St. Louis Gooey Butter Cake

It's been a good year. If I could, I would bottle it up and store it in the bottom of my coat closet to open in the middle of a future year that isn't so awesome. Maybe then I'd have the time to actually savor and really enjoy the year. I know that sounds cheesy, but it's hard not to think about all the wonderful things I've experienced this year.

I've made new friends, gone to new places, accomplished new goals. What more could you ask for?

One of the most memorable things I've done this year was run a 200 mile relay across Kentucky with 11 other runners. Some people I knew beforehand, but the majority of the team were complete and utter strangers to me up until a few months before the relay. I happened upon the role of Team Captain and throughout the planning process I worried about such a large group of random people in tight quarters, under extreme conditions (running in the middle of the night, living in a van) getting along together.

But you know what? We all did. Everyone was awesome. I was so happy and impressed with how team-oriented everyone was. It was a great experience (despite the shitty weather) and I cannot wait to Captain the team again next year.

To celebrate how awesome we were as a team (we had an amazing finish time), I hosted a post-relay party at my place. It was a good chance for the team to reassemble and hang out together. I made a big pot of chili, had a bunch of beer, set out some chips and salsa and a couple of different types of cookies.

In case you don't know any runners, let me let you into a secret about us: 1. we love food and 2. we love booze. Seriously... runners run to eat and drink (or at least all the ones I know do). I came across this recipe linked on Serious Eats and immediately bookmarked it.  Gooey and Butter are two words that make me swoon. And so when this party rolled around, I decided it was the perfect opportunity to give them a try.

As always, I read through the entire recipe and was undeterred by the fact that it calls for a stand mixer and yeast. I've got a hand mixer. That's good enough, right?

Well, as I was mixing the yeast mixture (for 10 godforsaken minutes) I started to realize that this method just might not work. My dough never pulled away from the sides of the bowl. Never really formed a "dough" like I thought it should. But, I proceeded anyway. And when it never really rose or doubled in size. I thought.. what the hell? I've already invested a lot of time into this, I'm just going to bake it off anyway and hope for the best.

I baked it for a little longer than it needed, just because I was nervous that the dough was going to be.. gooey gross instead of gooey good.

And you know what happened? I was thrilled with the results! The bars were chewy and oh so sweet. Simple and yet deliciously decadent. Ironic that these bars turned out much the same way as the relay team that they were intended for did. High expectations, nervous and anxious while preparing, but a stellar outcome.

I can't wait to make them again.

St. Louis Gooey Butter Cake
recipe from NY Times

This recipe was supposed to turn out awful. I didn't use a stand mixer, my dough didn't rise. But in the end... it turned out awesome! I'm not sure if thats the way it's supposed to be, but I was happy with the results and so were my guests.

It's not a difficult recipe, but it is time consuming, because of the yeast dough. So make sure you have the time to commit.

3 tablespoons milk at room temperature
1 3/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
6 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 large egg
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

For the topping:
3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon light corn syrup
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 large egg
1 cup plus 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Confectioners’ sugar, for sprinkling.

1. In a small bowl, mix milk with 2 tablespoons warm water. Add yeast and whisk gently until it dissolves. Mixture should foam slightly.

2. Using an electric mixer with paddle attachment, cream butter, sugar and salt. Scrape down sides of bowl and beat in the egg. Alternately add flour and the milk mixture, scraping down sides of bowl between each addition. Beat dough on medium speed until it forms a smooth mass and pulls away from sides of bowl, 7 to 10 minutes.

3. Press dough into an ungreased 9-by 13-inch baking dish at least 2 inches deep. Cover dish with plastic wrap or clean tea towel, put in a warm place, and allow to rise until doubled, 2 1/2 to 3 hours.

4. Heat oven to 350 degrees. To prepare topping, in a small bowl, mix corn syrup with 2 tablespoons water and the vanilla. Using an electric mixer with paddle attachment, cream butter, sugar and salt until light and fluffy, 5 to 7 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl and beat in the egg. Alternately add flour and corn syrup mixture, scraping down sides of bowl between each addition.

5. Spoon topping in large dollops over risen cake and use a spatula to gently spread it in an even layer. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes; cake will rise and fall in waves and have a golden brown top, but will still be liquid in center when done. Allow to cool in pan before sprinkling with confectioners’ sugar for serving.

Yield: 16 to 20 servings.

Golden Peanut Butter Bars

As an adult... my love for peanut butter has grown. It's more than just a love... it's actually turned into something like an addiction. In the past I've always enjoyed peanut butter flavored things... or things with peanut butter and chocolate. But, I'd never been one to really enjoy peanut butter on it's on.

Until now. I sometimes find myself sitting on the couch with a spoon and the jar of peanut butter in my hand. After mindlessly shoveling 800 calories worth of peanut butter into my mouth... I realize... ummm... I don't remember going into the kitchen and getting the jar of peanut butter. But that's what peanut butter does to me, now. It's so salty and creamy and it just puts me into this trance-like state. It's dangerous. But, it's damn good.

I've had this recipe for awhile now. But, I've been choosing to eat the peanut butter in it's purest state to feed my addiction. I didn't want to compromise it's goodness by putting into a recipe with other inferior ingredients. But... I needed something to take to a pot luck with a bunch of runners and I knew that they would likely share my love of peanut butter, too.

The thing that drew me to this specific recipe... (besides the peanut butter) is the fact that it has sweetened condensed milk. I mean, let's be honest here, friends: have you ever made something that has sweetened condensed milk in it that has turned out bad? I think not. Sweetened Condensed Milk is the savior of all things baked. It can turn anything into delicious-ness.

