These five-ingredient, 10-minute peanut bars will be your new afternoon pick-me-up

If making candy sounds like an intimidating project, allow me to introduce you to my new friends: no-bake peanut bars. They’ll remind you of a PayDay bar, but they also share some DNA with Rice Krispies treats.

There’s no fussy caramel to make, and you don’t even need a thermometer. Or multiple bowls! Everything comes together in a single pot in mere minutes.

The double dose of peanuts in the form of whole nuts and peanut butter means these bars are really filling, even in small portions. (You could easily cut more than the suggested 24 bars and still have a satisfying bite.) They’re perfect for a protein-packed morning or afternoon pick-me-up. Eat with a glass of cold chocolate milk if you want to get that whole peanut butter cup thing going.

A note on the peanut butter: Be sure to use a creamy peanut butter labeled as “natural,” without additives. When we tested this with regular creamy peanut butter, the bars were too greasy.

MAKE AHEAD The bars can be refrigerated in an airtight container (between layers of parchment or wax paper) for up to two weeks.