All posts in category Bars

Oatmeal Carmelitas

I was going through my baking cabinet and I found a bag of caramels that I bought last Halloween to make candy apples, but I never got around to it.  I was about to toss them, but then I saw the expiration date was March 22nd, so they were still good.  So, I wanted to use them right away.  I found this recipe for Oatmeal Carmelitas and I decided it would be the perfect way to salvage the caramels.   These bars have a butterscotch flavored oatmeal crust, with a chocolate chip and gooey caramel center, topped with oatmeal crumbs.  They sound difficult to make because of the three layers.  But, really they aren’t because the crumb mixture serves double duty as crust and crumb topping.  Actually, the hardest thing about making these bars was unwrapping all the caramels.  :D But, I enlisted the help of my daughter Sammie and together we made a quick job of it.  When the bars are hot from the oven, while they don’t slice well, they are delicious with all the melted chocolate and gooey caramel.  What a great topping this would be for a big scoop of vanilla ice cream!   But, if you can be patient and wait for them to cool, the center will set and they cut into nice bars.  I suggest eating these cookies over a plate or napkin because with all that topping, crumbs go everywhere.  But, I think that is part of their charm.  With two sticks of butter, these may not be the healthiest bar.  But, they do have a good deal of oatmeal.  Doesn’t that make them at least a tiny bit healthy?  I think so. :D

Oatmeal Carmelitas

Yield : 13 x9 pan  ~ 24 one inch bars

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature

11/2 cups packed light brown sugar

2 cups quick-cooking oats

1 (14-ounce) bag Kraft soft caramel candies, unwrapped (about 50)

1/2 cup evaporated milk

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips  I added about 1/4 cup extra

1 cup chopped pecans (optional)   I omitted

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 by 13-inch baking dish (or use nonstick baking spray). I lined with foil with an overhang and then sprayed it. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. Place the butter and brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium speed until creamy. Slowly add the flour mixture and blend until incorporated. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to fold in the oats. The mixture will be crumbly. Transfer half (about 3 cups) of the mixture to the baking dish. Use your fingers to gently press and spread the mixture evenly on the bottom of the baking dish. Bake for 10 minutes to set.

While the first layer is baking, place the caramels and milk in a small saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the caramels are melted. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly.

Remove the crust from the oven. Sprinkle the chocolate chips and pecans (if desired) evenly over the top. Carefully pour the caramel mixture on top of the chocolate chips and nuts, and spread evenly. Sprinkle the remaining crumb mixture over the top. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until lightly browned. Remove from the oven and let cool to room temperature. Then refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or until the bars are set. Cut into 2-inch squares.

Source: Sugar, Sugar:  Every Recipe Has a Story

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by Just Baked on March 21, 2012  •  Permalink
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Posted by Just Baked on March 21, 2012

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Coffee-Chocolate Chip Blondies

My husband doesn’t eat much chocolate.  But, for some reason he is okay with chocolate if it is in the form of chocolate chip cookies and blondies.  Now, the rest of us love chocolate, so we look for desserts where we can sneak it in!  :D   I was looking through You Made That Dessert? Create Fabulous Treats, Even If You Can Barely Boil Water and I saw this recipe for Coffee Chocolate Chip Blondies.  I figured adding a hefty amount of espresso powder to the batter could only make blondies better.   I was so right.   So you get soft and chewy blondies with an added bonus of a nice coffee kick.  And, on most days, I so need that. :D   But, if you aren’t a big coffee fan, you can just omit it, creating a great base for a bunch of different mix ins.  As you can gather by the title of this book, they are super easy to make.  No special equipment required.  Nope,  just a whisk and spatula.  So, if you have a hankering for a blondie, as I do from time to time, but want a change from same old, please give this recipe a try.  My kids loved them, so I know you won’t be disappointed.

Coffee Chocolate Chip Blondies

11/2 cups (6.4 ounces) all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter

11/4 cups (10.5 oz) packed dark brown sugar

2 large eggs, at room temperature

2 tablespoons instant espresso powder

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 cup chopped walnuts   I omitted 

