Chocolate chip cookie bars (Blondies)

What with all of the wedding planning obligations, I've scarcely had any time to bake, and I'm not terribly optimistic about that changing until after the wedding. But I did make time for one project recently, after a lovely bridal shower thrown for me by some wonderful friends. I wanted to do something for them to thank them for all of the work they did to make my shower amazing, so I found this recipe for "chocolate chip cookie bars."

Honestly, what's the difference between a chocolate chip cookie bar and a blondie? Pretty much nothing, really. They both have the same cookie base, generally speaking -- the major differences come with the shape (bars instead of drop cookies) and the mix-ins (sometimes blondies use white chips instead, or butterscotch chips). But the one thing this recipe doesn't share with any blondie recipe I've tried is that this recipe actually came out. The resulting bars looked and smelled awesome, and I had all I could do not to eat any (they were all for gifts, after all). ...Alright, I confess, I may not have eaten any that day, but I did make another batch a few days later, so I could eat one. And yes, they were damn tasty.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars/Blondies
Adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

2 c and 2 tbsp flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
12 tbsp butter, melted and cooled a bit
1 c brown sugar
1/2 c sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 c chocolate chips
1 c chopped nuts or different chips (I used walnuts for one batch, peanut butter chips for another)

1. Line a 9-by-13 pan with foil, then spray the foil with non-stick cooking spray.
2. Whisk together the flour, salt and baking soda and set aside.
3. Whisk together the butter and sugars, then whisk in the egg, egg yolk and vanilla. Stir in the flour mixture until combined. Stir in the chocolate chips and nuts (or other chips, etc.).
4. Dump the dough into the pan and press evenly into pan.
5. Bake at 325 degrees for about 25 minutes, until the top is golden brown and slightly firm to the touch.
6. Place the pan on a wire rack and cool to room temperature. Using the foil as a sling, remove from the pan to a cutting board, peel back the foil and cut into bars.

Brown-butter Rice Krispies treats

You want a crowd-pleaser? THIS is a crowd-pleaser. And it's so easy!

Alright, I know, I hear you saying "sheesh, they're just Rice Krispies treats, no big deal, any moron could make them." But these are different. They don't LOOK different, but that's the thing -- one teeny, tiny change is all you need to go from "hm, Rice Krispies treats" to "zomgwherehaveyouBEENallmylife!"

The secret? Brown the butter. Not burn, mind you, just brown, until it smells a little bit nutty. What you get are Rice Krispies treats with a super-delicious, caramel-y, vanilla-y flavor. And there's salt in them, which heightens the flavor that much more. They're amazing. And they only take, what, maybe two minutes longer than the original version? And that's good, 'cause you'll have to make more once you start sharing them with people. They disappear fast.

Brown-Butter Rice Krispies Treats
From Smitten Kitchen

1/4 c butter
4 c mini marshmallows
1/4 tsp sea salt
6 c Rice Krispies

1. Butter a pan, almost any pan, since you're not baking these -- an 8-by-8, or a 9-by-9, or a 9-by-13, maybe even a loaf pan or two if that's your thing.
2. Melt the butter in a large pan over medium-low heat, then, keep cooking it, stir from time to time and watch carefully. It will foam up a bit, then turn clear, then start to go just a little brown and smell a bit nutty. As soon as it does this, take the pan off the heat, 'cause the line between browned and burned isn't very wide.
3. Stir in the marshmallows until they're melted.
4. Stir in the cereal and the salt. Dump it all out into your greased pan and press down into the corners so it's even (you may want to try a piece of greased parchment or waxed paper for this, so you don't get too sticky).
5. Let cool, cut and wait for the raves to begin. :)

Rice Krispies s'more bars

Would you believe that until this point, I'd never made Rice Krispies treats?

Sure, I'd made them with my mom once, ages ago, when I was little. But never since. And I have no idea why, especially after seeing exactly how quickly and easily these came together.

Of course, I couldn't just make the standard recipe, oh no. I wanted s'more bars, something that seemed appropriate for these waning days of summer. And after looking up about a billion recipes for s'more adaptations, I came to a realization: Not only are Rice Krispies treats easy, but you can throw all sorts of stuff at 'em. They're infinitely adaptable. Want to make some with your favorite candy? Sure, throw it in. Dried fruit? Why not? Fruity Pebbles instead? What the hell, go for it. It's really hard to screw these up.

