Peanut Butter Jelly Time

So I'm not a huge "Family Guy" fan, but I will admit that I regularly sing the "Peanut Butter Jelly Time" song because a) I love peanut butter jelly time, and b) it is a catchy little tune...Anyfood, there is no better union than PB and J. While peanut butter is delicious on its own (do I use an apostrophy there? I never know), it is enhanced with the jelly (much like Jeremy being great on his own, but he is enhanced since he married me :) And, to take it a step further, while sandos are delish, adding sugar, butter, and eggs make it absolutely DIVINE. Peanut Butter Jelly Bars. 'Nough Said.

Peanut Butter Jelly Bars
from Barefoot Contessa at Home
Makes 24 bars

Ingredients
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for greasing the pan
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
2 cups creamy peanut butter, such as Skippy (18 ounces) (okay, I've tried it with crunchy peanut butter and it does not work - the bars are WAY too dry and simply not enjoyable)
3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the pan
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 cups raspberry jam or other jam (18 ounces)
2/3 cups salted peanuts, coarsely chopped

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350*. Grease and flour a 9 x 13 x 2 inch baking pan.

2. In a bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed until light yellow, about 2 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, add the vanilla, eggs and peanut butter and mix until well combined.

3. In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the flour mixture to the peanut butter mixture. Mix just until combined. (This is very important because if you over mix, it will cause the dough to be dry and dense.)

4. Spread two thirds of the dough in the prepared pan, using a knife to spread it evenly. Spread the jam evenly over the dough. Drop small globs of the remaining dough evenly over the jam. Don't worry if all the jam isn't covered; the dough will spread when it bakes. (Actually, in my experience, it does not spread when it bakes, so I would recommend making sure the globs are v. small and cover most of the jam...) Sprinkle with the chopped peanuts and bake for 45 minutes, until golden brown. Cool and cut into small squares.

Bon Appetit!

I made these delightful treats for a friend who just had a baby. In order to actually get them made, I had to keep my Little Monkey entertained. Apparently his own toys no longer do the trick, but open up the cabinets and voila! Hours of entertainment!