Oh, friends. I’m so very thrilled to be sharing this amazing Salt River Bars recipe with you! These Salt River Bars and I have been well acquainted with each other for a long while, but until recently I could only enjoy them when I went to one of my favorite restaurants, Liberty Market, in Downtown Gilbert. Locals, you know how delicious these Salt River Bars are, right?
I really never even thought to try to recreate them as they seemed to be complicated with those fancy layers, and I couldn’t quite nail down the flavors. Then I decided to do a little googling and found that even though they are a local thing, there are a few copycat recipes floating around out there. I studied as many as I could find, combined and tweaked them just a bit, and came up with a very, very tasty version of my beloved Salt River Bar.
Some have even said they are better than the original, but I’ll let you make them and see what all the fuss is about for yourself. I sent out a few samples to my parents, grandparents, friends, and sweet neighbors and they loved them as much as we did! When something is this good, you really wanted to share it.
A Salt River Bar is essentially two layers of caramel in between three layers of Club Crackers. The topping is a thick blanket of chocolate, butterscotch and peanut butter. Maldon sea salt is the crown jewel. Sweet, salty, chewy, creamy, chocolatey perfection.
What is Maldon sea salt?
Maldon sea salt is an English salt known for its pure, clean salty taste without bitterness. It is soft and flakey, and while it can be used in cooking, it is often used as a finishing salt. It makes everything taste more flavorful, without being overly salty.
And on top of all that, these Salt River Bars really aren’t too difficult to make. Especially if you have a kiddo handy to help you lay out all the crackers. The caramel comes together quickly with just four ingredients. One of them will really surprise you! Hint: more crackers!
I’ve written that the recipe will yield 30 bars. This is based on the assumption that you will cut the 9 by 13 inch pan into five rows with three squares each, and then cut each of those fifteen squares into two rectangles. These babies are rich. Sometimes I like to pace myself and cut them into tiny squares, so I can lose count of how many I’ve had!
Please leave me a comment if you’ve tried the original Salt River Bars from Liberty Market. I think we’ll be making these bars for years to come! Hope you enjoy!
Salt River Bars
These Salt River Bars are sweet, salty, chewy, creamy, crunchy, chocolatey PERFECTION! Everyone who tries them LOVES them!
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 30 bars 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 90 Club crackers
- 1 cup butter, salted
- 2 cups light brown sugar, packed
- 1 cup graham cracker crumbs
- 3/4 cups heavy cream
- 1 1/2 cups milk chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup butterscotch chips
- 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
- Maldon sea salt for finishing
Instructions
- Prepare a 9 by 13 inch pan (very helpful if the pan has straight sides, like this one) by lining it with parchment paper, leaving the two long edges a bit long so that it can be used to remove the bars from the pan later. Spray the parchment and sides of the pan with nonstick spray.
- Cover the bottom of the pan with the first layer of crackers on top of the parchment. Cut the crackers to fit as needed. I used five rows of six crackers, which covered my pan perfectly.
- In a medium sized heavy bottomed pan, melt butter, brown sugar, graham cracker crumbs, and heavy cream together over medium heat, stirring constantly.
- Bring the mixture to a boil, continuing to stir, and boil for 7 minutes.
- Pour half of the caramel mixture over the crackers, spreading it evenly to the edges of the pan. Working quickly, add another layer of crackers over the caramel.
- Pour the rest of the caramel over the second layer of crackers, and then add a final layer of crackers.
- Refrigerate the pan to chill and set the caramel layers while you make the chocolate topping.
- To make the chocolate topping, add milk chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, and peanut butter to a microwave safe bowl. Heat for 30-45 seconds, then stir. Microwave the chocolate in 15 second intervals, stirring in between until smooth. Pour the chocolate topping over the final layer of crackers, spreading it evenly to the edges. Sprinkle sea salt over the chocolate layer to taste. I used about 1 teaspoon.
