These beauties go by many names; Peanut Butter Confetti Squares, Butterscotch Confetti Squares, Peanut Butter Marshmallow Squares, Peanut Butter Butterscotch Marshmallow Squares, and pretty much every other variation of the like. Regardless of what name you associate with this dessert, we can all agree that they’re full of nostalgia and superbly delicious.
Of all the retro desserts (that I can think of right now as I’m typing this post), these are my favourite. If I’m in a pinch and need a snack to take along somewhere, these are the squares I like to make. My sister makes these with my nephews every so often, because the kids can get hands-on with the process. Plus they’re full of two of their favourite things – peanut butter and marshmallows.
Primarily, the marshmallows. Lord, do those munchkins love marshmallows!
When my nephew, Owen, was about 2, he was obsessed with marshmallows. My sister brought home a bag of cotton balls once, and he thought they were his fave ‘mallows, and would get upset when he wasn’t allowed to eat them. Poor, confused little kiddo.
While the kids love Peanut Butter Marshmallow Squares because of the PB and M, I love it because it’s a no-bake dessert, which to me, means (almost) instant gratification (they do require a little bit of time to chill). It’s a guaranteed crowd pleaser, I almost always have all the ingredients on hand, and it takes less than 10 minutes to whip together. You can’t go wrong with quick, easy, and classic!
Sometimes it’s also fun to go rogue with retro desserts, too! A few years back, I couldn’t decide between brownies or peanut butter marshmallow squares, so I made both, one on top of the other. Check out that recipe here.
Peanut Butter Marshmallow Squares
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/2 cup peanut butter
- 1 270 g bag butterscotch chips
- 1 250 g bag mini marshmallows coloured/flavoured mini marshmallows
Instructions
- Grease an 8x8 baking pan with butter and set aside.
- In a medium saucepan set over low heat*, melt the butter and peanut butter together. You do not want this mixture to get hot, just warm enough to melt the two ingredients together. Remove from the heat.
- Add in the butterscotch chips, and mix until all the chips have melted. Sometimes I will put the pot back on the element (heat still turned off) and just use the residual heat to help the process. Mix in the marshmallows and work quickly to coat them completely. Transfer the mixture into the prepared 8x8 pan and gently press it into the pan so it's evenly distributed.
- Cover with plastic and chill in the fridge until firm.
- Cut into squares and enjoy.
Nutritional calculation was provided by WP Recipe Maker and is an estimation only. For special diets or medical issues please use your preferred calculator
Notes
- If your bag of marshmallows is closer to 400 grams, double the butter and peanut butter recommended in this recipe. Mini marshmallows come in different size bags. The kind I use are on the small side (250 grams).
- You can use a microwave if you like, just watch it carefully so it's not too hot.
I also LOVE these things! I like to keep them in the freezer, and pull one out when I am craving a treat 🙂
These treats look delicious! My boys would love them… especially with the colored marshmallows!
i will have to make these for a baby shower very soon!
I don’t think I’ve ever had these! Oh my gosh, I’d love them. Peanut butter and that soft sweetness of the marshmallows. They’re so pretty too. A great treat for a special occasion (or any occasion really). I’m pinning! Definitely seeing these in my future.
I know this is a retro dessert, but I’ve never had it before! They sound so yummy and they look so pretty so I’m clearly missing out!
My brother is a peanut butter LOVER! And it just so happens his birthday is right around the corner. I think I might have to make him a batch of these as a little surprise.
You had me at peanut butter. Who doesn’t love the flavor of that with marshmallows!?! These remind me of a recipe my grandma used to make.
The colored marshmallows are so cute! I can see kids loving them.
These are so much fun! My kids love marshmallows as well, and the colored ones are a special treat. They will really enjoy these!
Oh my! My daughter would absolutely love these! I’m always happy with no bake dessert recipes, especially during the warmer spring and summer months!
These look totally decadent and sound easy enough to make! My mom is visiting me in town next week and we love to spend time in the kitchen baking. I’m adding this one to the list, yum!
What a fun, retro dessert! I don’t make many retro desserts (mainly because I don’t have a lot of recipe books that feature them) but these look too fun to pass up. Can’t wait to try them!
How can you go wrong with peanut butter and marshmallows? And I love that they are no bake too.
Haha, my son would totally have the same reaction as your nephew did if I brought home something that looked like marshmallows, but were not! He loves them! I do love these little retro desserts – so cute and irresistible! What a great, fun, and simple treat to please the kid in all of us. 🙂
you forgot to add the marshmellows into the recipe directions
Hi Heather! Thanks for noticing that! It has now been fixed. Enjoy!
Disappointed with this recipe… the melted pb and butter mixture wasn’t sufficiently liquid like to cover the marshmallows. As I dumped in the marshmallows – I spotted the recipe in the bag- which called for 1/2 cup of butter.
My final mixture is a ghastly mass which will not stick together. A disappointing result considering the materials wasted…. 🙁
Hi Laura, I’ve been making this recipe as written for many years with no issues. That being said, there are any variations of this recipe out there. Some call for more peanut butter, or, such as with the recipe you found on the marshmallow bag, more butter. With this recipe, you have to heat things super low and slow, or else the butterscotch chips will seize up, which is what I suspect happened here. I remove the pot from the heat completely and mix in the butterscotch chips to prevent things from overheating. Im super bummed it didn’t work out for you, but hopefully you tried again with the recipe on the bag and had good results.
They were so easy to make and Mom loved them! Thanks so much for the recipe 😊