Rice Krispies S'more Bars
Adapted from the original Kellogg's recipe

1/4 c butter
Pinch of salt
4 c mini-marshmallows
6 c Rice Krispies (honestly, I used store-brand ones, and I didn't taste any difference)
1 c Golden Grahams (you could try graham crackers, but I was worried that their texture wouldn't be good in these)
1/2 c chocolate chips

1. Mix the cereals and the chocolate chips together in a really big bowl.
2. Grease a 9-by-13 baking pan.
3. Melt the butter with the salt in a saucepan. Add the marshmallows and stir until melted.
4. Pour over the cereal mixture and stir, stir, stir, until all combined.
5. Dump into the baking pan. Press it down flat using a piece of waxed paper.
6. Let cool. Cut. Eat.

Peanut butter bars

I have two things to say about this recipe:

1. If you have any sort of reason to bake for other people, make these.

2. If you like them, make an extra batch, 'cause you won't be bringing any home with you afterward.

They're not only really good, but people freakin' LOVE them -- I've yet to have leftovers, ever, no matter who I've fed them to, even though the recipe does use a rather large pan. As long as nobody's allergic to peanuts, they're a surefire winner, like a bar cookie and a peanut butter cup had a baby, or like "the perfect PMS food," I've been told.

Peanut Butter Bars
Recipe from Smitten Kitchen

2 sticks butter, softened
1 3/4 c sugar
1 c peanut butter (creamy)
1/2 tsp salt (if using unsalted butter, which I always do)
2 eggs plus 1 egg yolk
2 tsp vanilla
2 c flour
1 1/2 c chocolate chips

1 1/2 c chocolate chips
1/2 c heavy cream
1 tbsp butter

1. Cream together the butter and sugar. Beat in the peanut butter, salt, eggs and vanilla. Beat in the flour.
2. Fold in the chocolate chips.
3. Spread in a buttered 9-by-13 baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about 40-45 minutes, until golden and puffed and a toothpick comes out with a few crumbs on it.
4. Cool completely.
5. Mix chocolate chips, cream and butter in a small bowl and microwave for 30 seconds, then stir. Repeat until you have a smooth, melted mixture.
6. Spread this ganache over your bars and let it cool and set before cutting.

S'more bars

Here's a fun fact for you: Aug. 10 is National S'more Day! What a good excuse to make s'mores or, if you can't be out in front of a campfire that day, the next best thing -- s'mores in cookie form.

The trickiest part of these was working with Fluff. I must be the only person in America whose mom never bought Fluff when she was a kid -- I wasn't really big on marshmallows, so I guess that's why I never got a Fluffernutter in my lunchbox. So today was actually my very first experience with Fluff, and I have to say, I can see the kid appeal -- so sticky, so sweet, so like a marshmallow but without that dusty exterior or super-firm-chewiness. The culinary appeal, though... well, I can see why it's called for in this recipe, 'cause regular marshmallows just don't give you the right gooey-from-the-campfire texture, but it's a bit of a pain to work with -- it's sticky as hell, somewhat of a challenge to measure (I finally just gave up and eyeballed it) and spread out in the pan.

But it was worth it, 'cause these things are delicious. Treat yourself to a pan in honor of National S'more Day, or any other day, really, 'cause who'd ever turn down s'mores?




S'more Bars
From Baking Bites
1/2 c butter, softened
1/4 c brown sugar
1/2 c sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/3 c flour
3/4 c graham cracker crumbs (you could use a food processor if you have one -- I put them in a freezer bag and crushed them with a rolling pin)
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 big Hershey bars, plain chocolate (the 4.4-ounce ones)
1 1/2 c Fluff

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Cream together the butter and both sugars. Beat in the egg and vanilla.
3. In another bowl, whisk together the flour, graham crumbs, baking powder and salt. Pour into the first bowl and beat on low until combined.
4. Line an 8-by-8 pan with plastic wrap and press about a third of the dough into the pan. Use the sides of the plastic wrap to lift the pressed dough out of the pan and move it into the fridge to chill (even a few minutes will help make it easier to work with).
5. Line the pan with a piece of parchment paper that comes up the opposite sides of the pan, then grease the uncovered sides of the pan. Dump in the rest of the cookie dough and press it into the pan.
6. Top with the chocolate bars side by side, then spread the Fluff over that. Pull the rest of the dough out of the fridge, peel off the plastic wrap and lay it over the top.
7. Bake 30-35 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool before cutting.

Granola bars

There are two reactions I love to hear from someone I'm baking for. The first is "wow, this is awesome!" The second, which comes much more rarely, is "you made this? I didn't know you could make this?"

I was thinking the other day of things that I could make for a friend of mine who's a new mom. Usually, I make a lot of things that tend to be not-so-good for you -- in fact, I'm known more for chocolate-chip cookies among my friends than anything else. But chocolate's probably not that great for nursing moms, 'cause they probably shouldn't have a lot of caffeine. But what would be good for a nursing mom? Foods you can eat with one hand while holding the baby with the other. Foods that are actually sort of good for you, to keep her strength up and the baby's, too. But something that's actually tasty.

