Chubby Hubby Bars

Hello, internet!  I'm back from a loooong hiatus.  We moved back in April and I have been overwhelmed leading up to and after that significant event.  So glad it's over and I don't have to do that again for a long time!  Moving really is the pits.  Luckily we are very happy in our new place and feel like we are going to stay put for a while.


Anyhoo, back to the neglected food blog.  I have so many recipes to share that I've been collecting over the last 9 months, however I wanted to re-share this recipe post originally from June 2011.  We just had a church potluck and I brought these puppies along.  They were gone in 5 minutes flat.  My husband was glad that he snuck a piece before we left even though I threatened his life.  

6/20/11:
I saw the link to this recipe on a friend's Facebook page and had to make them. They are the perfect PMS treat - salty and sweet. It's essentially chocolate chip cookie dough with the added salt and crunch of pretzels. Perfect, right? They could only be improved by adding chopped peanuts, so I've made that adaptation to the recipe.

CHUBBY HUBBY BARS
slightly adapted from Kristin Miller's recipe on JustAPinch.com

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 Tbsp. vanilla
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped mini pretzels
1/2 cup chopped peanuts

Topping:
1/2 cup mini pretzels
1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup peanut butter or butterscotch chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9x13 baking dish with foil and lightly coat with cooking spray. In a bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, and salt. Using a mixer, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy; add eggs and vanilla. Beat in dry ingredients just until incorporated. Fold in 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips, 1 1/2 cups chopped pretzels, and chopped peanuts. Spread batter in baking dish; sprinkle evenly with remaining 1/2 cup pretzels and softly press them into the batter:

Bake for 20-25 minutes (until golden brown), then remove from oven and sprinkle with 1/4 cup chocolate chips and 1/4 cup peanut butter (or butterscotch) chips and return to oven for 5 more minutes. Cool in baking dish for 15 minutes, then remove by lifting the foil and place on a wire rack to finish cooling. Cut into bars.  Store in an airtight container.

Sugar Cookie Bars

How I love these cookies.  Let me count the ways:

1. They're easy.
2. They're tasty.
3. They're soft and chewy (and not dry).
4. One batch makes a lot.
5. They're just happy and cute!

I may never make rolled sugar cookies again.  When you consider how much work goes into making the dough, chilling the dough, rolling the dough, cutting out the dough, baking multiple batches, cooling multiple batches, then frosting multiple batches...

Have I convinced you to try these yet?

SUGAR COOKIE BARS
slightly adapted from Anissa's Kitchen

Bars:
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 Tbsp. vanilla
5 cups flour
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Grease a 13x18-inch baking pan.  In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, one at a time, mixing after each egg.  Add vanilla and mix well.  In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, salt, and baking soda; add slowly to egg mixture until thoroughly combined.  Spread dough evenly in pan (I find this is easiest to do with damp hands - re-wetting as necessary).  Bake for 10-15 minutes or until light golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean.  Cool completely.

Frosting:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup shortening
1 tsp. vanilla
pinch of salt
4 cups powdered sugar
5 Tbsp. milk, half-and-half, or cream
food coloring, optional

Beat butter and shortening until smooth and creamy; add vanilla and salt.  Alternate adding milk and powdered sugar until frosting is spreading consistency.  Add food coloring, if desired.  Before frosting bars, use a knife and cut around inside edge of pan to loosen sides.  Frost, then cut bars.  I usually cut 5x8 for a total of 40 bars.

Fluffer Nutter Blondies

What is a Fluffernutter?  I didn't know until a couple of years ago.  Apparently it's a sandwich made with peanut butter and marshmallow creme (or "fluff").  It started in Massachusetts in the early 20th century and is a beloved culinary tradition carried on today.  I've never actually had one, but when I saw these bars on the blog Something Swanky, I thought it was time to try out the combination.  Everyone in our family, including my daughter who is not a fan of peanut butter, loved these bars.  Especially the gooey yet crispy swirl of fluff!

FLUFFER NUTTER BLONDIES
from Something Swanky

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. kosher salt
2 1/2 cups flour
3/4 - 1 cup marshmallow creme

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a 9x13 baking pan with cooking spray.

Cream butter and peanut butter; add sugars and beat until light and fluffy.  On medium speed, add in eggs and vanilla.  Stir in the baking soda, salt, and flour until just combined.  Spread batter evenly in prepared pan.  Drop creme by spoonfuls randomly over batter:

And swirl with a knife:

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted 1 inch from the edge comes out clean.  Do not over bake.  Let cool before cutting into bars with a wet knife.