Ever cracked open a can of Sweetened Condensed Milk and ate the whole thing by dipping graham crackers into it... and then eventually you run out of graham crackers and just go for it with your finger? Oh. No? Well, me either... but I've heard of other people doing that.

This is a good recipe. It's chewy and peanut buttery and delicious. I hate to say it, but... I actually think it would be made better with some chocolate chips sprinkled underneath the crumb topping (or... wait for it... white chocolate chips. Yum!). There is just something about baked peanut butter and sweetened condensed milk that screams out for melty chocolatey goodness.

Golden Peanut Butter Bars
recipe from Jif

This recipe is super easy and quick. The only change I made to the recipe is that I used all white whole wheat flour. This made for a more nutty (almost bitter) flavor in the aftertaste and next time I think I'd use one cup of white whole wheat flour and one cup of regular flour. I Also skipped the peanuts (just because I didn't have any).

Ingredients:
2 cups of AP flour
3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup cold butter, cut into small pieces
1 cup chopped peanuts
1 (14 oz) can of sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine flour, brown sugar and egg; cut in butter until crumbly. Stir in peanuts. Reserving 2 cups of crumb mixture for the topping, press remaining mixture on bottom of 13x9 inch pan. Bake 15 minutes or until lightly browned.

In large bowl, with mixer, beat sweetened condensed milk with peanut butter and vanilla. Spread over the prepared crust; top with reserved crumb mixture.

Bake 25 minutes longer or until lightly browned. Cool. Cut into bars. Store leftovers covered at room temperature.

Brown Butter Peach Bars

Summer must be here. It's not the 90 degree days or the kids being out of school for vacation that tells me so. Nor is it the fact that I can't get enough of sauvignon blanc right now (eventually, I'm just going to have to attach an IV drip, I think). You know how I know? Peaches. Glorious, juice dripping, soft fuzzy peaches.

My dad stopped by the farmer's market last week and bought his standard amount of peaches: a whole bushel. He always graciously shares the peaches and I ended up with just about 2 pounds of peaches. Hot damn. It's almost as good as winning the lottery.

Immediately I thought I would make a peach pie. So, I decided to give a new pie crust recipe a whirl, but when I opened up my recipe folder to find a new crust recipe, I came across this little gem. The words "brown butter" immediately grabbed my attention. Remember how I fell in love with browned butter? Sadly, my affair with browned butter was merely a fling. But after seeing this recipe, I knew we were destined for a little re-do action. (The fact that my relationship with browned butter is similiar to my other people's relationships with past boyfriends/flings is merely a coincidence, I assure you).

This recipe is everything you want in a fruit bar. It's tangy and sweet. It's soft with a crumbly, yet firm crust. And it absolutely must be made the day before... It needs time to sit and soften up. Again there's a similiarity there with old flames, eh? But, that's where the similiarities end. While you want the reignition of the old flame to be quick and easy... these bars certainly are not. Proceed with this recipe, just like you do with your old flames, my friends... with extreme caution. Cause trust me, you'll wind up out of 3 hours of your life and 3 pounds heavier .

But... sometimes, it's worth it.

Brown Butter Peach Bars
Recipe from New York Times, adapted from Big Sur Bakery in Big Sur, CA

Seriously, this recipe is excellent, but it is a time consumer. It's not something you can whip up in an hour, or two, or three. There are multiple parts involved, so read through the recipe and be prepared. Also, like I said before, make these bars the day before you're going to serve them. They definitely need time to sit and soften.

I would make a change to the recipe for next time. The entire recipe calls for a crapload of orange zest. I would scale back. I'd use the orange zest and juice of 1 orange for the jam and the zest of one orange for the filling. Cutting the amount of oranges you need in half. I liked the citrus-y zip you get in the recipe, but I felt like it masked the fresh peach flavor a bit too much.

For the jam:
1 cup sugar
Zest and juice of 2 oranges
½ vanilla bean, halved and seeds scraped
4 cups ½ inch diced, peel-on, peaches (about 2 pounds whole)

For the crust:
1 cup unsalted butter
½ cup confectioner's sugar, sifted
1 ½ cups flour

For the filling:
3 large eggs
1 cup sugar
Zest of 2 oranges
¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons flour
½ vanilla bean, halved and seeds scraped
10 tablespoons unsalted butter.

1. Make the jam: in a 3 quart pot and using a wooden spoon, mix together the sugar, orange zest and juice, and vanilla bean and seeds. Place a candy thermometer in the pot and set over medium heat. Bring to a boil and cook for a few minutes, until it reaches 220 degrees. Add the peaches and boil, stirring occasionally, until the peaches turn into a thick jam and the thermometer returns to 220 degrees, 35 to 45 minutes. Wear long oven mitts as the jam can splatter. (When the jam begins to stick to the bottom of the pan, it's nearly there). Transfer the jam to a wide pan to cool. Remove the vanilla bean.

2. Prepare the crust by melting the butter in a saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring frequently. Cook until the white milk solids start to brown and smell nutty, 5 to 10 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve set over a heatproof container. Freeze until solid.

3. In a large bowl, mix together the confectioner's sugar and flour. Scoop the chilled brown butter into the flour mixture and, using a pastry cutter, blend until crumbly. Transfer the crumb mixture to a 9-by-13-inch baking pan and firmly pat it evenly across the bottom of the pan. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, adjust the oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Bake the crust until golden, 18 to 20 minutes. Let cool.

4. Make the filling: whisk together the eggs, sugar, zest and flour in a large bowl. Place the vanilla bean and seeds and the butter in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook until the white milk solids start to brown and smell nutty, and then strain through a fine sieve. Carefully add the brown butter to the egg and flour mixture, whisking until the butter is incorporated. Remove the vanilla bean.

