Revel Bars

These bars are one of our favorite dessert recipes and are great for bringing to parties or potlucks. The chocolate peanut butter version, listed below, is the one we like best. The bars are chewy and chocolatey -- there's nothing quite like them!

Ingredients:

- 1/2 cup plus 6 tablespoons butter, softened
- 2 cups brown sugar, packed
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup whole wheat flour (can substitute white flour if necessary)
- 3 cups quick-cooking rolled oats

- 1/2 cup peanut butter
- 1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
- 1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk (low-fat if desired)
- 1/2 cup peanuts
- 2 teaspoons vanilla

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 15x10 inch baking pan.

In a large bowl, beat the butter with an electric mixer for 30 seconds. Add the brown sugar and baking soda. Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in eggs and 2 teaspoons vanilla until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer, then stir in any remaining flour by hand. Stir in the rolled oats.

For the filling: in a medium saucepan combine the peanut butter, chocolate chips, and sweetened condensed milk. Cook over low heat until chocolate melts, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat, then stir in the nuts and 2 teaspoons vanilla.

Pres 2/3 (about 3 1/3 cups) of the rolled oats mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan. Spread the filling evenly over the oats mixture. Use your fingers to work the remaining oat mixture into flat pieces of various sizes, and place these pieces on the chocolate filling.

Bake 20-25 minutes or until the top is lightly browned (the chocolate filling will still look moist). Cool on a wire rack, then cut.