Crispy, Chewy Peanut Butter Bars

When I saw these on Food.com I knew they would be a hit with my husband.  He loves anything with peanut butter, especially chunky peanut butter.  They are super simple to make and require very few ingredients.  Just be careful not to overcook the peanut butter mixture or they will turn out really, really chewy.  Double the recipe if you want to fill a 9x13.

CRISPY, CHEWY PEANUT BUTTER BARS
slightly adapted from No-Bake Chocolate, Peanut Butter, Corn Flake Bars on Food.com

1 cup crunchy peanut butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
3 cups corn flakes, crushed (measure, then crush)
1 cup chocolate chips (semi-sweet, milk, or mixed)
1/2 Tbsp. butter

Line an 8x8 baking pan with foil and spray with cooking spray.  In a saucepan, heat peanut butter, sugar, and corn syrup over low heat until sugar dissolves.  Stir in cereal.  Pour mixture into prepared pan and pat smooth.

Melt chocolate chips with butter over low heat or in the microwave; spread over peanut butter mixture.  Cool until firm.  Remove from pan and cut into squares (makes 16).

Black-Bottom Banana Bars

I got this recipe from my friend Carrie.  She originally found it in a Taste of Home magazine and now it's on the website.  She made them for a church gathering and I ate two and wanted more!  My husband is also a fan of these puppies, and he is not big on sweet stuff.

By the way, I am now sticking to name brand chocolate chips like I do with marshmallows.  The bargain brand chips I used in this recipe had a chalky texture once heated and were a total rip off.  Stick with the good stuff.  It's worth the extra 50 cents!

BLACK-BOTTOM BANANA BARS
slightly adapted from Taste of Home

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups mashed ripe bananas (about 3-4 medium)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup cocoa
3 Tbsp. mayo
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Beat in egg and vanilla.  Stir in the bananas.  Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; add to creamed mixture and mix well.

Divide batter in half.  Add cocoa and mayo to one half; spread into a greased 9x13 baking pan.  Spoon remaining batter on top and swirl with a knife.  Sprinkle with chocolate chips.

Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool on a wire rack.

Raspberry Lemonade Bars

Boy have I had a time with these. This is a combination and an adaptation of two different recipes I found online. The first recipe was Strawberry Lemonade Bars on Baking Bites. I made them several months ago and though the crust was great and they were a cute pink color they were way too tart for my taste. Then I saw Raspberry Lemonade Bars on Sophistimom and made them for my nieces' blessing dinner. I really didn't like the crust on those and there was too much filling (and still too tart). So I thought and thought for a few months and decided to try combining the two. So the crust is from the Baking Bites recipe and the filling is adapted from the Sophistimom recipe. Since raspberries have a more distinct flavor, I stuck with them for the filling versus strawberries.

RASPBERRY LEMONADE BARS

Crust:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cubed

Filling:
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2/3 cup fresh lemon juice
2 Tbsp. lemon zest
3/4 cup flour
pinch of salt
1 (12 oz) bag frozen raspberries, thawed
powdered sugar for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9x13 baking pan.

Pour thawed raspberries into a fine mesh sieve placed over a glass measuring cup. Using a rubber spatula, press and scrape raspberries to extract juice:

You will need 1/2 cup. Discard seeds and pulp.

To make the crust, combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a medium bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry blender (or pulse in a food processor) until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Press firmly and evenly in bottom of baking dish and bake for 17 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together sugar, eggs, lemon juice and zest, flour, salt, and raspberry juice. Pour into hot crust and return to oven for 18-20 minutes or until filling is set. Cool completely on a wire rack then chill for at least 2 hours. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Cut into bars with a clean, wet knife.

Brownie Covered Oreos

I saw this recipe on the food blog Picky Palate. Jenny seems to love making desserts as much as I do, but she develops most of the recipes herself. My hero!

These are something fun and different and they really aren't that hard. You'll get 'em done faster if you have more than one muffin tin. And I had an easier time of removing the brownies from my newer tin ($4.06 ChefMate at Target - go get one) than from my older one even though it's non-stick as well.

BROWNIE COVERED OREOS
from Picky Palate

1 box brownie mix (I used Betty Crocker Dark Chocolate brownie mix)
1 package Double Stuff Oreos
1/2 cup white chocolate chips, optional

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Make brownie batter according to package directions. Spray muffin tin(s) liberally with cooking spray. Dip Oreos in batter until completely coated and place in muffin tin. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until brownies are cooked through (they taste better if they are undercooked rather than overcooked!). As soon as you remove the tin from the oven, run a plastic knife around the edge of each brownie.