5. To assemble the bars, spread half of the filling over the baked crust. Spoon large dollops of the peach jam over the filling, reserving a quarter of the jam. Pour the remaining brown butter filling over the peach jam, and finish by spooning smaller dollops of the reserved jam over the top. Bake until the filling is golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool completely.

Makes 24 bars.

Peanut Butter-scotch White Chocolate Blondies

Two years ago today, I started this blog. So it's my blogiversary, or my blogirthday? Whatev. All I know is that it's been a fun couple of years. I've gone outside of my comfort zone (thanks mostly due to the baking group, Tuesdays with Dorie) and stretched my baking expertise greatly.

If I've learned anything in these two years, it's that baking isn't easy. I still can't make a white or butter cake that I'm happy with. I haven't mastered the art of cake decorating or making pretty fluted edges on my pie crusts. But all that aside, it's something that I really, really enjoy. I love putting my apron on and getting my bowls and scale out and spending some time in my kitchen.

The biggest challenge for me, is getting rid of my baked goods. If I worked in a huge office or had a large network of neighbors or friends around, I'd probably wind up baking every day. I love it so much, but I always find myself saying... I can't bake those brownies! I don't need the extra calories and even though I do it a lot, it pains me to have to throw away 3/4 of a recipe after I've made it. (You should see my freezer, it's stocked with baked goodies that I felt too guilty to throw away, but will probably never pull out and eat).

Anyway... to celebrate my the start of year #3, I decided to follow my current cravings. Lately, I have not been able to get enough of two things: peanut butter and butterscotch. Both alone and together. A few weeks ago, I had a peanut butter and butterscotch milkshake at the local dairy dip here in town. Holy crap it was a spiritual experience, I tell you. Peanut Butter and Butterscotch are a match made in heaven.

So, I tinkered around with a recipe from betty crocker and came up with a different version. It's dang tasty. And, I have a feeling that this peanut butter and butterscotch obsession is just going to snowball from here...

Thanks for reading my blog for the last couple of years!

Peanut Butter-Scotch White Chocolate Blondies

These are rich and sweet. Like Mega sweet. (Which is why I adore them). The peanut butter gives the bars a more a sandy texture than your regular blondies, but I honestly didn't get enough peanut butter flavor, so I'd encourage the use of some peanut butter chips in the batter, to amp that up.

2/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tbsp melted butter
1/4 cup peanut butter
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 egg
3/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup butterscotch chips
1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8x8 square pan.

Beat sugar, butter, peanut butter, vanilla and egg together in a bowl with a hand mixer until well blended. Stir in flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add chips and stir to combine it all together.

Press/spread into the prepared pan and cook for about 18-23 minutes. Until the edges are starting to pull away from the pan and the mixture seems set. Cool on a rack and cut into bars when cooled.

Yields: 9-12 bars (depending on how big you make 'em) :)

TWD: Caramel Crunch Bars

Oh, Dorie. You've done it now. I mean... it's been fairly easy for me to throw away the leftovers of my Tuesdays with Dorie recipes. Sure, it takes willpower, but so far, I've had enough to just manage little enough bites of everything to not screw over my diet. Until Whitney of What's Left on the Table's pick this week for Caramel Crunch Bars.

These bars are freaking insane. First of all... can we talk about the crust? I omitted nearly everything superfluous in it. No cinnamon, no chocolate chips, no espresso and it was AWESOME. I couldn't help but cut off a corner or edge everytime I walked by the kitchen. Particulary when it was hot out of the oven... still gooey and not fully set. TO. DIE. FOR. Yum!

I'm not really sure how to describe these bars.. they aren't really caramel-y. It's kind of like a soft, shortbread crust with melted chocolate on top and heath toffee bits strewn on top. These are diet buster bars. Thank god, I went to my parents house yesterday and unloaded them onto them. Haha. Suckers.

Cherry Macadamia Crumble Bars

I know. I'm officially a blogging slacker. If it wasn't for Tuesdays with Dorie and leftover Christmas recipes, it'd be even worse, I am sorry to say. But, I still have a couple of things I've made in the past month or so that I still need to blog. So, at least I've got some reserves...

The thing is... I'm trying to eat healthy. I'm running my 5th marathon in April and I'm determined to kick this marathon's ass... which means... less of the ole... get home from a stressful day at work and bake a batch of cookies to devour and more... get home from a stressful day at work and eat two bowls of honey nut cheerios or a bag of 100 calorie popcorn or a handful of hershey kisses (or all three simultaneously). It doesn't mean I'm cutting out sugar or fat... it just means I'm only baking when I can share things with other people so that I don't get stuck with eating it all. And to semi-satisfy my sweet tooth I eat handfuls of m&ms or hershey kisses.

Anyway... enough about me and more about cherries and macadamia nuts and butter. Is that a trio or what?

I've sung Jennifer at Bake or Break's praises many times, but she continually makes and blogs the desserts that appeal to me the most. And the pictures... well... if her pictures don't make you lick your computer screen then you need to get your eyes checked. They are amazing. I have oh about 15 zillion of her recipes bookmarked to make and this is a recipe I've had printed out forever.

When she made them they were Raspberry Hazelnut Crumble Bars. I had cherry preserves and macadamia nuts on hand, so I changed that out in the recipe. I made these for the "healthy" dessert at my family's Christmas Dinner. And yes... by "healthy" I mean... these have some sort of sugared fruit product in them, therefore they are healthy. These bars a loaded with butter... so, be sure to make these when you can share them.

