Tag: bars

Cookies and Bars · Desserts

Caramel Cookie Bars

cathysmahaLeave a comment

Caramel Cookie Bars should be classified as a sin…but a very delicious one! Daughter, Megan, made these to take to friends that recently had a baby and she shared a piece with me. Oh my gosh! They are decadent and perfect for a special occasion.

Caramel Cookie Bars

INGREDIENTS:
  • 1 cup salted butter softened
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 cups chocolate chips/chopped chocolate use your favorite (I like a combination of milk and semi sweet)
  • 40 Werther’s Soft Caramels (this is 2 small packages)
  • 1/2 cup sweetened condesned milk
  • sea salt optional
DIRECTIONS:
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°.
  2. Prepare a 9×9 pan by lining it with parchment paper or spraying it with non stick spray.
  3. Measure out the chocolate chips/chopped chocolate into a bowl. Set aside.
  4. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugars until smooth, light in color and fluffy. This will take a few mintues.
  5. Scrape the sides of the bowl and mix in the egg add vanilla.
  6. Once completely combined, stop the mixer and add in the flour, baking soda and salt.
  7. Start mixing slowly, once the flour mixture is about half way incorporated into the dough, pour the chocolate chips/ chopped chocolate into the mixer and allow everything to mix together.
  8. Stop the mixer as soon as the flour is completely incorporated. Avoid over mixing. Set the cookie dough aside.
  9. In a medium sauce pan over medium heat, stir to combine the caramels and sweetened condensed milk until smooth. Remove from heat and set aside.
  10. Divide the dough in half and press half into the bottom of your prepared 9×9 pan.
  11. Pour the caramel mixture on top of the cookie dough. Spread until evenly covered.
  12. Take large portions of the remaining cookie dough, flatten them in your hand and then place on top of the caramel.
  13. Bake in your 350° oven for 25-35 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and the center is just set.
  14. Sprinkle with sea salt, if desired.
  15. Let the cookie bars cool COMPLETELY before cutting.
  16. Cut the bars into your desired size and serve.
  17. Store in an air tight container for up to 3 days.

Recipe from CookingwithKarli.com

Cookies and Bars · Family Favorites

Lemon Bars

cathysmahaLeave a comment

Who doesn’t love a lemon bar?  I associate Lemon Bars with Spring, warmer weather, longer days, and early spring flowers.  The tart filling paired with the shortbread crust. Yummo!

LEMON BARS

Shortbread Crust

Lemon Filling

2 cups granulated sugar
6 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
6 large eggs, room temperature
1 cup fresh lemon juice (about 4 lemons)
optional: confectioners’ sugar for dusting

  • Preheat the oven to 325°F (163°C). Line the bottom and sides of a 9×13 baking pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on the sides to lift the finished bars out (makes cutting easier!). Set aside.
  • Make the crust: Mix the melted butter, sugar, vanilla extract, and salt together in a medium bowl. Add the flour and stir to completely combine. The dough will be thick. Press firmly into prepared pan, making sure the layer of crust is nice and even. Bake for 20-22 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Remove from the oven. Using a fork, poke holes all over the top of the warm crust (not all the way through the crust). A new step I swear by, this helps the filling stick and holds the crust in place. Set aside until step 4.
  • Make the filling: Sift the sugar and flour together in a large bowl. Add the eggs and lemon juice and whisk until completely combined.
  • Pour filling over warm crust. Bake the bars for 22-26 minutes or until the center is relatively set and no longer jiggles. (Give the pan a light tap with an oven mitt to test.) Remove bars from the oven and cool completely at room temperature. I usually cool them for about 2 hours at room temperature, then stick in the refrigerator for 1-2 more hours until pretty chilled. I recommend serving chilled.
  • Once cool, lift the parchment paper out of the pan using the overhang on the sides. Dust with confectioners’ sugar and cut into squares before serving. For neat squares, wipe the knife clean between each cut. Cover and store leftover lemon bars in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
  • Freezing Instructions: Lemon bars can be frozen for up to 3-4 months. Cut the cooled bars (without confectioners’ sugar topping) into squares, then place onto a baking sheet. Freeze for 1 hour. Individually wrap each bar in aluminum foil or plastic wrap and place into a large bag or freezer container to freeze. Thaw in the refrigerator, then dust with confectioners’ sugar before serving.

