The Girl Scout cookie favorite made into a healthy bar with only 6 ingredients and ready in under an hour. My Tagalong Peanut Butter Cookie Bars will help you resist cookie sale temptation.
Tagalong Peanut Butter Cookie Bars – Low Carb, Grain-Free, Gluten-Free, Sugar-Free, THM S, Keto
Ever since I ate the last Tagalong Cookie from my freezer stash last month I’ve been wanting to make more. But they were a little time-consuming… I’ll admit it. Making the dough, rolling it, cutting out circles, baking the circles, making the peanut butter, freezing the peanut butter, and then assembling all the parts and coating them with chocolate. Time-consuming. But delicious. I knew I needed an easier method.
There is just something about Girl Scout cookies. I’m not sure if it’s nostalgia or just the fact that they are only sold a couple times a year but when I see them I want them. Samoas, Tagalongs, Thin Mints, Trefoils. Bring em on. My goal is to make healthy versions of all of them.
Easy Press in Crust
The flavors of these bars are the exact same as the cookies but they are so much easier with a press in cookie crust and just 6 ingredients. And they don’t have any special ingredients except the sweetener.
How to make Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie Bars
To make these chocolate covered peanut butter cookie bars first you stir together the crust ingredients, press them into a baking dish, and bake.
Tips for the Peanut Butter Layer
While the crust is baking mix the peanut butter ingredients in the same bowl. No washing required. Gently spread that on the warm crust.
The key word here is ‘gently’. You should drop small dollops all over the crust and then wait a few minutes. This melts the peanut butter just enough that you can gently spread it.
Chocolate Topping
Melt the chocolate, drizzle on, spread. Cool and eat!
I hope you enjoy these Healthy Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Cookie Bars!
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Ingredients
Shortbread Cookie Layer:
- 3/4 cups almond flour
- 3 tbsp Trim Healthy Mama Gentle Sweet or my sweetener
- pinch of salt
- 3 tbsp butter softened
- 1 tsp vanilla
Peanut Butter Layer:
- 1/2 cup peanut butter
- 3 tbsp Trim Healthy Mama Gentle Sweet or my sweetener
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
Chocolate Layer:
- 3.5 oz 85% dark chocolate or sugar free chocolate chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350.
- In a medium bowl mix all the shortbread ingredients until combined. Press into the bottom of a square 8x8 baking dish.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.
- Meanwhile, combine the peanut butter ingredients. If your peanut butter is cold you can microwave it for 30 seconds to soften it.
- When the shortbread comes out of the oven drop little blobs of the peanut on top of it. Spread gently with a spatula. The heat from the cookie will help spread the peanut butter. Be gentle or the bottom layer can crumble.
- Melt the chocolate in the microwave or double boiler. Pour over the peanut butter. Spread gently. Put in the refrigerator until firm. Cut into squares and enjoy!
Notes
To sub in Swerve use 1.5 to 2 times the amount of sweetener called for.
Chelsea says
These were fantastic! Plan on making these again very soon!
Ashley Burdick says
What if I wanted to substitute the sweetener with monk fruit? Is that possible?
Taryn says
Yes, you can use a monk fruit sweetener like lakanto. Use a little more than the amount listed.
Jill says
My husband and son loved the bars but one question. The crust is so thin compared to your picture. And my husband and son also complained about it being so thin. I used my 8×8 pan. Is there a reason why? I know if I double the recipe it will be more carbs and that wouldn’t be good.
Taryn says
I’m not sure why the crust on your bars was so thin. If you double the crust each bar has 5 total carbs and 3 net carbs.
Tamra Dalton says
This was wonderful!! It really hit the spot! Thank you for your recipes!
Gale says
These are absolutely delicious, in fact, decadent!! I am finding that if it’s a recipe from you, I know it is going to be good!
Alaina says
This is delicious! The nutrition info is helpful, but what is the size of the serving for the info listed?
Taryn says
This makes 16 bars. Each is 2×2 and the nutrition is for one. I’m glad you like them!
Iris says
It’s 16 servings!
