Thick peanut butter cheesecake filling on top of a salty pretzel crust, stuffed with Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, and a chocolate drizzle on top.
I adore the combination of peanut butter, chocolate, and pretzels. I have plenty of recipes on this website filled with desserts combining the three! It’s the perfect trio. Salty, sweet, chocolatey, crunchy, peanut buttery, decadent.
You’re going to start with a pretzel crust. Yes, a buttery crust made from pretzels! Crushed pretzels, sugar, and melted butter. You’ll need 1.5 cups of crushed pretzels, which is about 3 cups of actual pretzels. Grind the pretzels up as much as you can. And make sure no one is sleeping in your house when you do so. Hard pretzels in a food processor is L-O-U-D.
Mix the ground up pretzels with the melted butter and sugar and press into your pan. Bake the crust for about 10-12 minutes as you prepare the filling. This salty pretzel crust can also be used for my S’mores Brownie Pie, Key Lime Pie Bars, or these Snickers Cheesecake Bars (yum!).
The pretzel crust is sort of crumbly. There’s no way around it. Pretzels cannot be ground up as finely as graham crackers, so just expect a few crumbs when you cut into and bite into these bars. Have a napkin handy!
The cheesecake filling is easy peasy. Cream cheese, egg, sugar, vanilla extract, and creamy peanut butter. Beat all that together until smooth and mix in several Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups (the more, the merrier!). Pour on top of your pretzel crust. Bake for 30-ish minutes. Chill the bars for 3 hours before cutting into squares. Waiting is torture. Pure torture.
A little chocolate drizzle is the cherry on top, no? Melt a few chocolate chips with some peanut butter (yep, more peanut butter), and drizzle on top of each cheesecake bar. The drizzle is completely optional, but I never say no to more chocolate and peanut butter.
These cheesecake bars are so good it’s scary. If you do NOT like sweet and salty desserts, this recipe is not for you. The crust is made from salty pretzels—so yes, the crust will be salty! The peanut butter cheesecake filling is undoubtedly the creamiest cheesecake on the planet.
What I love most about these bars is how thick the filling is. You won’t even believe it will fit into a tiny 8-inch square pan. It will practically fill the entire pan. These bars are so thick and monstrous. It’s glorious. They’re crunchy, creamy, salty, sweet, and dangerously addicting. Quite frankly, I think I found my new favorite dessert! And yours, too. 😉
Peanut Butter Cup Pretzel Cheesecake Bars
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Total Time: 4 hours, 10 minutes
- Yield: 16 bars
- Category: Bars
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Thick peanut butter cheesecake filling on top of a salty pretzel crust, stuffed with Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, and a chocolate drizzle on top.
Ingredients
Pretzel Crust
- 1 and 1/2 cups (120g) very finely ground salty pretzels (about 3 cups whole pretzels)
- 3 Tablespoons (35g) granulated sugar
- 7 Tablespoons (99g) unsalted butter, melted
Peanut Butter Cheesecake Filling
- 16 ounces (452g) full-fat brick cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (125g) creamy peanut butter
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 10 regular sized Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, chopped (or 20 small)
Chocolate Drizzle
- 1 Tablespoon (15g) creamy peanut butter
- 1/4 cup (45g) chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line bottom and sides of an 8-inch or 9-inch square baking pan with aluminum foil, leaving an overhang on all sides. Set aside.
- For the crust: In a food processor or blender, pulse salty pretzels into a fine crumb. See photo above for how it will look. Stir the pretzel crumbs, sugar, and melted butter together in a medium sized bowl. Press evenly into the lined pan. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to slightly cool as you prepare the filling.
- For the filling: Beat cream cheese, egg, sugar, peanut butter, and vanilla extract together with a hand or stand mixer until smooth and creamy, about 3 full minutes. Fold in the chopped Reese’s cups and spread the mixture over crust. Bake for 28-32 minutes, or until the cheesecake has set up and the edges are lightly browned. Allow to cool completely in the refrigerator for at least three hours. Lift the foil out of the pan and cut into squares.
- For the drizzle: Melt the peanut butter and chocolate chips together in a small bowl in the microwave. Stir until smooth and drizzle over squares.
- Store bars in a covered container for up to 10 days in the refrigerator.
Notes
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 8-inch Square Baking Pan or 9-inch Square Baking Pan | Food Processor/Blender | Glass Mixing Bowl | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand)
- Double Batch: Recipe can easily be doubled and baked in a 9×13-inch pan. Baking time will vary, about 45-55 minutes.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Hi, could you also add pretzel pieces in with the peanut butter cups?
Hi Ruby, that should work just fine. Enjoy!
Hi Sally – your recipes are truly delicious! Made this a few weeks ago and will be making again for a birthday soon! I was wondering if it be possible to bake these in muffin tins for individual portions. If so, how long would you need to bake them?
