Rocky Road Bars

Once again I used another recipe from my Joy of Cookie: All About Cookies cookbook and was not disappointed. These bars were delicious but kinda of turned out more like a chewy brownie rather than a rocky road bar. The three types of chocolate and the marshmallows mixed in make these bars very chocolaty, chewy, and sticky (which is never a bad thing). I kind of wish the marshmallows on top didn't melt down as much for appearance purposes but they still tasted great. I've posted the recipe below which originally has nuts but I made mine without just for allergy reasons at work.

Rocky Road Bars

4 Ounces unsweetened chocolate
8 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 Cups sugar
4 Large eggs
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 Cups all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa
1/8 tsp salt
1 Cup coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans
1 Cup mini marshmallows
1 Cup semisweet chocolate chips

1) Preheat oven to 350F and line and grease a 13*9in pan
2) In microwave melt unsweetened chocolate, stirring occasionally
3) Set chocolate aside to cool to room temp, meanwhile beat butter and sugar until smooth
4) Beat in eggs and vanilla to butter mixture
5) Fold in cooled chocolate mixture into butter mixture with a wooden spoon
6) Sift in flour, cocoa, and salt and stir in with wooden spoon
7) In separate bowl mix together nuts, marshmallows, and chocolate chips
8) Stir in all but 1 cup of marshmallow mixture into butter mixture until well combined
9) Pour batter into prepared pan and pour remaining marshmallow mixture evenly on top
10) Bake for 30min or until top is lightly firm when tapped and toothpick inserted in center comes out slightly wet
11) Let cool completely in pan on wire rack then enjoy!

Blackberry Plum Crumb Bars

Once I saw the delicious picture for this recipe, http://www.bakeorbreak.com/2008/09/17/blackberry-crumb-bars/, I just knew I had to make them too. I did not have any fresh blackberries on hand but my boyfriends mom just gave me some homemade blackberry plum jam that I thought would work just as good. These bars are honestly one of my (and my co-workers) favorite recipes that I have made so far. The bottom layer has a nice and light white cake texture, the jam layer works perfectly with bringing out the sweetness in the bars, and the top layer has the best crunch and flavor which ties everything together. I would make these again in a heart beat and maybe even try different jams or fresh fruit next time too ! I followed the recipe exactly except for replacing the berries with jam (I used about 1/2 Cup of jam spread evenly over the cake layer) but you can find the original recipe here, http://www.bakeorbreak.com/recipes/2008/09/17/blackberry-crumb-bars/ and try them for yourselves!

Butterscotch Blondies

I haven't made a good blondie for a while so I found this recipe, http://www.elise.com/recipes/archives/007188blondies.php, and remembered that I had butterscotch chips in my cupboard. I changed the recipe slightly by using light brown sugar, instead of dark brown sugar, and added en extra egg yolk for tenderness to my blondies. They turned out soft and chewy just like a fudgey brownie with a great caramelized taste form the brown sugar and butterscotch chips. This blondie recipe might actually be my favorite that I have made so far especially because its so easy and fast to clean up and make since you only use one bowl. I've posted my adapted version of the recipe below but you can easily substitute the butterscotch chips for milk chocolate, white chocolate, or even peanut butter chips.


Butterscotch Blondies

1/2 Cup butter (melted)
1 Cup packed light brown sugar
1 Large egg
1 Large egg yolk
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
1 Cup all-purpose flour
1/3 Cup butterscotch chips

1) Preheat oven to 350F and line and grease an 8in pan
2) In large bowl, beat together melted butter and sugar with a wooden spoon
3) In separate bowl lightly beat eggs then add them and vanilla to butter mixture
4) Stir in flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt to butter mixture
5) Fold in chips and pour batter into greased pan evenly
6) Bake for 30min when top is golden brown and toothpick inserted comes out clean
7) Cool in pan on wire rack completely then enjoy!

Cookie Layer Bars

This is a simple, easy, and fun recipe that is both chewy like a brownie and crunchy like a cookie. It is my version of a 7 Layer Cookie and a Magic bar combined.

Cookie Layer Bar

1/2 Cup melted butter
1 Box of chocolate wafer cookies
1 Cup chocolate chips
1 Cup butterscotch chips
30-40 graham crackers
1 Can (300ml) sweetened condensed milk
(optional: 1/4 Cup crushed almonds)

1) Preheat over to 350F and line a 13*9in baking pan with parchment paper or tin foil
2) Melt butter over stove and pour into pan
3) Place chocolate wafer cookies evenly over butter and press down flat into butter (I use a potato masher to help crush and flatten cookies to form a good crust)
4) sprinkle both chips over chocolate wafer layer
5) Evenly place graham crackers over chip layer and press down flat (I used a potato masher for this step as well)
6) Evenly pour condensed milk over graham cracker layer
7) Sprinkle crushed graham crackers over condensed milk (or sprinkle crushed almonds over condensed milk)
8) Bake in pan for 25-30min or until lightly brown color on top (don't over bake or the bottom layer will burn)
9) Cool in pan and then chill in fridge completely
10) Cut into bars and enjoy!

Healthy Oat Granola Bars

I've been on the hunt to find a healthy granola bar that tastes great as well, so I created this recipe from a bunch of other granola bar recipes that I have collected over the past. I was looking for something that had little sugar, tasted great but was also health conscious as well. I think it has a good chewy consistency and a good nutty to chocolaty ratio. I wrapped them up individually and took them on our camping trip and everyone enjoyed them.

Healthy Oat Granola Bars

1 1/2 Cups Rice Krispies cereal
1 1/2 Cups of oats
1/4 Cup oat bran
1/4 Cup chopped almonds
1/2 Cup honey
1/2 Cup peanut butter (smooth or chunky)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 Cup mini chocolate chips


1) Line and grease an 8in. baking pan
2) Combine cereal, oats, oat bran, and almonds in a large mixing bowl
3) Meanwhile, bring honey to a boil over medium heat while continually stirring
4) Remove from heat and add peanut butter and vanilla and stir until well combined
5) Pour honey mixture over cereal mixture and mix until everything is evenly coated
6) Stir in mini chocolate chips
7) Transfer to baking sheet and press down into pan (I use a potato masher to press ingredients firmly into the pan)
8) Chill in fridge until hard and then cut into bars and enjoy!