Grand Champion Dairy Bars ('cheesecake' bars?)

This dessert bar (square) was the Grand Champion of all the desserts entered in the "Dairy Category" at our bigger 'n better local county fair back in 1993-- yes, it was the one having the BIG HONKIN' PURPLE RIBBON on it! (You, know... "HONK! HONK!, look at me!"--THAT kind of prize ribbon!)  It was made and entered by Mary F. from the community where I attended high school.  She is the mother of Scott F., our most local DNR Forester, and the daughter-in-law of the late Hugo F. who was a long-time principal/teacher at the high school I attended.  I liked and appreciated Mr. F.!-- he really cared for his students, and his caring continued after each graduated.  If it was after one year, or fifty, he still remembered... and cared!  Miss him.

Back to the recipe:  Once these are baked, cooled  and cut, the 'resist' in me is put to the test!  This rather 'RICH' dessert reminds me so much of a peanut/butterscotch cheesecake.  (If 'necessary', I think the 'rich'ness of these could be trimmed down a bit by using lower-fat versions of cream cheese and sour cream.)
 
INGREDIENTS AND DIRECTIONS:


Mix together

• 2/3 cup melted butter
• 3 cups graham cracker crumbs (18 'long planks', or 2 of the wrapped blocks)
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup sugar

Set aside one cup of the above mixture.  Pat rest in "non-stick sprayed" 9x13-inch glass dish or pan and bake in pre-heated oven at 350°  for 7 minutes.

 
At the end of 7 minutes, sprinkle 6-oz. (about 1 cup) of peanut butter chips* on crust and return to oven only long enough for the chips to soften.  (*I used butterscotch chips.  While they didn't really 'soften' all that much.............. oooooh, I like!)

Remove from the oven, again, and set aside while the next ingredients are being prepared.

Beat 8 oz. softened cream cheese until fluffy.

Add to it:

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated milk)
• 1 cup sour cream
• 2 eggs
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Beat the above ingredients until smooth.  Pour this smooth mixture on your set-aside and pre-baked crust/chips.   Top with the 'RESERVED' cup of crumb mixture and 1 cup peanuts, chopped (Virginia peanuts, or similar kind). 

Bake this at the same 350° for about 30 minutes.   I remove from oven and put into refrigerator to cool for 8-10 hours before cutting.  

Not that it matters, but...usually, by the time I remove them from the fridge, the 'slab of goodness' is cold/stiff enough that after cutting around edges to loosen  I can lift all (in one piece) to a cutting board where I can cut them with a very LONG knife and end up with 'sharp edges'. 

Serve.

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Promptly REFRIGERATE any left-overs.