Fudgy Peanut Butter Squares

It's been a fun past couple days. We've taken over toilet paper duty, for rationing purposes, so our room has packages and packages of it. I thought it would be funny to build a wall for my roommates who dont have wall out of it. We sent pictures to the administration.. It got a couple of laughs. And then, one of the girls "stole" a whole package, so E and I have been going back and forth between stealing it back and having her take more toilet paper. It's just been funny. In baking land, I finally decided to buy some peanut butter (because I haven't made anything with that in aaaages) and corn syrup, for an arm and a leg. I came home last night, after a tiring day of school and an hour long meeting with M and decided to bake these Fudgy Peanut Butter Squares. Chocolate and peanut butter are a classic and winning combination and one that I haven't profiled since the Crispy Bars so I thought I was due. Making these bars required first making a crumbly peanut butter base, pressing it into a pan, and baking it. The topping was a moist brownie batter. Truthfully though, moist is not even a good description. They were beyond that. The recipe called for corn syrup which somehow resulted in a delicious, crystalline, fudgy texture. The contrast of the chocolate against the crunchy peanut butter base was brilliant. But just imagine this. Fifteen girls who smelled something baking, crowding around my single counter kitchen, waiting anxiously for that something to come out of the oven, all the while insisting that they didnt really need to be cooked completely before being edible... The line was enormous, and the girls even locked others out so that they could have first dibs! It was intense! They insisted on having them fresh out of the oven, without cooling... and I had no choice but to oblige! These bars, with all the pressure riding on them, met with unanimously rave reviews. They disappeared into eager hands within seconds. I almost didnt have a chance to photograph but one of my girls SMB, took pictures of the final product for me. Arent they great???

Fudgy Peanut Butter Squares

adapted from KAF Bakers Companion or Cookie Companion

Crust:

4 tbsp butter

1/3 cup peanut butter

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

1 1/4 cups flour

Filling:

3/4 cup unsweetened baking chocolate

8 tbsp butter or margarine

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup light corn syrup

1 cup plus two tbsp sugar

1 cup flour

2 eggs

Chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350.

For the crust: In a medium bowl, place the margarine and peanut butter.
Cream until soft and well blended.
Add the vanilla and sugar,
and blend to combine.
Add the flour.
Beat until the mixture is crumbly but homogeneous.
Press into a parchment lined 9x13 pan. Bake for ten minutes. Set aside while you make the filling.Place the margarine, chocolate and corn syrup in a saucepan. Melt.

Add the sugar, salt and flour and blend until combined.

Add the eggs one at a time, blending well after each addition.

Add the chocolate and fold in. Pour the mixture on top of the cooled crust. Bake for 22-24 minutes. The top should look shiny and feel set. Dont overbake!!!

Remove from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Cut into small pieces. Enjoy!!!