I think using cherry preserves was a mistake. Cherry preserves are less substantial than other jams and jellies and therefore I should have used like 4 jars of the stuff to make a good layer of cherry. I definitely wanted more cherry flavor and by the time these finished baking, the cherry flavor was definitely very minimal.

They are delicious bars though and I think with strawberry jam or raspberry they would be amazing! Or maybe a boatload more cherry preserves and some dried cherries thrown in, too... that might work. I think I'll have to try them again... in the name of experimentation of course. :)

Here's the recipe directly from Jennifer's site... Raspberry Hazelnut Crumble Bars

Caramel Butter Bars

"It happens sometimes... friends come in and out of our lives like busboys in a restaurant."

--Gordie from Stand By Me

I've never been the type to have lots of friends. Actually, I find the idea of having lots of friends simultaneously to be kind of stressful. I mean... how do people have the time to spread themselves around to lots of different friends? I suspect the people who do, are less of the homebody type than I am.

I've always had a few close friends. My first best friend was Lisa McBroom. We met in the daycare at the fitness center that our mom's belonged to. We were lucky enough to be put into the same kindergarten class and our friendship continued to grow through the next few years. Her family eventually moved and I eventually went through a large group of close girl friends and guy friends through the years. But only a handful remain. And these are the friends that I consider my true blue, tested and weathered best friends: Stephanie, April, Jeff, Sara, and Leigh. These are my peeps. These are the friends who share my awesome times and my not so awesome times. The people I trust and love like family.

But you know what sucks? Their geography... Steph's in Portland, April's in Memphis, Jeff's in Baltimore, Sara's in Louisville, and Leigh's in Columbia, SC. I mean... bloody hell! Do you know how shitty it is to have a network of such amazing friends... but not have the ability to call any of them up and be like.. "yo, let's grab a burrito... or go to a movie... or get drunk tonight, cause there's nothing better to do?" Yeah. Let me tell you... it sucks.

But... a couple of weekends ago... that changed! Just the other night I was able to text my friend Sara and be like.. "what up? Let's grab dinner." and she called back (cause, girls not a texter... I'm working on her though... give me some time) and we went to dinner, because she moved to Nashville!!!! And not only did she move to Nashville, she's living like 2 miles away from me! Woop Woop!

It's great to have her here! And to welcome her, I wanted to bake her something yummy.

Now, I know Sara REALLY well. And I know that her favorite candy bar is the Milky Way. So, I definitely wanted to make her something that was very caramely and gooey and yummy.

This recipe immediately popped out at me. It came together really easily and turned out pretty tasty. But... honestly... it needs chocolate. I mean, it REALLY needs chocolate. It's like eating just the peanut butter side of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. It's good, but it's blatantly missing it's rightful partner. So, I will make this again, but I will sprinkly chocolate chips over the caramel layer.

The Stand By Me quote I referenced above is true... some people do come in and out of lives like busboys... but if you're lucky like me... you'll have a few really true friends that stick with you forever. (And hopefully you'll eventually succeed in convincing them all to move to Nashville to be close to you, cause you're selfish like that. 1 down, 4 to go...) :)

Gooey Caramel Butter Bars
From Sticky Chewy Messy Gooey, by Jill O’Connor

These bars are delicious and I consider the crust to be an awesome base for other fillings. Mainly fillings that have chocolate in them. So, if you're making these bars.... I suggest throwing in some chocolate chips, some heath toffee bits, or something to add to the salty, chewiness of the caramel.

For the Crust:
1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

For the Filling:
1 bag (14 ounces) caramel candies (about 50 individual caramels), unwrapped
1/3 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 to 2 tablespoons dark rum (optional)
Pinch of salt
1 cup pecans or walnuts (optional)

Confectioners’ sugar for dusting (optional)

Directions:

To make the crust: in a large bowl, combine the butter and sugars. Using an electric mixer set at medium speed, beat together until creamy. Add the vanilla and salt and beat until combined. Sift the flour into the butter mixture and beat on low speed until a smooth, soft dough forms.
Spray a 9 by 13 inch baking pan lightly with nonstick cooking spray. Press one-third of the dough evenly into the pan to form a bottom crust. Pat the remaining dough into a flat disk and wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, at least 30 minutes.

Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees F. Bake until firm and the edges are a pale golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool.
While the bottom crust is baking and remaining dough is chilling, make the caramel filling: Place the unwrapped caramels in a microwave-safe bowl. Add the cream, vanilla, rum (if using), and salt. Microwave on high for 1 minute. Remove from the microwave and stir until smooth. If caramels are not completely melted, microwave on high for 30 second intervals, stirring after each interval, until smooth.

Sprinkle the nuts (if using) over the bottom crust. Pour the caramel filling over the nuts, using a small metal spatula to nudge the filling evenly over the crust. Remove the remaining chilled dough from the refrigerator and crumble it even over the caramel. Return the pan to the oven and bake until the filling is bubble and the crumbled shortbread topping is firm and lightly golden, about 30 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely.

Use a sharp knife to cut the bars evenly into 15 large squares. Remove the bars from the pan with a metal spatula and, if desired, cut in half on the diagonal to form 30 triangular bars. Dust with confectioners’ sugar, if desired.

The bars will keep, covered tightly at room temperature, for about 1 week, or in the freezer for up to 1 month.

BFB: Scotcheroos

Okay, so the best thing about this recipe? Is that it has reawakened my absolute love and devotion to rice krispies. Since I bought the first box of rice krispies last thursday night, to this morning when I polished off my second box, I have become a rice krispies addict. Like, seriously... WTF? Who knew that rice krispies... a little splenda (okay, a LOT of splenda) and some milk could join together and create pure tastebud nirvana? OH. MY. GOD. It's heaven in a bowl (or a big ass plastic cup, when I run out of bowls).