- Chill for 1-2 hours before using a sharp knife to cut into bars. Sometimes I like to use the parchment paper edges to lift the whole thing out of the pan to make cutting easier.
Notes
This recipe was adapted from Take Two Tapas Salt River Sticks.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Bar
- Calories: 269
- Sugar: 20g
- Sodium: 192mg
- Fat: 16g
- Saturated Fat: 8.3g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6.8g
- Trans Fat: 0.3g
- Carbohydrates: 29g
- Fiber: 0.8g
- Protein: 2.7g
- Cholesterol: 25mg
Hi I am allergic to peanuts, do you think I could just add more butterscotch chips instead?
That’s ok to try, but the peanut butter does keep the chocolate topping from setting too hard. Maybe add just a teaspoon of oil to compensate.
I know this is a late comment, but what about using almond butter or sunflower seed butter instead of the peanut butter?
Question. Once made, do these need to remain refrigerated?
They do not have to be refrigerated, but you may prefer the texture when chilled. We kept them on the counter at room temp. Enjoy!
I’ve made these bars dozens of times, and they are always a hit! I wanted to make them for Christmas gifts, and wondered if they can be made ahead and frozen?
Glad you like them! I’m not sure how they will freeze, but let me know if you decide to try it.
I have a severe corn allergy and cannot use Club crackers (corn starch). Have you used saltines?
I have had something similar to this using saltine crackers. I think it would be ok to use them as a substitute .
Do you mean Christmas Crack?
Decadently delicious! We made these to give as gifts to coworkers. 🎄
We looooved these bars because they are delicious and SO easy to make. I meant to box them up for Christmas gifts but accidentally ate them all ourselves. One change I’ll adopt next time is to alter the butterscotch chip to chocolate chip ratio. Our butterscotch chips must have a strong flavor because we could hardly taste the chocolate/peanut butter combo. Nonetheless, these were so yummy that I am already looking forward to making another batch.
I made these to gift friends and family for the holidays, and accidentally ate the entire batch ourselves. I did not have Maldon salt so left that off; used half & half instead of cream because that’s what was available in the fridge. My only other comment is that our butterscotch chips were strongly flavored, so they overpowered the chocolate/peanut butter topping. All of this and we still devoured them. I’m already planning to make them again. Thank you!
Just wondering what club crackers are?
Darlene, Kelloggs Club Crackers are like a buttery saltine. There are store brands like them as well.
These turned out spectacular! Very easy to make and look pretty impressive with the layers. I cut them in one inch squares. Perfect for sharing!
So it’s 5 cuts cross ways and 3 cuts long ways??
What can be used instead of maldon sea salt?
Huge hit! Second batch I added crushed pretzels on top of the crackers. To die for!!! Thanks for the recipe.
How do you store and for how long will they last?
Sounds absolutely DELICIOUS, and I will be making these ASAP!! I watched the video, and by far, I can easily say it’s the BEST video I have ever seen in all my years of baking and finding recipes!! You explain everything clearly and slowly, and show all the steps the same way. AMAZING!!
This looks so good! What a great combination of flavors!
Made these today and they are pretty good. I cut them small. Definitely will make again. Might be a new Christmas treat!
I made these for my bosses birthday and they were a huge hit! Not sure how many people I have the recipe to. The biggest challenge was to find a pan with square corners! Delicious!!!
What would be an appropriate substitute for Club crackers?
Saltines? Toppables? Ritz?….although I guess round would not work….
Thanks
Finally made these and wished I had done it sooner. These are wonderful!! I made them for a party along with a few other items and these were the standout dessert. Perfect in every way and I don’t normally like desserts with peanut butter in them. I made the recipe exactly as written and it is perfect!
Oh I am so trying these. It was the Salt River that caught my attention. This had to be an Arizona recipe. Lived there 35years ago and only someone within the valley would call something Salt River Bars. Sure enough! Keep cool!