11/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a 13 x 9 inch baking pan with foil leaving a 2 inch overhang on both sides; lightly mist the foil with cooking spray.
In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt; stir with a fork to mix. In a saucepan, warm the butter and brown sugar on low heat, stirring with flexible spatula until the butter has melted and butter and sugar are well combined.
Pour the butter-sugar mixture into a large bowl and let it cool for about 5 minutes. (test the temperature with your finger- it should feel warm but not hot)  Meanwhile, lightly beat the eggs lightly in a small bowl with a whisk, just to mix the yolks and whites. In a small bowl, dissolve the instant espresso with vanilla.
When the butter-sugar mixture has cooled; beat in the eggs with the whisk, then beat in the espresso-vanilla mixture. Add the flour mixture and stir with a flexible spatula or a wooden spoon. Scrape down the bottom of the bowl to ensure all the dry ingredients are mixed in. Stir in chopped nuts (if using) and chocolate chips.
Scrape the batter into the baking pan and spread it evenly with a flexible spatula. Bake for 25 – 30 minutes until just golden brown and set in the center. Start checking at 20 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let to cool. Let it cool completely.
For the neatest cut, place the pan in the refrigerator for 20 minutes before slicing. To slice use the overhang foil to remove the blondies and place on a large cutting board. Use a chef’s knife and cut into 24 pieces, wiping off knife between cuts, then carefully remove foil.
7 Comments
by Just Baked on March 16, 2012  •  Permalink
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Posted by Just Baked on March 16, 2012

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Amy’s Bread Gooey Coconut Dream Bars

My son’s favorite candy bar is a Mounds. It is weird to me that such a picky child would love a candy bar with coconut, but he does.  I saw these bars, described to taste like Mounds bars, and I knew they would be perfect for Jack.  I was so excited to have him taste one.  I just couldn’t wait for him to get home from school and see his face when he tried them.  Jack didn’t let me down.  He loved these bars so much, I had to cut him off at two, so as not to spoil his dinner.

The great thing about these bars is how easy they are to make.  You just prepare a basic graham cracker crust, sprinkle it with coconut and chocolate chips, and drown it in lots of condensed milk.  That’s it.  I have to say, usually I am not a big coconut fan.  I like the flavor of coconut, like in piña coladas, but I just don’t like the chewiness.  But I have to say, I really liked these Dream Bars, Magic Bars, Hello Dollys… whatever you want to call them, they are delicious! :D

Gooey Coconut Dream Bars

Yield:  13 x 9 pan, about 20 bars

For the crust:

3 cups graham cracker crumbs (from about 20 crackers- just give them a quick run in the food processor)

3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

1/4 teaspoon coarse salt

For the Topping

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

2 cups sweetened flaked coconut

1 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees with a rack in the center of oven. Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking pan and line with parchment paper; set aside. Use parchment.  I made the mistake of using aluminum foil and it stuck terribly.

To make the crust: In a medium bowl, mix together graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, and salt. Pour mixture into prepared pan and press into bottom of pan using your fingertips.

To make the topping: In another medium bowl, mix together chocolate chips and coconut; sprinkle evenly over crust.

Pour condensed milk evenly over coconut and chips, covering the entire surface. Transfer to oven and bake, rotating pan halfway through baking, making sure the milk does not get too brown or bubble over in the pan, 26 to 32 minutes. I think mine are a bit too brown. The picture in the book shows them golden, so that’s what I did.  But, afterwords, I saw a clip of Amy making these with Martha Stewart and her edges were just golden and the inside was really white.  I think they would be more gooey this way, so I think this would be better.

Transfer baking pan to a wire rack to cool completely. Cut into 20 squares. Serve immediately, or wrap each bar tightly with plastic wrap and keep refrigerated until ready to serve.  I had a bit of trouble getting perfect slices.  I think they would cut better cold, but I had to hurry before Baby Alex woke from his nap.  He’s not very tolerant of me taking pictures. :D

Source:  The Sweeter Side of Amy’s Bread:  Cakes, Cookies, Bars, Pastries and More from New York City’s Favorite Bakery

8 Comments
by Just Baked on February 29, 2012  •  Permalink
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Posted by Just Baked on February 29, 2012

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Peanut Butter Brownies Stuffed With Milk Chocolate

I finally got tired of looking at cookbooks and food magazines half neatly organized and half piled haphazardly on my bookshelves.  My sister in law was nice enough to organize them for me while I was on bed rest with my son, Alex, last year.  But, I got a bunch of new cookbooks and magazines and I totally screwed it up.  So, I decided to take on the big project of reorganizing my cookbooks by category so I could get them off the floor, my dresser, in my car, behind the couch, and wherever else they were and onto the shelves where they belong.  Now I can easily find a particular book I am looking for and bonus- I found a bunch of cookbooks that I kind of forgot I had.  Yay for new recipes!  One of those books was Fearless Baking by Elinor Klivans and while flipping through it I found a recipe for bars described as an inside out peanut butter cup.  Umm…sold!  The recipe calls for you to make a simple peanut butter cookie batter, spread part of it into a pan, cover it with broken milk chocolate bars and spread it with the remaining peanut butter batter.  So, here is another easy recipe that requires no fancy kitchen gadgets- only a spatula.  I don’t know about you, but peanut butter and chocolate is a combination I never grow tired of.  If you love brownies and you love peanut butter cups, you have to know the combination of the two has to be fabulous.  You’re still not sure?  There is only one way to find out…  :D