Digressing, (because as I write this, I'm starting to crave a bowl)... Steph and I chose to make Scotcheroos (not only because they look delicious, but also because I requested a recipe that I could use up some butterscotch chips I had lying around) for our next Best Friends Baking dish.

Now, I've made Scotcheroos before. And I remembered them being kind of ooey-gooey and peanut buttery and delicious, so I was pretty excited about this recipe.

I must say though... that this recipe for Scotcheroos was just... okay. I mean, instead of ooey-gooey, they kind of turned into brick-like. If you like the standard, crunchier rice krispie treats, then this recipe is probably right up your alley. But, if you prefer a looser, gooey-er treat, then you might want to try my other recipe (the only difference is the other recipe calls for brown sugar, instead of granulated...).

Regardless, these were tasty. I found myself continually cutting off portions of it and snacking on it.

Chocolate Scotcheroos
Makes about 24 bars

So, when a recipe has peanut butter in it, I expect it to taste peanut buttery... and even though I basically doubled the peanut butter in this recipe, it still wasn't peanut buttery enough for me. I'm not sure how to fix that. I'm afraid if I add more than double the amount of peanut butter, that the bars won't turn out right because of the proportions of the other ingredients. Maybe in the future, I'll experiment with adding some peanut butter to the top layer or something. Not sure.

Ingredients:
1 cup light corn syrup
1 cup sugar
1 cup peanut butter
6 cups rice krispies cereal
1 package semi-sweet chocolate morsels
1 package butterscotch morsels
Vegetable cooking spray

Measure corn syrup and sugar into large saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until sugar dissolves and mixture begins to boil. Remove from heat.

Stir in peanut butter; mix well. Add rice krispie cereal. Stir until well coated. Press mixture into 13 x 9 x 2-inch pan coated with cooking spray. Set aside.

Melt chocolate and butterscotch morsels together in small saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly. Spread evenly over cereal mixture. Let stand until firm. Cut into bars when cool.

Lemon Bars

I think it's awesome (and usually dangerous to your diet) the way food can link you to memories of people or particular moments of your life. A lot of my favorite foods remind me of people or places that I love... Pecan Pie: My Aunt Rita. Outback's Cheese Fries: College. Grandma Cookies: My childhood. Coconut Cake: My Paternal Grandma. Chili-Cheese Dip: Tailgating. And Lemon-flavored anything: My Maternal Grandma.

My Grandma B. loved all things lemon. And every year, her birthday usually coincided with the big family reunion in October. I can remember my mom cooking all day and night on the Friday before... and one of the things she always made was specifically for my Grandma: a lemon bundt cake with a lemon glaze. The cake was from a box mix, but damn was it good. Moist and sweet and lemony, it was the only time I really ever had anything lemon-y like that and I loved it.

My Grandma B passed away when I was a senior in high school. Before she passed, she was living with us for a couple of years... and in my selfish, teenage angst I think I subconsciously resented her for taking away attention from me (I know, it sounds terrible... but when you're a teenager you think that the world completely revolves around you) and I'm sad that I never really got to know her as a person... I really only knew her as my grandma with the uncomfortable couches, chickens that pooped everywhere, and constantly churning milk in the kitchen. I think as adults, she and I would have gotten along really well.

She was a very strong, independent woman... she wasn't necessarily sweet and demure like you think of most grandmothers, she was fiery and passionate and you always knew where you stood with her. As a child... I didn't appreciate those qualities... but as a woman of 28, I understand her a little more and I definitely feel like I've acquired a lot of the same qualities.

Her birthday is today... and while I didn't make a lemon cake, I did make these lemon bars a few weeks ago in her honor. They are absolutely delicious and definitely the best lemon bars I've ever had. It's funny how her favorite dessert is representative of her personality... sassy and tangy at the onset... but sweet and smooth for the finish. If you're looking for your go to lemon bar recipe, look no further... Anna at Cookie Madness found them.

Possibly The Best Ever Lemon Squares

It looks like the original source of this recipe was a Cooks Illustrated recipe. But, Anna at Cookie Madness made some changes, click the link above to see her post and recipe (and to check out her blog, cause it's awesome).

This recipe is everything that a lemon bar recipe should be: the filling is lemony and creamy and oh so smooth and rich and the crust is buttery and crunchy with a hint of saltiness that compliments the sweet tanginess of the filling.

A word on the crust: it will look like it's just flour pressed into the pan... but fear not... as it blind bakes in the oven the butter will melt and meld the crust together. I also poured the filling over the hot (not just warm) crust and it turned it out perfect (it did sizzle when it hit the pan though).

This makes an 8 inch square pan.

Crust:

3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (114 grams)

1/3 cup powdered sugar — plus extra for garnishing

2 tablespoons cornstarch

3/8 teaspoon salt (just use ¼ tsp plus an extra pinch)

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Filling:

2 large eggs

2/3 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon lemon zest (the zest of 1.5 lemons)

1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (I found this to be 2 lemons)

3 tablespoons half & half (I used heavy cream, cause thats what I had)

1/8 teaspoon salt

Don’t preheat oven quite yet. Line an 8 inch square metal pan with foil. Spray the foil with cooking spray.

Pulse flour, powdered sugar, cornstarch, and salt in food processor. Add butter and process to blend, 8 to 10 seconds, then pulse until coarse. (I used a pastry cutter to cut the butter in)

Pour what will seem like a very *dry* mixture into lined pan and press over pan bottom.

Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

While it chills, you can make the filling.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. When oven is preheated and after the crust has chilled for 30 minutes, bake the pre-chilled crust for 18-20 minutes or until edges are very lightly browned.

Filling:

Lightly beat the eggs, sugar, and flour together in a bowl. I used a fork. Add lemon juice, lemon zest, half and half, and salt and mix well.

Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees (oops! I forgot to reduce the temp, I cooked mine at 350 and had no problems). Stir filling again, then pour filling over **warm** crust. Bake for 20 minutes or until filling no longer appears wet and shaky.

Set on a wire rack and cool to room temperature. Lift from pan, place on cutting board, dust with extra powdered sugar and cut into bars.

Cut into a dozen squares.

BFB: Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars

So, as I've mentioned before... my best friend Steph recently moved to Oregon. She, like me, loves to bake, and she also, like me, has a blog. Are we two cool cats, or what?

Anyway, since we talk about baking and food a lot and compare recipes, we thought it would be fun to buy the same cookbook and randomly and sporadically pick out recipes to make together (well, apart... whatever, you get the idea).

So, we bought this book Favorite Brand Name Best Loved Chocolate Recipes (quite the title, no?). And since we both love pecans and chocolate... we picked as our inaugural recipe... Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars.

These bars were good. But, I'm going to be honest... they're not great. I mean... pecan pie is my absolute favorite pie. I have dreams about pecan pie... I would marry pecan pie if it were legal (incidentally... maybe it is, in sweden?) And so when the words.. "pecan pie" appear in a recipe, I get a little excited. These bars do not taste like pecan pie. Actually, they taste like fudge pie with pecans thrown in. Good bars and easy to make... but not worthy of having "pecan pie" in their name.

Incidentally, if you want to try these... Steph had a good idea... of instead of melting the chocolate into the bars, to throw in chocolate chips whole... I think thats a great idea!

Check out Steph's Blog to see how hers turned out and stayed tuned for some more chocolatey recipes in the future :)

Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars
from Favorite Brand Name Best-Loved Chocolate Recipes

The crust will seem VERY dry. Just make sure you press it really hard into the pan and as it bakes the butter will melt and meld it all together. Like I said... don't expect it to be very pecan pie-y. Think of it more like fudge pie squares with pecans and I dont think you'll be as disappointed as I was.

Makes about 32 bars

Ingredients

Filling
3/4 cup light or dark corn syrup (I used dark)
3 squares (1 ounce each) semisweet chocolate, or 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/4 cups coarsely chopped pecans

Bar Cookie Crust
non-stick cooking spray
2 cups flour
1/2 cup (1 stick) cold margarine or butter, cut into pieces
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt

1. Preheat oven to 350. Spray 13x9-inch baking pan with cooking spray.

2. First, prepare the bar cookie crust: In large bowl with mixer at medium speed, beat flour, butter, 1/3 cup sugar, and salt until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Press firmly into bottom and 1/4 inch up sides of prepared pan. Bake 15 minutes or until golden brown.

3. Meanwhile, for filling, in heavy 3-quart saucepan stir corn syrup and chocolate over low heat just until chocolate melts. Remove from heat. Stir in sugar, eggs and vanilla until blended. Stir in pecans. Pour over hot crust; spread evenly. Bake 20 minutes or until filling is firm around edges and slightly soft in center. Cool completely on wire rack. Cut into 2 x 1 1/2-inch bars.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bars

Something random happened to me this week… in anticipation of the new season premiere of Project Runway (one of my favorite shows), I decided to bake something. It happened rather suddenly, so I didn’t have a lot of time to plan (otherwise I would have gone to the craft store, bought some cute cookie cutters in fashion shapes and made and decorated sugar cookies!)… so, I just opted for a quick and easy bar recipe.

I think, I have decided to make this a kind of regular thing, so… I need to start thinking about the premiere of Mad Men in 10 (long) days and figure out what perfect thing to bake for it’s new season. Maybe cigarette shaped sugar cookies? Ha ha. I kid, I kid. Seriously though, that would be fitting. Hmmmm…

Back to Project Runway… these cookies are pretty much the antithesis of Project Runway. They are easy, homey and hardy.

I think I would have liked them better if I had taken them out of the oven a little quicker. Usually, I undercook my bars. This time around, I slightly overcooked them. The oats definitely lend a chewy, interesting texture to the bars… but, I’m beginning to think that maybe I don’t care for peanut butter in bar cookies. It makes them a little sandy for my tastes. I like gooey bars, not sandy ones.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bars Recipe

Blondies

Just when you thought I was done with the ooey, gooey bar recipes…

I’ve had this recipe for awhile… Cookie Baker Lynn's blog is one of my favorite blogs to check out. I have bookmarked a bunch of her tasty looking recipes, but this is the first that I’ve gotten around to making. The first and not the last, I might add.

Blondies… I realize that the toffee bar recipe I made last week is named a blondie. But, it’s technically not. No, it’s not really cakey or brownie-like (well, maybe it was supposed to be, I just didn’t cook it enough). This is what a real blondie is. Rich, buttery flavor with the sturdy-ness of a brownie. (I mean, isn’t a blondie just a brownie without chocolate?).

These blondies are absolutely delicious! I honestly don’t feel the need to ever try another blondie recipe again.

Again, I underbaked these… I’m beginning to think it has to do with my oddly sized 7x9 inch glass dish that I’ve been using. But, honestly.. that’s fine with me… I can always use some gooeyness with my blondies.

Make these blondies if you are in the need of a comforting sugar fix and want something other than chocolate. You won’t be disappointed.