Running the knife around the edges will give them that rounded look and make them easier to remove.

Let cool for 5 minutes before removing brownies to wire rack.

In a microwave-safe bowl, heat white chocolate chips on HIGH for 30 seconds and stir. Microwave 1 more minute, stirring after every 20 seconds or until smooth. Pour chocolate into a freezer-weight Ziploc bag and snip one corner. Drizzle chocolate over brownies and allow to cool.

Paula Deen's Pumpkin Bars

Image via FoodNetwork

Caralie and I made these today. She couldn't wait for them to cool off enough to eat. And I have to say they are moist and delicious. However, this is really more of a dense cake than "bars" in my opinion. Sprinkle some chopped nuts on top, if you like, to make it pretty and you've got a great dessert for a get-together. I made a couple of changes:

1) I used 1 tsp. cinnamon + 1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice, and

2) I added an extra 1/2 cup of powdered sugar to the frosting because it was a little too cream-cheesy for me.

Next time I'll try substituting applesauce for the oil - I would have done that today but I am out of applesauce.

PAULA DEEN'S PUMPKIN BARS
from FoodNetwork.com

4 eggs
1 2/3 cup sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. cinnamon

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13 inch baking pan.

Using an electric mixer at medium speed, combine eggs, sugar, oil, and pumpkin until light and fluffy. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and mix at low speed until thoroughly combined and the batter is smooth. Spread batter into prepared pan and bake for 30 minutes. Let cool completely before frosting. Cut into bars.

To make icing: Combine the cream cheese and butter in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Add the sugar and mix at low speed until combined. Stir in the vanilla and mix again. Spread over cooled bars.

Butterscotch Blondies

These are sooo good. And sooo bad for you. These are the kind of treats that you only make when you have to bring treats to a party or potluck or whatever. Otherwise, you'll eat them all yourself. And that would be bad. Very, very bad.

But it would feel sooo right.

(And if you are going to eat one, try to get an edge piece because the edges get uber-chewy and delicious.)

BUTTERSCOTCH BLONDIES
adapted from Disappearing Marshmallow Brownies on Allrecipes.com

1 cup butterscotch chips
1/2 cup butter
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 cups mini marshmallows

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13 baking dish.

Combine butterscotch chips and butter in microwave-safe bowl. Melt in the microwave, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Set aside to cool.

In a large mixing bowl, beat together brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Add in flour, baking powder, and salt. Fold in mini chocolate chips and marshmallows. Pour batter into baking dish and spread evenly.

Bake for 15-20 minutes. Cool and cut into squares. Store in airtight container.

Snowy Glazed Apple Pie Squares

image via Noodlehead

I made these tonight and let me tell you, they were popular. I follow a craft blog called Noodlehead and she shared this recipe a week or so ago. Her photo is far superior to anything I could produce, so I've included it here.

I made two mistakes in making these: 1) I forgot it called for corn flakes, but luckily had just enough Frosted Flakes on hand to substitute (and I therefore reduced the sugar by 1/4 cup) and, 2) I accidentally added 1 1/2 tablespoons of cinnamon instead of teaspoons. And these still turned out fantastic! And I'm not a big fan of apple pie (I know for some that makes me a communist or something).

SNOWY GLAZED APPLE PIE SQUARES
from Noodlehead

8 medium-size tart apples; cored, peeled, and sliced (ex: Granny Smiths)
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup shortening
2 eggs, separated
milk
1 1/2 cups cornflakes, crushed
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

Glaze:
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
3 Tbsp. milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a bowl, combine flour and salt. Cut in shortening with a pastry blender or a fork until crumbly. In a glass measuring cup, beat two egg yolks. Add enough milk to equal 2/3 cup. Add to mixture; toss lightly. Divide pastry in half. On lightly floured surface roll out first half to cover bottom of 9x13 baking dish. Sprinkle with crushed corn flakes.

Spread apples over corn flakes. Combine sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over apples. Roll out last pastry half and cover; seal edges. Brush with beaten egg whites.

Bake for 1 hour. Cool slightly. Make glaze by whisking together powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla. Drizzle over crust. Can serve warm or cooled.

S'Mores Bars

I'll admit it. I'm an addict. While these will never touch the flavor and consistency of a true S'More, they are still darn yummy. I've made these twice now. The first time I made some mistakes. I crushed the grahams too much, I used large marshmallows (because I didn't have small ones on hand), and I trusted the recipe (the chocolate didn't melt at all). So, now that I've made these the second time, I have some tips to help you achieve success.

