It’s Friday. The Friday before a three-day weekend. It’s been a long week here at our house so I am ready for the break.
I thought maybe you could use something decadent to start the weekend off right.
Check out the layers.
Homemade Snickers
from Instructables contributer Canida
Ingredients:
2 cups chocolate chips or coarsely chopped bar – divided in half (I used milk chocolate chips)
1/2 cup butterscotch chips, divided in half
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter, divided into 3 – 1/4 cups
5 1/2 tablespoons butter – divided into 4 Tbsp and 1.5 Tbsp
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup evaporated milk, divided in half
1 1/2 cups marshmallow fluff
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups salted peanuts, or nut of your choice, chopped (Just to be clear, that is 1 1/2 cups of nuts that are then chopped, not 1 1/2 cups chopped nuts.)
1 pound chewy caramels
Optional Chocolate Coating: (as if the bars themselves aren’t enough)
1 cup chocolate chips or chopped bar
1/4 cup butterscotch chips
1/4 creamy peanut butter
Line a 9×13 dish (I used Pyrex) with parchment paper. Fold it so it fits in the corners and drapes over the sides and ends of the pan. This not only helps later when cleaning the pan but the extra flaps makes it a cinch to lift the bars out when the time comes to cut them up.
Bottom Chocolate Layer
In a microwave-safe bowl, combine 1 cup chocolate, 1/4 cup butterscotch chips and 1/4 cup peanut butter. Heat the bowl in 20-second increments, thoroughly stirring each time, until all the ingredients are melted together smoothly.
Pour the mix into the pan and spread it into an even layer. Then stick the pan in the fridge or freezer to set for at least an hour though longer is better.
Nougat Layer
In a small pot, combine 4 Tbsp butter, 1 cup sugar and 1/4 cup evaporated milk and heat on low until the mixture melts, mixes and starts a bubblin’. Stir as necessary. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in 1 tsp vanilla, 1/4 cup peanut butter and 1 1/2 cups marshmallow fluff. Keep stirring until all the ingredients are melted and smoothly combined. Then let it cool a bit.
Pour over the top of the chocolate layer, again making sure it’s even. Pop it back into the fridge/freezer to set.
Caramel and Peanut Layer
Either in a pot for the stove or a microwave-safe bowl for the microwave, combine together 1/4 cup evaporated milk, 1 1/2 tablespoons butter and a pound of caramels. Heat (in increments in the microwave) and stir frequently until the caramels melt into the milk and butter. Allow to cool enough so it won’t burn you.
Coarsely chop the 1 1/2 peanuts/preferred nuts and stir into the caramel.
Pour this caramel/peanut mix over the nougat layer, making sure it’s all even. Again, stick it in the fridge/freezer to set.
Top Chocolate Layer
Like the bottom layer, combine 1 cup chocolate, 1/4 cup butterscotch chips and 1/4 cup peanut butter in a microwave-safe bowl. Heat the bowl in 20-second increments, thoroughly stirring each time, until all the ingredients are melted together smoothly.
Pour the mix into the pan over the caramel layer.
Stick the pan back in the freezer to set.
When the bars are completely set, remove the pan from the fridge/freezer and pull up on the parchment paper to lift the bars out of the pan. I found the most success (and least amount of squishing-the-layers-out-the-sides) cutting the bars when they were basically right out of the freezer. When I let them warm up at all, I caused lots of squishing. So, using a big sharp knife and cut to your desired size.
Store in the fridge/freezer though allow them to warm a bit before consumption so no one loses a tooth.
If you want a more uniform look, like if you are trying to make them look like real Snickers bars, you will want to dip them. First, cut off the edges and make your cuts square and tidy. Then combine together 1 cup chocolate, 1/4 cup butterscotch chips and 1/4 cup peanut butter. Melt like you did for the top and bottom layers. Take each individual bar and dip each of the edges in the melted chocolate mix. Set on wax paper and stick in the fridge/freezer to set.
Sorry for the sweating chocolate. Humidity is mean!
Have a great weekend. See you next week.
Take care.
-amy c