(Recipe linked above).

Chocolate Coconut Dream Bars

Boo - Ya. Look at me. I think this is the first week ever that I've posted every day Monday-Friday. After this week, you may not see me for about a month while instead of spending time baking, I'll be spending time running my ass off to burn all these calories. Literally.

I kid, I kid. (Well, about the not baking part, at least).

Today, I bring you... another bar recipe. But, this isn't your typical bar recipe. And by typical bar recipe I mean: get a bowl out, throw a bunch of stuff in it, whiz it around with the hand mixer, plop it into a pan, and bake it. The end. Thats my typical bar recipe.

This recipe is a little more involved (not much). You make a simple crust, bake it off and then add the filling and bake it again. Easy, just requires that extra baking step. Unfortunately for me, I forgot the salt. And some of you may think... oh, big deal, she forgot the salt. But it is a big deal. It is a huge deal. When I took the first bite, I immediately realized I forgot the salt. I used to always skip salt in recipes... but, it really does make a difference. It makes the sweet flavor pop or whatever. I can't describe, just don't ever leave out the salt, ok?

At first, I wasn't too crazy about this recipe.

But, now, after eating almost the entire half batch I made... I like it. It's very chocolatey. The coconut adds some good texture and flavor. And the crust is sturdy and crunchy. But not too crunchy.

Coconut Dream Bars

Toffee Pecan Blondies

Sometimes… sometimes you just get that craving for something gooey, chocolatey and sweet. I get this craving most… when I watch Russell Crowe (dressed in 1970s attire, no less) strut his stuff as a tough, womanizing cop/attorney. So… it goes without saying… that after watching American Gangster… I was ready for some gooey, chocolatey, sweet stuff. I dunno… it probably had more to do with hormones than with Russell Crowe, but whatever.

The thing is… when I get this craving… not just any ole thing will do. No…. for this particular craving, it typically has to be in bar form. And it always has to be easy, because I’m lazy and unmotivated when I’m dealing with a craving.

This Recipe fit the bill. It took me a long time to find it. Actually, now that I think about it… I should just set up a separate tabs in my recipe collection based on these cravings… there would be a Daniel Craig tab (all things brownie-ish and substantial), an Edward Norton tab (all things creamy and decadent), and.. an Eric Bana tab (yummy salty and peanut buttery things). Okay, enough with the man tabs (but... it is an idea).

So, this recipe was very gooey (I definitely underbaked these bars) and really sweet. I added the optional chocolate chips in the recipe (of course). But, I found that the toffee bits were just kind of wasted in the recipe. I didn’t really get any flavor from them. I don’t know, maybe they melted in and contributed, but I think next time, I might swap something else out for the toffee bits. Something like butterscotch chips, or more chocolate chips.

Praline Butter Bars

About a month ago, I blogged about some extraordinary bars that my friend Steph brought me one day. They were called Praline Butter Bars and she bought them at Whole Foods. One of the first things she said to me after I took my first bite was... we've got to learn how to make these!

I was fairly sure that I could do the top layers no problem.. it was the crust that I was nervous about. It was SUPER buttery and moist. I came across a recipe for Caramel Butter Bars on a blog. The recipe was written by Jill O'Connor and is in her book: Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey: Desserts for the Serious Sweet Tooth. I decided it was now time to attempt to copycat the Praline Butter Bars using this crust and the filling and topping from Paula Deens Low Country Bars.

I decided to put all this together this weekend and see if I could get close to the original Praline Butter Bars. And I was very pleasantly surprised when this first experiment pretty much nailed the recipe. The only difference is the filling and topping are reversed. In the original Praline Butter Bars... the white is the filling and its thicker, while the praline part is a thinner topping. But, I don't really mind it being reversed.

The picture was taken with the bar sitting out at room temperature for awhile. Normally the white topping is firmer.

These were great and I don't really think I'm going to need to experiment anymore with them.

Praline Butter Bars

For the crust:
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup confectioners sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups all purpose flour

For the filling:
12 tbsp butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1 cup pecans, chopped
1 cup coconut, optional
2 cups graham cracker crumbs

For the topping:
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
4 tbsp butter, softened
3 tbsp milk

Spray a 13x9 inch pan with non-stick cooking spray.

To prepare the crust:
Preheat oven to 325.
In a large bowl, combine the butter and sugars. Using an electric mixer mix at medium speed and beat together till creamy. Add the vanilla and salt and beat until combined. Sift the flour into the butter mixture adn beat on low speed until smooth and soft.

Press the dough evenly in the bottom of the pan and slide into the oven for 20-25 minutes. Until dough is soft, but lightly puffed. It doesn't need to change color. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

To prepare the filling:
Measure your nuts, graham cracker crumbs and coconut (if using) and set aside. Melt the butter in a saucepan on low heat and add sugar. Beat the egg with the milk together in a prep bowl and then pour into the dissolved sugar and butter mixture. Stirring constantly (to keep the eggs from scrambling), turn the heat up a little and stir until mixture comes to a bowl. Remove from heat and add the graham cracker, nuts, and coconut. Stir to combine and pour and spread over the crust.

To prepare the topping:
Beat all ingredients together and spread over the filling.

Chill the bars and allow them to set up before cutting into squares.

Recipe adapted from Jill O'Connor Caramel Butter Bars and Paula Deen's Low Country Bars.

Surfer Bars

I love love love a good bar cookie. Soft and chewy, sweet and easy to make. And these bars did not disappoint. I've had this recipe printed out for awhile now, but I never had mini marshmellows on hand, so I wasn't able to make them. Luckily, last weekend when I was in the grocery store, I actually remembered these bars and picked up a bag.

