Chocolate-Peanut Butter Bars

Prep: 20 minutes Bake: 27 minutes Oven: 350

2 cups quick-cooking rolled oats
1 3/4 cups packed brown sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup butter or margarine
1/2 cup chopped peanuts
1 12-ounce package (2 cups) semisweet chocolate pieces
1 beaten egg
1 14-ounce can (1 1/4 cups) sweetened condensed milk
1/3 cup creamy peanut butter

1. For crumb mixture, in a large mixing bowl combine rolled oats, brown sugar, all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter till mixture resembles fine crumbs. Stir in peanuts.

2. For topping, combine 1 3/4 cups of the crumb mixture and the chocolate pieces; set aside.

3. For crust, stir the egg into remaining crumb mixture. Press into bottom of an ungreased 15x10x1 inch baking pan. Bake in a 350 degree oven 15 minutes.

4. For filling, stir together sweetened condensed milk and peanut butter till well combined. Pour filling evenly over partially baked crust. Sprinkle topping evenly over filling. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes more or till lightly browned around the edges. Cool on a wire rack. Cut into bars. Makes 48 bars.

Note: When I made them for the family party, I did not include the peanuts, I added a tiny bit extra peanut butter, and I used milk chocolate chips instead of semi-sweet. I prefer semi-sweet, but thought that the milk chocolate would appeal to more people.