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    Home » candy bars

    How to make Homemade snickers bars

    Published: Feb 27, 2023 · Modified: Dec 26, 2023 by Hannah · This post may contain affiliate links · 2 Comments

    Jump to Recipe Jump to Video Print Recipe

    Let's face it, homemade snickers bars are going to be far superior to their store bought counter part. The copycat snickers bar recipe has a deeper flavor that satisfies even the pickiest sweet tooth, and texture that is unbelievably fluffy while still chewy. These are homemade snickers bars without marshmallow fluff.

    Candy bars at home are incredibly fun to make. I've got a ton of copycat candy bar recipe on my site. My favorites include these copycat Girl Scout cookie peanut butter patty candy bars and brunch candy bars that have cappuccino nougat.

    What is a snickers

    copycat snickers bars recipe

    A Snickers bar is a chocolate bar. Inside of the Snickers bar has nougat topped with peanut caramel completely cover in milk chocolate.

    History

    In 1930, Mars introduced Snickers, named after the favorite horse of the Mars family. The early ingredients list includes white sugar, sweet milk chocolate, corn syrup, peanuts, milk condensed with sugar, coconut oil, malted milk, whites of eggs and salt.

    The latest ingredients for the Snickers bar had been refined to milk chocolate (sugar, cocoa butter, chocolate, skim milk, lactose, milkfat, soy lecithin, artificial flavor), peanuts, corn syrup, sugar, palm oil, skim milk, lactose, salt, egg whites, artificial flavor.

    The recipe below will be closer to the original 1939 Snickers bar.

    Dimensions

    Length: The length of a Snickers bar is 3.75"

    Width: The width of a Snickers bar is 1"

    Height: The height of a snickers bar is 0.75"

    The inside of a Snickers bar has a layer of nougat on the bottom and peanut caramel over top of it.

    Ingredients for peanut caramel

    Snickers bars have a blonde colored caramel that is silky smooth and stretches when you bite into it. The texture of the caramel is recreated by the ratio of corn syrup and white sugar used. Heavy cream, evaporated milk, and butter all bring a fat source that keeps the caramel soft enough to bite into. What type of nuts are in a Snickers bar?Unsalted cocktail peanuts are in a Snickers bar because the salted peanuts bring in too much salt into the caramel.

    • corn syrup
    • white sugar
    • heavy cream
    • evaporated milk
    • salt
    • butter
    • unsalted cocktail peanuts

    See recipe card for quantities.

    Ingredients for snickers nougat recipe

    What is the white stuff in snickers? It's nougat. Snickers nougat secret ingredient - the nougat is just a basic vanilla nougat. No big secret. Nougat is made by incorporating hot syrup into whipping egg whites. Powdered sugar is then added to "grain" the nougat, which causes a short texture (it doesn't flow all over the place and holds it's shape).

    • egg whites
    • corn syrup
    • white sugar
    • corn syrup
    • water
    • salt
    • powdered sugar
    • liquid coconut oil
    • vanilla extract

    See recipe card for quantities.

    How to make nougat for snickers

    Nougat is an amazing confection that is very popular outside of the United States, but really has only gained popularity as a candy bar layer in the US.  I'm here to change that. Making nougat is similar to making meringues or macarons. Once you do it, you'll be amazed at how easy it is.

    Nougat is broken down into three parts when cooking:

    1. Egg white meringue
    2. Syrup Slurry
    3. Finishers: Fats, Flavor, Graining agents

    This sounds more complicated that it is.  All you are doing is whipping egg whites and streaming hot syrup into them, and then adding powdered sugar and a liquid fat at the end. Don't let this scare you off- the end result is worth it!

    Having your ingredients weighed out and divide into meringue, slurry, and ending flavors and finishers will move throughout the nougat making process with ease.

    Egg white meringue: corn syrup, vanilla, egg whites. You'll combine these in the bowl of a 5 quart planetary mixer.