Then it hit me: Granola bars. They're tasty snacks, and they're sort of good for you, too, with grains and fruit and nuts. Perfect. And they got the second reaction from the new mom: "You made granola bars? I didn't know you could make those. I thought those just came from factories." (Well, usually they do... but why buy something processed and full of chemicals when you can make it and know what's in it? Wait 'til I get around to making Twinkies -- I'll have to remember to send her some. :) )

Granola Bars
From Smitten Kitchen
1 2/3 c quick oats
1/2 c sugar
1/3 c oat flour (can be found in the health-food section of the grocery store, or substitute oat bran or wheat germ, or grind up some oats in a blender or food processor to make your own)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon (or more, to taste)
2 to 3 c dried fruits and nuts (your choice -- I used raisins and slivered almonds)
1/3 cup peanut butter or another nut butter (optional -- I left this out)
1 tsp vanilla
6 tbsp butter, melted
1/4 c honey, maple syrup or corn syrup
2 tbsp light corn syrup
1 tbsp water

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8-by-8 pan in one direction with parchment paper, letting it go up the sides. Lightly grease the parchment and the rest of the inside of the pan.
2. Stir together all of the dry ingredients, including the fruit and nuts.
3. In another, bigger bowl, whisk together the vanilla, butter, liquid sweeteners and water.
4. Pour the dry stuff into the wet stuff and stir (adding the peanut butter if you're using it) until everything's moist and crumbly.
5. Spread the mixture in the pan and press it down, hard, a lot, so it's really packed down good and tight. (You can use a piece of waxed paper or plastic wrap to avoid getting your hands all sticky.)
6. Bake for 30-40 minutes, until they're brown around the edges and a little bit browned on top.
7. Cool completely on a rack before cutting, overnight if you can, or in the fridge. (If they're not totally cool, they won't cut cleanly. If you're in a hurry, you can also pull them out of the pan a few minutes after they come out of the oven using the parchment sling -- that'll help them cool faster.)

Good-karma brownies

It's been an exceptionally lousy week, one of those times when I truly need to get to the weekend, and fast, but it's only the beginning of the work week, and I just need to stay home and be hugged and eat ice cream. But I can't do anything about that, really, just soldier on until the weekend. Something I can do, though, is try to make something good out of a crappy week, pay some good karma forward. So when I saw that some people I know online had just been scammed out of hundreds of dollars, I asked for their addresses and resolved to send them something to cheer them up a bit.

But what would I send? Well, why not baked goodies? Everyone likes goodies. And why not brownies? Almost everyone likes brownies.

I've been a bit unsatisfied with my usual brownie recipe, though. I like it fine, but a lot of other people find it a bit ho-hum, maybe 'cause it's not the kind of brownie they're used to. So I went looking for something that's more of a crowd-pleaser, more like ones from a boxed mix, perhaps, 'cause everyone likes that kind, except mine would be homemade and way better.

Before I go any further, let me just say that I think the usual categories of brownies are useless. "Cakey" brownies aren't light like cake, "fudgy" brownies aren't hard enough to be fudge-like, and "chewy" brownies, well, usually the only chewy part is on the very edges.

So I'm not going to bother with those categories. What I will say is that these create a softer brownie, the kind where when you bite into it, it just sorta melts into super-chocolatey awesomeness, whereas my old recipe was more of a dense brownie, something you could bite into and chew on. Also, these earned an immediate reaction of "you have got to make more of these, lots of these, only these from now on" from those who were iffy on my old recipe (which I'll probably still pull out sometimes, 'cause darnit, I liked them). Perfect, I'd say, for ensuring good karma once you give these away (if you can part with them, that is).

Good-Karma Brownies
Recipe from Smitten Kitchen
10 tbsp unsalted butter
1 1/4 c sugar
3/4 c plus 2 tbsp cocoa
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 c flour
2/3 c mix-ins, optional (chocolate chips or walnuts would be good)

1. Line an 8-by-8-inch pan with foil or parchment paper (otherwise, it'll be a total pain getting these out of the pan). Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Melt the butter in a good-sized bowl in the microwave.
3. Stir in the sugar, cocoa powder and salt. Add the vanilla. Mix in the eggs, one at a time. Then, stir in the flour until combined.
4. Fold in your mix-ins, if using (I used chocolate chips, 'cause that's what I had in the house).
5. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out slightly moist. (It took more like 35 minutes for me.) Let cool on a rack.