Recipe from SallysBakingAddiction.com

 

Cookies and Bars · Family · Family Favorites

Snickerdoodle Bars

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Snickerdoodles have always been a family favorite.  What do you do when you want a Snickerdoodle but too lazy to make individual cookies?  You find a Snickerdoodle Bar recipe.  I doubled the recipe and made it in a 9 x 13 pan lined with parchment paper.  This recipe is easy and uses ingredients that are in most pantries.  Another recipe that will be made over and over again.

SNICKERDOODLE BARS

  • 1/2 c. Butter, room temp. (can use Vegan butter)
  • 1 Egg room temp.
  • 3/4 c. Granulated Sugar
  • 1/4 c. Brown Sugar
  • 1 tsp. Vanilla
  • 1 1/2 c. Flour
  • 3/4 tsp. Cream of Tartar
  • 1/4 tsp. Baking Soda
  • 1/2 tsp. Salt
  • 3/4 tsp. Cinnamon

Cinnamon Sugar Topping:

  • 2 Tbsp. Granulated Sugar
  • 2 tsp. Cinnamon
  • Allow butter and egg to come to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 350°F and line an 8×8 baking dish with parchment paper. Set aside.
  • In a bowl, mix together butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until combined.
  • Add vanilla and egg and stir until fully mixed.
  • Add flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon to the bowl. Fold into the butter mixture until combined. Evenly spread the batter into the baking dish.
  • In a small bowl stir together sugar and cinnamon for the topping. Sprinkle on top of the cookie batter. Bake for 35-40 minutes.

Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before removing and cutting into 16 squares.

Recipe from Mylifeafterdairy

Maple Pumpkin Oatmeal Breakfast Bars
Breakfast · Cookies and Bars · Health · Holidays · New Favorite

Maple Pumpkin Oatmeal Breakfast Bars

cathysmahaLeave a comment

Breakfast oatmeal in a bar or cake form is my favorite.  Most of this year I’ve been eating my Breakfast Oatmeal Bars, but a favorite fall flavor of pumpkin and maple is calling my name.  Daughter, Megan, told me about these bars and made a batch for me a few weeks ago.  They are absolutely delicious and the original recipe was posted by IowaGirlEats,  a website my girls and I love!

Since I didn’t have Pumpkin Spice, I made my own from a recipe on Taste of Home.

I like my breakfast bar with a dollop of Greek yogurt and fresh fruit on the side with hot coffee! It doesn’t hurt to warm the Breakfast Bar for a few seconds in the microwave, either.  Healthy and delicious breakfast!

Maple Pumpkin Oatmeal Breakfast Bars

2-1/2 cups gluten-free old fashioned oats, divided
1 cup milk, any kind (I used unsweetened almond milk)
1/2 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
1/2 cup pure maple syrup (not pancake syrup)
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 Tablespoons chia seeds
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup pecan halves, roughly chopped (optional)

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees then spray an 8×8″ baking pan with nonstick spray and set aside.
  • Add 1 cup old fashioned oats to a food processor or blender then process until oats have turned into flour. Set aside. (Alternatively you could use a scant cup oat flour.)
  • Add milk, pumpkin puree, maple syrup, coconut oil, egg, and vanilla to a large bowl then whisk to combine. Add remaining 1-1/2 cups oats, oat flour, chia seeds, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, baking soda, and salt then stir to combine. Fold in chopped pecans then pour batter into prepared baking pan.
  • Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown and the center has set. Check on the bars at the 25 minute mark – if the edges are browning too quickly, place a piece of foil on top of the baking pan. Cool before slicing into bars then store in the refrigerator, or individually wrap bars in saran wrap and freeze.