Thanks for all the amazing recipes!
Hi AJ, that should work just fine! We’d use the baking times for these mini cheesecakes as a guide.
I use this pretzel crust for so many things and really love it with a plain cheesecake bar and strawberry topping. Also love these peanut butter bars with the chocolate topping. We love cheesecake in this house!
HI Sally! Thank you so much for your wonderful blog – definitely have been the star of many a gathering, thanks to your amazing baking recipes. I was hoping to bake these cheesecake bars for Father’s Day but I’m wondering if I can just make them without Reese’s cups? Please let me know your thoughts!
Hi Julie! That should work just fine. Since the filling will be thinner without the peanut butter cups, the bake time may be shorter but keep a close eye on it. You could also try adding chocolate chips or peanut butter chips instead. Let us know how it goes!
Any suggestions for crust other than pretzel or graham crackers? Thank you
Hi Diane, How about an Oreo Crust?
I’m making for a friend’s birthday to drop off on her porch while she birthday shelters at home. Thoughts on using the topping from your peanut butter cheesecake bars for this recipe? Also, I’m nervous about the crumbly pretzel crust – any suggestions to combat this? Half graham crackers? Or just get over it?
https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/chocolate-peanut-butter-cheesecake-bars/
Also, would it be ok to make the crust and cheesecake the night before, refrigerate overnight, and then add the topping from the chocolate peanut butter cheesecake bars? I’m assuming I would halve that recipe because this recipe calls for an 8×8 tin?
Hi Sean! The chocolate topping from my chocolate peanut butter cheesecake bars would be great on these! Pretzel crusts are always more crumbly than graham cracker crusts, so feel free to swap and use all graham crackers or half graham crackers.
Hi Sally! Do you think I could double this recipe and make it in a 9×13 pan? Thank you!
Hi Valerie! Yes, you can double this recipe for a 9×13 inch pan. Unsure of the exact bake time, but at least 40 minutes.
Wow these are incredibly good! I had a bunch of leftover pretzels from an appetizer party I wanted to somehow use. I had all of the other ingredients so I thought I’d give this recipe a whirl. So glad I did. The pretzel crust is EVERYTHING!
The recipe is creative and easy to follow. Comes together quickly. Thank you so much, it’s a keeper for sure.
Hi Sally,
I made these last night and followed your recipe exactly, and they are literally the most delicious cheesecake bars I’ve ever eaten in my life. Thank you so much for the best dessert recipe out there! You’re a dessert genius!
I have been eyeing up this recipe for several weeks. I finally made it for my family over the 4th of July weekend. It turned out to be disappointing though. I don’t know if I did something wrong but it was kind of dry and lacking in peanut butter flavor. I baked it the minimum amount of time and the edges were only slightly brown. Unfortunately, I ended up taking over half of the pan home with me as no one seemed to care for them.
Is it possible to use maybe a Graham cracker crust instead of pretzals crust?
Definitely. Here is my favorite graham cracker crust. https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2014/03/25/lemon-blueberry-cheesecake-bars/
Hi Sally,
If I want to make these a little less thick (so I can get more bars out of the recipe), could I use the recipe as is in a 9×13 pan and just bake for a shorter length of time? I have the recipe as is in my oven now and I can’t wait to try them!
I fear a 9×13 size pan would really be stretching it. But give it a shot! Let me know.
I made these today for a teacher’s “back-to-school” potluck picnic. I am excited for my colleagues to try them. I’ve been snitching as I arranged them on the plate, and my oh my….how YUMMY! I did make a pretty major change though, and I’m very happy with the outcome. I used the Oreo crust from your Snickers cheesecake bar recipe instead of the pretzel crust. I was apprehensive to read about the crumbly-ness of the pretzel crust, so tried the Oreo crust hoping it would hold together better, and it was beautiful….no crumbling! AND very tasty with the peanut butter cups. Thanks for sharing TWO AMAZING recipes!
I am making these today—-they look fabulous! I need to make a larger batch—can I double the recipe and put in a 9×13 pan?
Hey Darla! You sure can. For about 45-55 minutes. Keep a close eye on them at 40 minutes though.
Sally – do you grease the pan before you put the crust in it?
No – just use aluminum foil without greasing.
Sally, as of last night I was a first time visitor. After I made this recipe this morning, I think I’m hooked for life! Thanks so much for this phenomenal recipe and keep up the amazing work!
Hi Sally-
Fairly new to your site. LOVE it! Have drooled over many of your recipes. I made these Peanut Butter Cup Pretzel Cheesecake Bars yesterday – one word – Decadent! My kids want to nominate me for Mother of the Year now that they’ve tasted these. Thank You for all your hard work and creativity.
I always use a very sharp knife and wipe it clean between cuts. 🙂