Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars

This dessert is not for the faint of heart. Seriously, make sure you have a lot of milk on hand for this one. With two sticks of butter AND over a whole jar of peanut butter in a 9 x 13 pan; do not eat this if you are on a diet. However, it's worth cheating on your diet because they are GOOD! You bite into one and it's like the best peanut butter and jelly sandwich you have ever had times ten.

I like to leave big mounds of the dough as the topping, but if you want to spread it out for a more uniform look, best of luck to you! It's a sticky dough, and I like the look of the jelly layer peeking out in between the peanut butter. I would suggest strawberry or raspberry jelly with this but feel free to mix it up!

Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars
from Ina Garten
Makes 24 bars

1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 cups (18 ounces) creamy peanut butter (recommended: Skippy)
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 cups (18 ounces) raspberry jam or other jam
2/3 cups salted peanuts, coarsely chopped

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Grease a 9 by 13 by 2-inch cake pan. Optional: Line it with parchment paper, then grease and flour the pan.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the 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 all ingredients are combined.

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.

Spread 2/3 of the dough into the prepared cake pan and spread over the bottom with a knife or offset spatula. 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; it will spread in the oven.

Sprinkle with chopped peanuts and bake for 45 minutes, until golden brown. Cool and cut into squares.