    Syrup slurry: sugar, corn syrup, water

    Finishers: vanilla, coconut oil, powdered sugar

    Instructions for easy homemade snickers

    1. Make peanut caramel. Allow it to cool for a minimum of 4 hours, but longer is better.
    2. Make nougat and layer it over top of the caramel. Cool for 12 hours.
    3. Flip the candy bar slab upside down, so the nougat is on the bottom, on a surface safe for cutting.
    4. Cut your candy bars into the desired width and length. Snickers bars have a length of 3.75" and 1" wide. To mimic this length, cut the bars into 3.5" because the chocolate after dipping will add extra length.
    5. Bottom the candy bars in chocolate.
    6. Fully dip the candy bars.
    peanut caramel cooled

    Make the peanut caramel and cool for a minimum of four hours.

    vanilla nougat

    Cook nougat and layer it direction on top of peanut caramel. Cool for 12 hours.

    upside down candy bar slab

    Turn candy bar slab upside down to cut into bars.

    cut snickers bars not dipped in chocolate

    Cut into desired size bar.

    chocolate covered homemade snickers bars

    Dip bars into chocolate.

    Hint: If the candy bar sides have chocolate pooling after you bottom them, use a pairing knife to clean up the edges and create clean, straight lines. How to bottom candy bars video below.

    Video instructions for homemade snickers bars

    Chocolate tempering

    Real milk chocolate must be tempered. Candy melts such as the Ghirardelli brand candy wafers do not need to be tempered. Below is a quick method for tempering milk chocolate. My favorite milk chocolate to use for these bars is the Barry Callebaut 823.

    1. Melt 2 pounds of milk chocolate in the microwave until it reaches 113.5F. This is done by placing the chocolate in a large, microwaveable safe glass bowl and then microwaving it in small time increments. First increment: 60 seconds. Stir chocolate. Second increment: 30 seconds. Stir chocolate. Take the temperature of the chocolate. If not 113.5F, microwave in 15 second increments, stirring after each one, until 113.5F is reached.
    2. Add in ½ pound of milk chocolate to your microwaved chocolate and stir until it is completely melted. Continue adding small amounts (one third pound to a half a pound) until chocolate temperature drops to 90F. It must not be over 90F. All chocolate should be fluid before dipping candy bars.
    3. Once chocolate is 90F, you can begin your bottoming and dipping process.

    Substitutions

    • Glucose syrup - glucose syrup can be used in place of corn syrup as a 1:1 replacement.

    Variations

    • Sizing - Homemade snickers bars can be cut into any size or shape you want. I love cutting them into 1" x 1" squares.
    homemade snickers bars squares

    Equipment

    • heavy duty, thick bottomed pot
    • candy thermometer
    • high heat spatula or wooden spoon
    • two 12" x 17" sheet pans
    • parchment paper
    • 5 quart planetary mixer
    • ruler
    • knife
    • chocolate dipping fork
    • bowl for chocolate dipping / tempering

    Storage for copycat snickers bar recipe

    Store candy bars in an airtight container at room temperature. They have a self life of six months. Freezing candy bars will extend the shelf life to one year frozen, but make sure to fully thaw before consuming.

    Top tip for homemade snickers bars

    A kitchen that is too hot will make cutting these bars difficult. You can refrigerate the bars before cutting them, but you will need to ensure a THICK chocolate layer. This is because the center candy bar will expand when coming to room temperature and crack your chocolate layer, causing leaking of caramel and nougat.

    FAQ

    Can I use 9" x 13" pans?

    Yes, but the height of the bar will be quite tall. The 12" x 17" pans spread the caramel and nougat out to match the height of the original Snickers bar.

    homemade snickers bars

    Homemade Snickers Bars

    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 30 minutes mins
    Cook Time 3 hours hrs
    Resting Time 16 hours hrs
    Course Dessert
    Cuisine American
    Servings 60 bars

    Equipment

    • thick bottomed heavy duty pot
    • candy thermometer
    • 2 12 x 17" sheet pan
    • parchment paper
    • high heat spatula or wooden spoon
    • 5 quart planetary mixer
    • ruler
    • knife
    • chocolate dipping fork
    • bowl for chocolate

