PAYDAY BARS

I remember when I was a "kid" I loved Payday candy bars. When I saw the recipe for these Payday Bars, the memories came flooding back and I knew I had to try them. 

The recipe wasn't difficult and the volunteers at Hillcrest Thrift Shop (my taste testers) thought they were delicious. Not quite a Payday candy bar, but they are as peanutty. I would recommend making them the day before you want to serve them. This allows them to "set up" and they aren't as gooey then.

PAYDAY BARS

1       (2 - layer) package yellow cake mix
1/3   cup melted margarine
1       egg
3      cups miniature marshmallows
2/3  cup light corn syrup
1/4   cup margarine
1       cup peanut butter chips
2      teaspoons vanilla extract
2      cups crisp rice cereal
2      cups salted peanuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 

Combine the cake mix, 1/3 cup melted margarine, and egg in a bowl and mix well.

Press into a 9 x 13 - inch baking pan.

Bake for 12 minutes or until light brown on top. (I took mine out after 12 minutes because the edges were brown and I didn't want to take the chance of burning the bottom.)

Sprinkle with marshmallows immediately upon taking the crust out of the oven. (I took the time to actually place the marshmallows in a single layer and avoiding the edge of the pan. I also didn't use the whole 3 cups. I quit when I had a single layer.)

Return to the oven and bake a couple of more minutes or until the marshmallows are puffy. (spaces have filled in)

Combine the corn syrup, 1/4 cup margarine, peanut butter chips, and vanilla in a saucepan.

Cook over medium heat until mixture is blended, stirring constantly. (I started this while the crust was baking.)

Stir in cereal and peanuts, mixing well.

Spread over the marshmallows being careful not to "disturb" the softened marshmallows.

Cool to room temperature before cutting them into bars. (I cut them the night before and placed them on a 9 x 13 - inch Tupperware cake container with cover. They were not completely set at this point.)

The marshmallows make these bars rich (to me) and so I would recommend cutting them into smaller pieces than I did for the above picture.