These bars are delicious. I'm not sure why they are called surfer bars, I kept trying to convince myself that it wasn't because they are so high in calories that only surfers will burn the calories, but I have a sneaking suspicion that that could be the case. Eek.

I didn't have butterscotch chips on hand, so I actually used peanut butter chips instead and they came out beautifully. I will definitely be making these cookies again. But, hopefully when I do, there will be other people around to help me eat them.

Surfer Bars

S'mores Bars

So, I’ve been eyeing this recipe for awhile now. I saw it a long time ago on Anna's Blog and I printed the recipe awaiting the perfect time to whip these up.

Unfortunately, it took about 6 months for the perfect time to roll around. I made them Thursday night to take to the Bachelorette Weekend honoring my friend Leigh. Who doesn’t love s’mores?

A funny story about this recipe from this weekend... Everyone who knows me… knows about my blogs. But, most of the girls that were at the bachelorette weekend, I either didn’t know at all, or just barely knew. So, on Saturday night, when I passed my camera over to a couple of the girls so they could review the pics from the weekend, I didn’t even think about the 40+ pictures of the s’mores bars that I had taken Friday morning that were still on my camera. That is until I noticed them surfing through the pics and then looking at each other funny, giggling and whispering to each other.

Crap, I thought. Now, they are going to think I have some weird food fetish or something. So, I tried to yell over the loud music at the bar… “I HAVE A BAKING BLOG, THOSE PICTURES ARE FOR MY BLOG, I’M NOT INTO FOOD PORNOGRAPHY.” Which, I think probably made me sound even weirder.

Whatever. They were excellent and the perfect pot luck crowd pleaser. They will definitely be made again.

Here’s the recipe . I doubled it to make a 9x13 inch pan.

I do have one suggestion. Line your baking dish with parchment paper or quick release foil, so that you can remove the bars by the parchment paper or foil and then cut them into squares. Also, I refrigerated the bars overnight before I cut them.

So much easier than building a campfire.

Caramel Oatmeal Chewies

I've had this recipe for a long time. But it called for an ingredient that I never have and never remember to buy: Caramel ice cream topping. Fortunately, I had some leftover from the caramel cake caramel cake I made the weekend before, so I was in business.

Now, you read this recipe and you think... what's not to love? Caramel, Oatmeal, Chocolate Chips? I mean, that's like the holy trinity of baking goodness, right? (Actually, I could probably think of about 15 other triple combinations that could vy for the holy trinity, but we won't get into that now). They came together pretty easily and I was excited to taste them. But, honestly, they weren't that spectacular. I didn't really think that they had much of a flavor at all. Bland and almost generic. They kind of taste like a cookie you'd get from the bakery of a big chain grocery store. You know what I'm talking about?

I have a feeling that maybe I used the wrong caramel. I used the squirtable caramel, not the kind that comes in a jar. Maybe there is a difference there. I'm sure that real caramel would have worked better, but, I honestly probably won't try this again to find out.

On a side note, my mom really liked them. So, I don't know... maybe I'm just too picky.

Savannah Cheesecake Squares

Yup, another Paula Deen recipe. I know, I should be cut off, but she makes such yummy, easy desserts! It's hard to say no!

This is what I made for Christmas at my Grandma's House. It's always an issue to figure out what to make to take there. Obviously, I want to take pictures and blog about the dessert. And that's fairly easy to do when you're only making 4-5 people wait on you (like in my immediate family gatherings) to take 31 pictures of your dessert, but when you've got 25+ people gearing up to hit the dessert line, it's a little harder to snap so many photos. So, I got smart this time. I decided to make a bar cookie. That way, I could cut them out, take pictures of them at home and then transport them to grandma's. Perfect!

These are good. Not WOW good. But, good. I opted to eat other things on the dessert table... pecan pie, white chocolate covered peanut butter cracker sandwiches (mmmmm.. I gotta make those), brownies. But, I did eat one of these while I was cutting them and plating them and they are good, rich cheesecake bars. I think they need a little more pizazz. Like some chocolate chips or nuts or fruit or something. But good for times when you just need something basic and creamy.

I did get a few compliments on them though... and they were even competing against a whole other cheesecake on the buffet line!

Savannah Cheesecake Squares

(What makes these "savannah" cheesecake squares instead of just regular cheesecake squares, I have no idea. I guess Savannah just sounds better).

RazMaTazz Bars

Sometimes… things just don’t go the way you hoped they would.

This weekend, I tried to get a head start on baking for my parents big Christmas party.

80+ people = lots of preparation.

Preliminarily, my mom and I decided to make Wanda's Rich & Dark Brownies , Hidden Kisses (a paula deen cookie recipe that I’ve made before), and we wanted a fruit cookie, so we first decided to try Raspberry Bars (also called RazMaTazz Bars).

So, Friday afternoon, after helping my mom to put up the main Christmas tree in the house, I decided to give the RazMaTazz Bars a try.

They came together fairly easily… raspberry jam and white chocolate, how can you go wrong, right??

Well… you can overcook them.

And it’s not that I wasn’t watching them, because I was! I was checking them like every 5 minutes, but I didn’t really know how they were supposed to look on top. And so, they were way overcooked. Not burned. But dry and overcooked. Also, I felt like they weren’t sufficiently raspberry enough. I doubled the recipe and made them in a 13x 9 pan.

They were okay, but I’m not sure that they would wow me, even if they weren’t overcooked. But, I think I’ve decided to give them another try. Because, they would look really festive and a bar cookie is so much easier to make for a party.

More cooking failures from this weekend to come…

RazMaTazz Bars Recipe