Mary Frances says
Unfortunately, my crust didn’t stay together – when I cut the slices the peanut butter and chocolate layers lifted off leaving nothing but crumbs behind. Maybe it needs more butter? In any case, if I try it again I’d use sugar-free chocolate as the 85% cocoa version tasted bitter like baking chocolate. Plus it has more carbs – some brands have a lot more!
Taryn says
You may have baked the crust too long. Or your oven temp may be too hot. That can cause it to be dry. And you may absolutely use sugar free chocolate. It is more expensive so I use 85% when I can.
Crystal Martin says
I just made these for the first time and they are so delicious! They definitely satisfy that chocolate/pb craving. I used 1 1/2 T Pyure for my sweetener and baked in my silicone bars mold. (my 8×8 pan got ruined) All this to say – perfect dessert! Thank you!
Quick little question. Do these need to stay refrigerated?
Taryn says
They should be fine at room temp for a few days. I store all my low carb baked goods in the fridge just to be safe.
Crystal Martin says
I usually refrigerate all my THM/low carb goodies too. I plan on making some to take on vacation this summer so good to know these can be out a day or so.
Thanks Taryn!
Cristy says
I just made these for the first time, and while they taste good, the crust separated from the peanut butter layer. I used a fresh ground PB (nothing in it but peanuts). Any idea why it would stick? So bummed.
Taryn says
I’m not sure why that would happen. I wonder if the fresh ground peanuts have more oil than the jarred stuff. You could try a little extra melted chocolate in between the crust and peanut butter as glue.
Mardi says
I made these for last night’s Thanksgiving, mostly so that my son, who is 12 and was recently diagnosed T1D, could enjoy dessert. I used granulated SWERVE, and I used 4 TBSP in each the crust and the peanut butter filling. I also used 1/2 cup + 1 TBSP Nestle Toll House chocolate chips. We got 16 squares and each square is 15 carbs of perfectness!!!! It took a long while for the shortbread crust to brown, and then about 30 minutes of cooling on a rack by the kitchen window (the cold breeze cooled it off!) before it was set enough for me to do the PB mixture, which in itself was a bit grainy from the SWERVE. Next time I plan on cutting out the SWERVE from the PB filling, since there is sweetner in the crust and in the chocolate. This is my first time on your site and I will be back. Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe
Ava says
I was hoping to try to make this today!The only peanut butter in my area, w/o waiting for an order is Jif Natural Peanut butter or Justin’s Natural Peanut Butter. Is it ok to use either of those? I will eventually put in an order for the Smuckers on Amazon but I wanted to make these today. 🙂 Thanks!
Taryn says
Any peanut butter will work. It’s just preferable to use one without added sugar.
Joy says
These were AMAZING!!! So so good, the first time my husband has asked me to please repeat a THM dessert recipe. I also appreciate that these are THM while also being grain free. I’m also off dairy so I subbed coconut oil in for the butter. Worked perfectly. I tried dropping the peanut butter mixture into small blobs on the very hot cookie crust, but it didn’t melt enough for it to be spreadable so I scooped all the PB blobs off into bowl and added a tablespoon or 2 of warm coconut oil to thin it out. Worked great, and made the PB mixture perfectly spreadable. I also doubled the recipe into a 9×13 glass pan, worked great and the cookies came out of the pan without any sticking whatsoever (which I was worried about). Thank you for such an incredible recipe!
Katherine says
Hello! I suspect I have an erythritol allergy and wondered if I could use just xylitol in this recipe?
Taryn says
Yes. If you use just xylitol you will need 1.5 to 2 times as much. If you are ok with stevia you can make my sweetener recipe with all xylitol and stevia and use that. Adding a little stevia stretches the other sweeteners to last longer. Joyfilledeats.com/sweetener
Tonya says
I have made these twice and LOVE them! I am having an issue with the crust sticking to the pan after I cut and try to serve. I am chilling it all before cutting/eating. Any suggestions? And P.S, Thanks – so YUUUUUM!
Taryn says
You could line your pan with parchment paper so it releases easier. Glad you like them!!