Peanut Butter Brownies Stuffed With Milk Chocolate

Yield: a 9 x9 pan or 7 x 11 pan of brownies

1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ pound (1 stick) very soft unsalted butter
1 cup smooth peanut butter, room temperature
½ cup packed light brown sugar
¾ cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 ounces milk chocolate, such as Lindt or Dove Bar, broken into about ½” pieces (I used Callebaut)

Position the oven rack in the middle and preheat the oven to 325˚F. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9 inch square or 11 x 7 baking pan.  (I lined the pan with foil first, then sprayed it with Pam)

Sift the flour, baking powder and salt onto a piece of wax paper or into a small bowl.  Set aside.

Put the butter and peanut butter in a large bowl and stir with a large spoon until they are blended together. You may see a few specks of butter- that’s okay.  Stir in the brown sugar and granulated sugar, mixing until they are incorporated and there is no loose sugar. Stirring vigorously, beat in the eggs and vanilla until the mixture looks smooth. Add the flour mixture and stir just until it is incorporated and there is no loose flour. Spread about two thirds of the batter into the pan, spreading it evenly with a thin metal spatula or a nonsharp table knife. Scatter the milk chocolate pieces evenly over the batter. Drop spoonfuls of the remaining batter over the milk chocolate, using a rubber spatula to scrape all of the batter from the bowl. Use a thin metal spatula or the table knife to spread the batter evenly over the chocolate. Be patient and spread carefully, this is harder than it looks :D   The chocolate will be covered, but may show through the batter.

Bake for about 35 minutes until the top feels firm when gently touched and the edges are light brown. Inserting a toothpick as a test doesn’t work because the warm milk chocolate clings to the toothpick. Cool the brownies thoroughly in the pan for about 1 hour. Cut the brownies into pieces and use a thin metal spatula to remove them from the pan. Wrap individual brownies in plastic wrap and store at room temperature up to 3 days.

Individual brownies can be wrapped in plastic wrap then heavy aluminum foil and stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. Defrost the wrapped brownies as needed.

Source: Fearless Baking: Over 100 Recipes That Anyone Can Make

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by Just Baked on February 15, 2012  •  Permalink
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Posted by Just Baked on February 15, 2012

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Caramel Crumb Bars

If there was a Baker’s Hall of Fame, Nick Malgieri would be one of the first inductees.  So, when he says that if given the choice, caramel crumb bars would be the cookies he would chose above all others…well, you take notice, and then make those bars.  They did not disappoint!  The buttery shortbread crust serves double duty as the crumb topping as well.  Then you add a layer of creamy homemade caramel…oh my goodness!  My son took a bite, said MmmMmmm and then proceeded to eat three more bars. Mind you he is a little bitty thing, just 45 pounds, so that is a lot of cookie bars!  I was going to send them all with my husband to work tomorrow because keeping them in the house would be dangerous for me.  But, I think I have enough willpower to save a few to surprise Jack in his school lunch tomorrow before I eat them :D

Caramel Crumb Bars

For the crust/crumb topping

8 oz. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for greasing the pan

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups flour (spoon flour into a dry-measure cup and level off)- DIVIDED

For the caramel filling

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 tablespoon light corn syrup

1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar

1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

Position a rack on the lowest level of the oven; preheat to 350°F

Line the bottom and sides of a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with parchment paper or foil, then lightly butter the paper/foil.  (save your butter wrappers- they work nicely for this purpose)

For the dough: Combine 2 sticks of butter, the sugar and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle.  Beat on medium speed for 2 to 3 minutes, until the mixture is soft and light. Add the vanilla and mix to incorporate.

Reduce the speed to low, then gradually add 2 1/4 cups of the flour (spooned into the cup and leveled) and beat until well incorporated to form a smooth dough. Use a spatula to scrape down the bowl and paddle.

Remove the bowl from the mixer; transfer 3/4 of the dough into the prepared pan. Use the palm of your hand to press the dough down lightly and evenly. Chill the crust dough while you make the topping: Work the remaining 1/4 cup flour into the remaining dough with your fingertips so that it forms small crumbs. Set aside at room temperature.

