Caramel Crunch Bars

Yield: 24

INGREDIENTS

9 Graham cracker sheets

2 14-oz can sweetened condensed milk any fat content will do, I used one can fat free

1/2 C unsalted butter again, you can use light sticks of butter

1/2 C roasted peanuts I prefer the dry roasted

1 C miniature marshmallows

1 C (3-oz) coarsely crushed pretzels

4 oz bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate chips

2 T melted peanut butter for drizzling optional

DIRECTIONS

Line 9x13-inch baking pan with nonstick foil or grease regular foil generously.

1. Fit 7 1/2 graham cracker sheets along the base of the pan as tightly as possible. Crush up the remaining graham crackers to distribute crumbs between the cracks. This was a particular complaint among the original recipe- people felt the caramel leaked below the crackers and created a sticky mess.

2. Melt butter in a sauce pan over medium heat. Stir in sweetened condensed milk and turn up heat to medium-high, bring mixture to a boil and then reduce to medium-low to simmer. Stir mixture constantly until it thickens and turns amber in color. Time will vary depending on your stove top but with my gas range it took about 20-25 minutes (a little less if I cooked on medium heat but be careful not to burn and do NOT walk away from the stove).

3. Gently pour and smooth caramel over graham crackers.

4. Press peanuts, marshmallows, pretzels and chocolate over the caramel. To ensure that everything sticks and to give a toasted look to the marshmallows, I will turn on the broiler and put the pan in the oven for 2 min.

5. Drizzle peanut butter over top if desired.

Recipe Source: http://yum-yum-delish.blogspot.com/2011/02/second-times-charm.html