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Do you love Rocky Road? Easy no bake Rocky Road Bars are loaded with chocolate, pecans, and marshmallows! This is a really easy no bake dessert bar that doesn’t take long to make and keeps up to a week. The perfect no-bake dessert – without peanut butter!

Three easy rocky road bars stacked on eachother with more in the background


Table of Contents

Why We Love Rocky Road Bars

Who are my rocky road fans!? I am totally team nuts, marshmallows, and chocolate, and these no bake bars are the best way to get that rocky road fix!

This is the easiest recipe! Five ingredients, and they take less than 30 minutes to make.  No oven required – all you need is a microwave, a baking dish, and the patience to let the bars chill in the fridge!

The no bake bars taste like chocolate candy and are the perfect treat for parties and potlucks. You can make them ahead and then slice and serve – so simple. This is a rocky road without peanut butter – you can also make the bars completely nut-free and use graham crackers instead.

Overhead shot of all the ingredients needed to make easy rocky road bars

What’s In Rocky Road?

  • Chocolate Chips: Semi-sweet chocolate chips or milk chocolate chips are the best but you can also use dark or bittersweet
  • Unsalted butter: You can substitute salted butter if needed
  • Sweetened condensed milk: use regular, not the fat-free kind.
  • Pecans: Coarsely chop your nuts, use any kind of nut you like. We also love walnuts in this.
  • Mini marshmallows: Minis are the best for this recipe.
Six photo collage showing the process of making easy rocky road bars

How Do You Make Easy Rocky Road?

  1. Prepare your pan: First, line a 9×13” pan with foil and spray the foil with cooking spray.
  2. Melt Chocolate: Place the chocolate chips and butter in a microwave-safe bowl. Heat it on 50% power for one minute and stir. Heat it again for 30 seconds and stir again. Repeat this until the chocolate is melted and smooth.
  3. Stir: Add the sweetened condensed milk to the melted chocolate and stir to combine. Mix in the nuts and marshmallows.
  4. Press: Pour the rocky road mixture into the prepared pan and chill it until the bars are firm. Once firm, slice into bars and serve. Or, you can keep them in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Overhead shot of easy rocky road bars cut into squares

Recipe FAQs

  • Why did my chocolate seize? If your chocolate seized up, it means you might have got some water in it. When you are melting the chocolate, it’s important to use a dry bowl and spatula or spoon. Also, be sure to set the microwave to 50% power, so the chocolate doesn’t scorch.
  • Can you melt the chocolate on the stove? Yes, you can melt it with the butter in a saucepan over low heat. Stir it frequently as it melts.
  • What other nuts can you use? If you don’t like pecans try walnuts, almonds, macadamia nuts, or even peanuts. Just roughly chop them before mixing them into the chocolate.
  • Can you leave the nuts out? Yes, feel free to omit them! Sometimes I make them without nuts and mix in the same amount of chopped graham crackers.
  • What is in traditional rocky road? There are a lot of variations depending on where you’re from! In the US, people think of rocky road ice cream, which is made with chocolate ice cream, almonds or walnuts, and marshmallows. In Britain, traditional rocky road is a type of bar that has chocolate, nuts, coconut, and marshmallows. In Australia, they often add cherries.
  • Why is rocky road called that? There are a few origin stories – the most common one is that it was named for people who traveled to gold fields. Many companies claim they invented rocky road, so it’s not clear how and why it got its name.
Three easy rocky road bars stacked on eachother with a glass of milk in the background

We’ve made batches of these for all kinds of occasions, and they’re always a winner! Make a batch and treat you and your family to a no bake candy bar – the chocolate, marshmallows, and nuts are perfect together!

Other No Bake Recipes You’ll Enjoy

Three easy rocky road bars stacked on eachother with more in the background

Easy Rocky Road Bars Recipe

4.95 from 18 votes
This is the easiest recipe! Five ingredients, and they take less than 30 minutes to make these delicious Rocky Road Bars.
Prep Time 20 minutes
Chill Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Yield 32 bars
Serving Size 1 bar
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Ingredients
 

  • 2 cups (340g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 1 tablespoon (14g) unsalted butter
  • 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk (regular, not fat-free)
  • 2 ½ cups coarsely chopped pecans
  • 1 (10 ounce) bag mini marshmallows
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Instructions

  • Line a 9×13-inch pan with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray.
  • Place chocolate chips and butter in a large bowl. Heat on 50% power for 1 minute then stir. Continue heating at 50% power in 30 second increments, stirring between each, until melted and smooth.
  • Stir in sweetened condensed milk. Then stir in nuts and marshmallows.
  • Pour into prepared pan. Chill until firm then cut into squares.
  • Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Recipe Video

Recipe Notes

Substitutions:
• Use any kind of nut in place of the pecans
• Omit nuts and use chopped graham crackers
• Use milk chocolate instead of semi-sweet
Adapted from: https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/22730/rocky-road-candies/

Recipe Nutrition

Serving: 1bar | Calories: 122kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 2mg | Sodium: 1mg | Potassium: 96mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 21IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 13mg | Iron: 1mg
Nutritional information not guaranteed to be accurate
Course Dessert, Snack
Cuisine American
Author Dorothy Kern

Did you try this recipe? Click the stars to rate the recipe below

Three easy rocky road bars stacked on eachother with more in the background and recipe title on top of image

Easy Rocky Road Bars are a no bake chocolate candy that’s perfect for summer or for the holidays. Just 5 ingredients and they only take 15 minutes to make!



Dorothy Kern

Welcome to Crazy for Crust, where I share recipes that are sometimes crazy, often with a crust, and always served with a slice of life.

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4.95 from 18 votes (17 ratings without comment)

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6 Comments

  2. User simple recipe. If you like rocky road this is surely a good one. I love candy and enjoy making it . Have fun I did! Merry Christmas Everybody!

    Reply

  3. Does the chocolate go back to its original firmness or does the addition of butter and sweetened condensed milk leave it a more soft consistency?

    Reply

    2. Of course it stayes soft for around a wee( week an a half( max) then gets dried out . If you melt chocolate get it to temp. After mixing your butter before condensed milk and then add your con. milk. Temp again before adding marshmallows and nuts . It’ll be great . ( old fashion way , it get sugars to a soft ball in the cup.) ok boil sugars or just too a boil, then take a table spoonish of cooked sugars and place into a C cup of OLD Water! Then with fingers try and make a soft ball with
      Cooked syrup you just make amd placed into ice or super “old water in cup.!! That’s it. Good luck!!

      Reply