    Ingredients
      

    Peanut Caramel

    • 12 ounces evaporated milk 1 can
    • 12 ounces heavy cream fill up can of evaporated milk
    • 42 grams butter 3 tablespoons
    • 200 grams white sugar 1 cup
    • 400 grams corn syrup 1.25 cups
    • 4 grams baking soda ¼ teaspoon
    • 300 grams peanuts about 2 cups

    Nougat

      Egg White Meringue

      • 2 egg whites
      • 100 grams corn syrup approx. ¼ cup

      Syrup Slurry

      • 580 grams white sugar 3 cups
      • 670 grams corn syrup 2 cups
      • 180 grams water ¾ cup
      • 10 grams salt 1.5 teaspoons

      Fats, Flavors, Finishers

      • 200 grams powdered sugar 1.5 cup
      • 75 grams liquid at room temperature coconut oil ¼ cup
      • 20 grams vanilla extract 2 tablespoons

      Chocolate for dipping

      • 3 pounds milk chocolate

      Instructions
       

      Peanut Caramel

      • Prepare a 12" x 17" sheet pan by lining it with parchment paper and leaving excess parchment paper to over hang on the edges.
      • In a heavy duty, thick bottomed pot (8 quart minimum), combine evaporated milk, heavy cream butter, sugar, corn syrup, and baking soda.
      • Over medium heat, stirring constantly, bring mix to a boil.
      • Continue stirring and cook caramel until 232F. Turn off heat.
      • Stir in peanuts. Pour on prepared parchment and spread to all corners of the sheet. Top with an additional piece of parchment paper.
      • Cool caramel for a minimum of four hours before topping with nougat.

      Nougat - Egg White Meringue

      • In the bowl of a 5 quart planetary mixer, combine egg whites and 100 grams of corn syrup. Mix to combine but do not start mixer. Mixer should have wire whisk attachment.

      Nougat - Syrup Slurry

      • In a heavy duty, thick bottomed pot, combine sugar, corn syrup, water, and salt.
      • Cook over high heat until syrup reaches 232F. At this point, turn your mixer on high and keep cooking the syrup. You do not need to continually stir the syrup.
      • At 254F, turn off heat from syrup.
      • Very slowly stream it into the whipping egg whites. Do not go too fast or your egg whites will collapse.
      • After all syrup has been added, mix on high for 4 more minutes. After 4 minutes turn mixer to low.

      Nougat - Fats, Finishers, Flavors

      • While mixer is on low, add in liquid coconut oil, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Once all ingredients have been added, turn mixer back to high for 30 seconds to incorporate everything.
      • Turn mixer off. Pour nougat directly on top of peanut caramel.
      • Spread nougat evenly on top of peanut caramel. Top with an additional sheet of parchment paper. Allow nougat to rest for a minimum of 12 hours.

      Cutting Bars

      • Flip your candy slab upside down on a cutting surface so the nougat is on the bottom. Cut bars into desired size. For standard Snickers, cut bars into 3.5" length x 1" width.

      Bottoming Bars

      • Temper your milk chocolate. Bottom each bar by holding it between two fingers and dipping just the bottom portion in chocolate. Slowly scrape excess chocolate along your spatula before setting it on parchment paper.
      • If there is chocolate pooling on the sides, run a sharp knife along the edges for straight lines. Allow chocolate bottoms to fully set up before dipping.

      Dipping Bars

      • Dip bars in tempered milk chocolate.
      • Bars can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container.

      Video

      Keyword browned butter nougat, candy bars, caramel peanut candy, copycat snickers recipe, homemade snickers bars, salted peanut caramel
      Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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      Reader Interactions

      Comments

      1. Savanah

        October 15, 2023 at 4:21 am

        Excited to try this recipe! Can I swap out the corn syrup and use honey?
        Thanks!

        Reply
        • Hannah

          November 06, 2023 at 11:18 pm

          Hi! I haven't tried that swap specifically, but from a sugar science standpoint, you'll end up with a different texture of nougat and caramel. It could be very sandy / grained.

          Reply

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      Hi, I'm Hannah! Candy obsessed and making everyone else that way too. I've spent over a decade in the candy industry, inventing sweets and snacks for the grocery store shelves. Now I'm showing you exactly how to make those top rated candies right out of your home kitchen. I want others to realize you can make real candy at home, really easily!

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