For one thing, break the grahams by hand into quarter-sized pieces:

This doesn't take that long and you will have a lot less graham cracker crumbs/dust than if you mash them up in a Ziploc bag like I did the first time. And remember that one graham cracker is considered to be the large rectangle, not one of the four smaller rectangles. Does that make sense?

I tried reducing the sugar (corn syrup) in this recipe and it just doesn't work. But you weren't really expecting these to be healthy, were you?


S'MORES BARS
adapted from Karo Syrup's recipe

18 whole graham crackers, broken into small pieces
2 cups crispy rice cereal
1 cup light corn syrup
3 Tbsp. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. butter or margarine
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 (12 oz) bag milk chocolate chips
1 (10.5 oz) bag mini marshmallows
1/3 cup mini chocolate chips, for garnish

Line a 13x9 baking dish with a large piece of heavy duty aluminum foil so that the foil extends over the sides. Spray bottom and sides with cooking spray.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl, combine graham cracker pieces with rice cereal. Cook corn syrup and brown sugar in a saucepan over medium heat just until edges begin to bubble and boil; remove from heat. Stir in butter, baking soda, and vanilla. Mixture will foam. Pour over grahams and cereal in bowl and stir to coat. Pour into foil-lined baking dish and press firmly to spread and create crust. Tip: I slip my hand into a sandwich-size Ziploc bag sprayed with a little cooking spray when pressing the crust.

Microwave milk chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl on HIGH for one minute, stirring after every 30 seconds. Spread melted chocolate evenly over crust. Sprinkle with marshmallows.

Bake in oven for 5-8 minutes or until marshmallows are puffed and starting to brown. Remove from oven and sprinkle with mini chocolate chips. Let cool 10 minutes, then refrigerate for 1 hour to firm.

To serve, release bars from pan by lifting the foil. Carefully peel away foil and place bars on a large cutting board. Cut into bars or squares. Tip: spray knife lightly with cooking spray if needed. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Caramel Krispy Treats

I found this recipe on my friend, Shana's, blog. It is so, so delicious. And so, so bad for you. These do not stick together as much as regular Rice Krispy Treats, but who gives a good crap? They taste so awesome you won't care. Also, be careful when pouring these babies into your dish - this barely fits into my glass 9x13 and that is after I mush it down with the wooden spoon:


Addictive!!!!

CARAMEL KRISPY TREATS

1 box (18 oz) Rice Krispies
2 cups packed brown sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1 3/4 cup light corn syrup
1 can sweetened condensed milk

In a large pot melt butter over medium heat. Stir in brown sugar and corn syrup. Bring to a boil; boil for 3 minutes.

Remove from heat. Stir in sweetened condensed milk. Return to heat. Boil for 3 more minutes. Stir in Rice Krispies if your pot is big enough; otherwise pour caramel over Rice Krispies in a large bowl, and stir to coat. Pour into greased 9x13 (or larger) baking dish. Let cool and cut into squares.


I think I might try cutting these into small squares and then coating them in chocolate. Doesn't that sound sinful?

*************************
Update: I made these and they are delicious. I melt one part semi-sweet and one part milk chocolate chips and then dip. Place on wax paper-lined baking sheet until chocolate solidifies. You can speed this process by placing them in the fridge.

Caramel Brownies

I first made these with my friend Pam in high school. Not sure where we got the recipe from. The original calls for German chocolate cake mix, but I prefer Devil's Food. Up to you!

Once again, these are very good and very bad for you! I think they taste better and cut better the next day. And the day after that, if they last that long.


CARAMEL BROWNIES

1 (18.25 oz) pkg. devil's food cake mix
3/4 cup melted butter
2/3 cup evaporated milk, divided
14 oz. bag caramels, unwrapped
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 13x9 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine cake mix, butter, and 1/3 cup evaporated milk. Mix well and spread 2/3 of the batter into the prepared pan (batter will be thick). Bake for 8-10 minutes. Cool.

In a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine unwrapped caramels and 1/3 cup evaporated milk. Microwave on high for 2 minutes, stirring twice. Microwave for additional 30 second intervals until caramel is smooth; pour over cooled "crust."

Sprinkle with chocolate chips and top with tablespoonfuls of remaining batter (it will not entirely cover the top). Bake for another 15-18 minutes; cool. Cut with a wet knife, if necessary.