If you love PayDay bars, you are definitely going to love this!!
It’s super fast to make your own at home and they are super yummy! Be sure to gently press the peanuts down once you add them in order to help everything stick together!!
Copy Cat PayDay Candy Bars
It’s super fast to make your own at home and they are super yummy!
Ingredients
- 2 cups peanut butter chips
- 7 ounces sweetened condensed milk (half a can)
- 1½ tablespoons butter
- 1 cup miniature marshmallows
- 3 cups dry roasted peanuts
Instructions
- Butter the bottom & sides of a 9x13 pan and place half of the peanuts in the bottom.
- Melt the chips and butter over medium-low heat. Add in condensed milk and marshmallows, stirring until melted and combined.
- Slowly pour mixture evenly over peanuts. Top with remaining peanuts and gently press down. Refrigerate to cool and set.
- Cut into desired serving size.
Notes
Ensure the baking chips you get are the type that are similar to chocolate chips.
These bars hold up best if refrigerated.
Updated 12/23 for improved consistency.
Nutrition Information
Calories: 616 | Carbohydrates: 49g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 41g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Cholesterol: 23mg | Sodium: 506mg | Potassium: 495mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 34g | Vitamin A: 175IU | Vitamin C: 0.8mg | Calcium: 125mg | Iron: 1.9mg
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Dessert
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Help! I love these. They taste amazing but I can’t get them to firm up enough to cut. This year I’m scooping by spoonfuls which isn’t a bad thing unless you are making cookie boxes for friends.
Hi Kathy, thank you for trying these. We just retested the recipe and have updated the recipe. There may have been some confusion on the amount of peanut butter chips so we updated it for consistency and improved results. I hope this helps!
Did not set . Have a cake pan full of peanuts and peanut butter… what did I miss?
Oh no, I am so sorry that happened Erica. We haven’t had a problem with these setting up, so I can’t say for sure what went wrong. But to salvage this batch you can pop them in the freezer to harden and enjoy slightly chilled to keep them intact.
Loved these and really easy to make! I prefer salty/sweet as opposed to sugary/sweet which is why I like PayDays. Thanks for the recipe!
sugary and sweet… are the same thing…
Taste delicious! But mine didn’t set you either followed recipe exactly.
Oh my goodness! You have changed my life with this recipe! My husband LOVES Payday bars but they have been super hard to find and that has been so frustrating! So I finally decided to try searching for a recipe and decided to make yours. He says they are BETTER than the originals!! Thank you!!
You’re so very welcome Leslie! So glad that you love these candy bars so much!
Pay Day wanna be’s: so awesome. My husband’s favorite candy bar can now be made at the drop of a hat at home!!!!! Looking foreword to more
1. You posted that the Peanut Butter Chips should be 12 oz. You provide a link to the product which is only a 10 oz package. Typically this recipe uses 2 cups of the Peanut Butter Chips which is equal to 16 oz. So effectively people are making this recipe with 6 oz less than what should be used to assure that the end product is solid.
2. You can not substitute regular peanut butter for the peanut butter chips. The chips are fats and solids that are used for baking and will retain their shape or will melt and when cooled it will firm back up. Peanut butter will not give this recipe the ability to harden up.
3. Regular marshmallows will work fine. The conversion is 14 mini equal to 1 regular size. 8 regular marshmallows equal 1 cup. For this recipe, a person can use 16 regular marshmallows instead of 2 cups of mini. In addition, the taste will not be affected. It’s the same product just a different size.
Mine too turned out very sticky, even after putting in the fridge. Not sure how to adjust the recipe. However, very tasty, even though messy gooey!
I am glad you enjoyed them, Susan! We haven’t had the problem of them not setting up, so I am not sure what happened.
Trouble getting it to set up!
Like soft fudge
Too many folks are having the same problem
The problem I’m having is not humidity, as the humidity is 15% here in Yuma, AZ
And yes, we have the A/C on!
Would suggest you revisit the recipe and try to correct this problem
Very disappointed
I’m sorry to hear that happened. I haven’t had a problem with these setting up so I can’t say for sure what went wrong.
Mine were very oily and did not set up. Putting them in the refrigerator helped but not for long. I think next time I will use less butter.
Could you use peanut butter instead of the chips?
We have only made this recipe as listed Patricia, if you attempt it with peanut butter let us know how it turns out. My only concern would be that the peanut butter wouldn’t harden as cooling to hold it all together.
Is this recipe supposed to be gooey? I followed the recipe exactly but you wouldn’t be able slice and eat it without putting on a plate and eaten with a fork.
I have found that sometimes humidity can make this recipe a little gooey. A very short time (like 5 minutes) in the fridge would help the candy to firm without making it hard to eat.
I like paydays
Us too!
I have tried at least a half dozen times to make these and although they are really good not one time have they setup properly.. As close as I came was when I saw another post that said don,t melt marshmallows and I found that if I wait for the marshmallows to melt it won’t setup
Sorry to hear that Steven, I haven’t had a problem with these setting up so I can’t say for sure what went wrong.
Can you taste the peanut butteryness(?) of the chips or is it rather masked by the other ingredients? I know that sounds strange but as much as I love peanuts, I ‘m not a fan of peanut butter. I want to make opinion nut rolls also so what flavor chips could I sub. I wonder.
What if they didn’t set up?
I haven’t had a problem with these setting up so I can’t say for sure what went wrong.
My favorite candy bar is Payday b/c it’s so good with coffee!! Thx for this great way to get an afternoon fix. Love this recipe.
Penny im glad i ran i,to you because what you make i enjoy
Pay Days were always one of my favorites! I am nuts for nuts. This will be fun to make for my work friends. Thanks.
WOW! I stumbled upon your website today and have fallen in love with so many of your recipes, and this one has officially made me a fan! My mother loves Pay Day bars so much, I can’t wait to make this for her. I’m making your Creamy Tomato Pasta Casserole tonight for a quick dinner.
Thank you.
Thank you Jeane! I hope you enjoy them!!