut Butter Chocolate Ooey Gooey Bars
It’s amazing that the original ooey gooey cake was actually a mistake! In a St. Louis Bakery, John Hoffman used the wrong amounts of sugar and flour resulting in a cake that would not rise, and that was super dense and heavy. Well, people loved it and he called it ‘gooey butter cake’.
I have been a little obsessed with all things “Ooey Gooey” since I head that story. My first attempt was the Ooey Gooey Butter Cake and then I moved on to Chocolate Ooey Gooey Cakes and Lemon Raspberry Ooey Gooey Cakes, just to name a couple. Now I am adding Ooey Gooey Bars to my list! These Reese’s Peanut Butter Chocolate Ooey Gooey Bars are my latest and I hope you love them!
Reese’s Peanut Butter Chocolate Ooey Gooey Bars Recipe
Just like an ooey gooey butter cake, this recipe has the cake bottom and sweet cream cheese layer on top. But, with the added layers of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and peanut butter, this recipe sets the dessert ‘bar’ pretty high?. So, we could break this recipe down into three parts–the cake, the filling, and the topping.
Cake Ingredients (full recipe below)
- Chocolate fudge cake mix (Or, make your own mix by stirring together all the dry ingredients in my (Homemade Chocolate Cake Mix)
- Butter
- Egg
Filling Ingredients
- Chopped miniature Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups
Topping
- Peanut butter
- Miniature Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups
- Cream cheese
- Eggs
- Butter
- Confectioners’ sugar
- Whipped cream
How to Make Ooey Gooey Bars
To get started making these Reese’s Peanut Butter Chocolate Ooey Gooey Bars, preheat the oven to 350°F and prepare a 13×9-inch baking pan by lining it with parchment paper. Next, get out a couple of mixing bowls to make each part of this recipe.
- In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, one stick of melted butter, and one egg. Use a wooden spoon or rubber spatula to mix these ingredients together. Do not follow the instructions on the cake box. Just use the mix with the butter and egg.
- Press this mixture into the prepared pan.
- Top the cake mix layer with chopped Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, setting some aside for garnish.
- For the topping, get a second mixing bowl. Combine the peanut butter and miniature Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups in the bowl. Heat this up in the microwave in 20-second intervals, stirring until smooth and creamy.
- Add the cream cheese to the peanut butter mixture and use an electric mixer to combine for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing as you add them.
- Beat in melted butter.
- Finally, add in the confectioners’ sugar and beat everything together until well incorporated.
- Pour the peanut butter mixture over the layer of chopped Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and bake for 35-40 minutes. The bars will be a bit jiggly after baking them, but be sure to not overbake. Let the bars cool completely and refrigerate for a couple of hours before serving them. Even after chilling the bars, they will be a bit gooey. Store them, covered, in the refrigerator for up to a week.
- Top with whipped cream.
Rules for Ooey Gooey Cake Success
- Make sure you prepare your pan correctly. I lined my pan with parchment paper, but you could also use non-stick spray or my homemade pan release.
- Room temperature ingredients are a good idea. Set your cream cheese out a few hours before you plan on making these amazing bars.
- Don’t undermix ingredients. Whip the cream cheese until it is light and fluffy, which usually takes 2-3 minutes.
Looking for More Dessert Bar Recipes?
Ingredients
CAKE
- 1 box (15.25 ounces) chocolate fudge cake mix
- 1/2 cup (1 stick or 113g) butter, melted
- 1 large egg, room temperature
FILLING
- 2 1/4 cups (about 25) miniature Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, chopped
TOPPING
- 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter,
- 15 miniature Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
- 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1/2 cup (1 stick or 113g) butter, melted
- 3 cups (375g) confectioners' sugar
- Whipped cream, for garnish
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350°F.
CAKE
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Prepare a 13×9-inch baking pan by lining it with parchment paper or spray with a non-stick spray.
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In a large bowl, add the cake mix, one stick of melted butter, and one egg and mix until well combined. Press the mixture into the prepared baking pan. (The mixture will be thick)
FILLING
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Sprinkle the chopped Reese's Peanut Butter Cups over the cake mix mixture.
TOPPING
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In a separate bowl, combine the peanut butter and miniature Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. Melt in the microwave in 20-second intervals, stir until creamy.
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Add in the cream cheese and use an electric mixer to beat for 2-3 minutes until creamy.
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Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well.
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Add melted butter and beat until combined.
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Add in the confectioners' sugar and mix until incorporated.
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Pour the peanut butter mixture over the chopped Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and bake for 35-40 minutes. Do not overbake; the center will be slightly jiggly, but it will be done. Let the bars cool completely before refrigerating for about 2 hours. After bars are chilled, cut into squares and enjoy! Note: Bars will still be gooey after chilling.