First Published: April 20, 2015. Last updated April 16, 2025 for editorial improvements.
Table of Contents
🎥 Video
Sweet, salty, crunchy, and creamy—these Oh Henry Bars (or O Henrys, Scotcharoos…whatever your grandma called 'em) are pure peanut butter-chocolate magic. They come together in minutes, travel like a dream, and disappear even faster. No corn syrup here—just the classic, old-school version you grew up loving. Perfect for bake sales, potlucks, lunchboxes, or sneaky kitchen snacks with a cold glass of milk. Peanut allergy? Check the tips for easy swaps. Go ahead and make a batch…then maybe hide a few for yourself.
🧾 Ingredients
🔪 Instructions
Mix oats and sugars in a bowl. Add melted butter and stir well. Press into prepared pan and bake. Melt chocolate chips and peanut butter together and spoon over baked oatmeal base.
📖 Recipe
Oh Henry Bars
Print Pin Recipe Save Recipe Rate RecipeIngredients
- 4 cups oats, Old fashioned or quick
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup butter, melted
- 6 ounces chocolate chips
- 1 cup peanut butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350.
- Grease 13" x 9 ” pan or spray with no-stick cooking spray.
- Cover with parchment paper and spray with more no-stick spray if desired.
- Mix oats, sugar and brown sugar in large bowl.
- Pour melted butter over and mix well.
- Press into pan firmly and bake for 15 - 20 minutes.
- Cool.
- Melt chocolate and peanut butter together stirring to blend.
- Spread over cooled cookie base.
- Chill 1 hour…IF you can wait that long.
- Cut into 2 dozen bars.
Notes
- Old fashioned or quick oats are fine - just don't use instant oatmeal. It won't work!!
- Brown sugar- either golden or dark is fine. It's up to your tastes.
- Double check your products for gluten but these are, as far as I know, gluten free.
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This recipe has been tested several times. If you choose to use other ingredients, or change the technique in some way, the results may not be the same.
💭 Things to know
Expert Tip: If there are allergies to peanuts use almond butter, soy nut butter, or sunflower seed butter in place of the peanut butter. Or, your favorite alternative.
- Make sure you break up any lumps in the brown sugar.
- Peanut butter - creamy or chunky - just remember if you use chunky it will give the chocolate topping a lot of texture.
- Oh Henry bars can be made ahead, covered, and stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Or freeze them for up to a month. Thaw before serving.
- If it's hot you might want to store them in the refrigerator.
📖 Variations
- Add chopped peanuts to the top.
- Try using crunchy peanut butter.
- Sometimes I put chopped Reese's Peanut Butter Cups on top.
- Use white chocolate chips instead of chocolate.
- Add toasted coconut to the top.
- Sprinkle crushed graham crackers on top.
- Use milk chocolate chips.
- Try butterscotch chips in place of the melted chocolate chips.
👩🍳 FAQs
I've never had a problem with this but some have. You can line the pan with a piece of parchment paper and let it hang over the sides. When the bars are cool pull the parchment paper out and you'll be able to easily cut the bars. Plus no sticking!
It sounds like you baked them too long. start checking them at 15 minutes because ovens can be different in how they bake certain foods. These bars will tighten up as they cool so don't overbake!
📚 Related recipes
- This peanut butter pie is another chocolate and peanut butter masterpiece.
- In the mood for candy? These peanut butter truffles are delicious!
- I love this Reese's peanut butter cheesecake! It's dense and creamy.
What’s new? Check out my Restless Chipotle & Co. Store on Amazon where you'll find all kinds of nostalgic goodness! Thanks so much for being a part of Restless Chipotle!
These easy bar cookies are bound to bring back some amazing memories. You may even make some new ones for your own kids.
✍🏻 A note from Marye...
I have my mother's old Better Homes and Garden's cookbook, circa 1939... or something like that. It's super old.
It's got a lot of vintage recipes, the stuff I grew up on, but there is something I like better. Stuffed in the pages is a treasure trove of papers that Mom cut, collected, and procured for seven decades.
There are recipes that were my grandmother's, aunts', and ancestors unknown. There are recipes from brands that no longer exist and brands that are still around.
Memories. Memories with all of them.
This recipe for Oh Henry Bars with oatmeal is in there, faded, stained, and kind of frazzled looking but its appearance attests to the popularity of the recipe.
I've seen it called O' Henry Bars and plain Henry Bars depending on which cookbook I'm looking at. They're all the same. Yummy peanut butter and chocolate over a crunchy oat base.
Vintage recipes have a way of bringing back our memories with each nibble. I love making the dishes that I loved as a child and sharing them, along with the memories that go with them, with my kids and grandkids.
Things that no one makes anymore like Butterscotch Buckaroons and Peanut Butter Molasses cookies are flavors that are going to be forgotten and gone forever soon - and that would be a shame, don't you think?
These Rice Krispie Treats are another favorite recipe!
Cookie214 says
I've been making these for over 15 years and they always turn out really good. I have never had them be crumbly. Such a good recipe to have in your kitchen.
Jenny says
The video says bake the granola for 20-30 minutes, the recipe says 15-20 minutes. Could that be the reason some comments say it was crumbly?
Marye says
Could be but the video is newer so I used the time that it took that day.
amanda says
i tried these out and they didn’t hold up. they were quite crumbly. also i would not call them ohenry bars… ohenry doesn’t have oats in them…..
Marye says
Oh Henry Bars are a vintage recipe inspired by the candy bar but not a copy of it. The recipe dates from the early 1950s or before. There are several versions from a variety of vintage sources.
Mary says
These remind me of Muskoka Bars, a recipe I got and lost from a friend about 20 yrs ago! I’m over the moon happy I made these very delicious bars! Mary from Ontario
Marye says
So glad you liked them.
Liz says
I agree with the above comments - dry and crumbly! Followed the recipe to a T.
Marye says
I've not had that experience. Did you watch the YouTube video?