For the caramel: Combine the butter, corn syrup, brown sugar and condensed milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Allow the mixture to boil gently, stirring often, for about 10 minutes, until the mixture starts to thicken and darken slightly. Pour into a stainless steel bowl to cool for 5 minutes.

To assemble: Pour the cooled filling on top of the chilled dough, then scatter the crumb mixture evenly over the top. Bake for about 30 minutes, until the filling bubbles gently and is a deep caramel color and the dough and crumb topping are baked through.

Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 15 to 20 minutes, until lukewarm. Use the parchment paper/foil to lift the slab of bars out of the pan and onto a cutting board before it has cooled completely. Cut the slab into roughly 2-inch squares.

Source:  The Modern Baker:  Time-Saving Techniques for Breads, Tarts, Pies, Cakes and Cookies

Helpful Hints:

  • Be careful with the caramel so it doesn’t get too thick.  I made mine a bit too thick and it was very hard to spread.  After using an offset spatula for most of the spreading, I used my hands to press the caramel onto the places I just couldn’t get the caramel to stick (it had cooled enough by then)
  • It is also helpful to dollop the caramel all over the bars and then spread the large dots of caramel together with an offset spatula.   There is less pulling at the crust I found.
  • Be sure to spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level it off so you get the right amount of flour.
  • My dough was a bit more crumbly (dry) than it should have been because my Kitchen Aid broke (Gasp!) and I had to use my old-time hand mixer- which apparently is a bit harder to handle than I thought.  I had the mishap of some butter jumping out of the bowl.  So, the crumb mixture should be in bigger pieces of crumb. :D   It is more of a cosmetic thing…they still tasted wonderful.
  • I think a sprinkling of Maldon sea salt before the crumb topping would be a wonderful addition.
7 Comments
by Just Baked on January 13, 2012  •  Permalink
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Posted by Just Baked on January 13, 2012

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Blondies

I love chocolate chip cookies, but sometimes I just don’t have the time to scoop out and bake sheet after sheet.  I’m sure you can imagine with three kids, time is something that I usually don’t have a lot of.  I can have this batter done in 10 minutes, exactly enough time to sneak away before they realize I am gone. :D   You don’t even have to take out your big old mixer- this is mixed by hand.  Forgot to take out butter? No problem, this recipe uses melted butter.  Don’t have the ingredients? I bet you do.  They require just basic pantry ingredients, so you are always prepared in an emergency requiring some delicious cookie bars.  It’s so crazy easy.  You just make the batter, spread it in the pan, and bake it.  That’s it.  And, it is so versatile.  The butterscotch cookie is a great base for a variety of mix-ins.  I usually do plain chocolate chip, because I guess am a purist. But M & Ms, Reese’s cups, toffee chips, a sprinkle of sea salt, I could go on and on… they would all be delicious.  And, warm out of the oven with a scoop of ice cream and hot fudge, well that is obviously delicious too. So I think I left you with no excuses.  You just have to make these blondies! :D

Blondies

Yield:  About 24 blondies (13 x 9 pan)

1 1/2 cup (7.5 oz) all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

12 T (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 1/2 c packed (10.5 oz) light brown sugar

2 large eggs

4 tsp vanilla (Nielsen-Massey if possible- it makes a big difference)

1/2 cup (3 oz) semisweet chocolate chips (I use about 1/3 of the bag)

1/2 cup (3 oz) white chocolate chips (I omit)

1 cup (4 oz) pecans, toasted and chopped (I omit)

Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat to 350°F.  Line a 13 x 9 with aluminum foil (overhang over pan) and spray with Pam.

Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl.

In a large bowl, whisk the butter and sugar. Whisk in the eggs and vanilla until combined. Stir in flour mixture until just incorporated. Stir in the chips.

Scrape batter into the prepared pan and smooth.  Bake until a toothpick in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 22-25 minutes, rotate 1/2 way through baking.

Let them cool for 2 hours (ATK’s recommendation- I could never wait that long). Remove from pan by the aluminum foil overhang and cut.

Source:  The America’s Test Kitchen Family Baking Book

Helpful Hints:

  • I don’t melt the butter completely in the microwave. I melt most of it, then I use the residual heat to melt the rest of the butter.  That cools the butter enough to use right away. No wait!
  • You don’t have to line your pan with foil. You can just use spray.  I just like being able to pull the whole bar out and cut them on the table- it makes for much nicer cut blondies.
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by Just Baked on January 11, 2012  •  Permalink
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Posted by Just Baked on January 11, 2012

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