Recipe from Iowa Girl Eats

Maple Pumpkin Oatmeal Breakfast Bars

Breakfast · Cookies and Bars · Gluten Free · Health · New Favorite

Berry Oatmeal Breakfast Bars

cathysmaha1 Comment

These Berry Oatmeal Breakfast Bars are great for breakfast on-the-go or for a snack.  The bars are free of refined sugar and gluten.  The original blueberry recipe from Iowa Girl Eats is delicious (of course everything she makes is!).  My second batch was made with blueberries and raspberries…Yum!  I may try to substitute applesauce for the bananas on a future batch for family members that don’t like the taste of bananas.

Wouldn’t these be great to freeze and have on hand especially for busy Moms once the kids are back to school?

BERRY BREAKFAST OATMEAL BARS

  • 2.5 cups certified gluten-free old fashioned oats, divided (I actually just used the food processor on all of the oats)
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1/2 cup mashed banana (about 2 small or 1 large banana)
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 heaping cup of berries
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees then spray an 8×8″ baking pan with nonstick spray and set aside.
  2. Add 1 cup old fashioned oats to food processor or blender and process until oats have turned into flour (Note:  I blended the entire 2.5 cups).  Set aside.  Alternatively you can use a scant cup of oat flour.
  3. Add milk, mashed banana, honey, coconut oil, egg, and vanilla to a large bowl then whisk to combine.  Add remaining 1.5 cups oats, oat flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt then stir to combine.  Fold in the berries then pour batter into greased baking pan.
  4. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the edges are golden brown and the center has set.  Cool before slicing into bars and store in the refrigerator.  Alternatively, you can individually wrap the bars in Saran Wrap and freeze.

Recipe adapted slightly from: Iowa Girl Eats

Cookies and Bars · Desserts · New Traditions

Lemon Raspberry Streusel Bars

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Raspberries may very well be my favorite fruit and would certainly be on my ‘last dinner’ list.  This recipe started out to be Lemon Blueberry Bars as the original recipe stated.  Midway through making the bars, I realized the frozen blueberries were off, so quickly switched to raspberries that I had in the freezer.  Frankly, I love the results.  Even the nutmeg called for in the original recipe suited the raspberries.

Another new favorite!

LEMON RASPBERRY STREUSEL BARS

yield: 24 BARS

CRUST:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated white sugar
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
pinch of salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

FILLING:
2 cups fresh raspberries (I thawed frozen raspberries)
1/4 cup granulated white sugar
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

TOPPING:
5 Tablespoons butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup (packed) brown sugar
3/4 cup all-purpose flour

  • Preheat oven to 400°F. Spray a 9×13-inch pyrex pan with nonstick spray.
  • Prepare the crust: In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, zest and salt. Cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
  • In a separate bowl, beat the egg and vanilla together; stir into the crumb mixture until a dough forms. Press into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake 12 to 15 minutes until golden. Remove from oven and set aside to cool slightly. (Keep the oven on)
  • Sprinkle raspberries over the crust. In a small bowl, combine the 1/4 cup sugar and nutmeg; sprinkle over the raspberries.
  • Prepare the topping: In a medium bowl, use a rubber spatula to cream together the 5 tablespoons butter and brown sugar until smooth. Mix in the flour, so that the mixture is crumbly, like streusel. Sprinkle over the raspberry layer.
  • Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until browned. Cool.

Recipe adapted from RecipeGirl.com

 

Thanksgiving Family Favorites
Family · Family Favorites · Holidays · Home

Thanksgiving Family Favorites

cathysmaha1 Comment

And these are a few of my favorite things!  Wishing you all a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and friends.

CRANBERRY RELISH

CRANBERRY BREAD

Cranberry Bread

PUMPKIN PIE

The Best Ever Pumpkin Pie

PUMPKIN BREAD

PUMPKIN BARS

QUINOA WITH ROASTED BUTTERNUT SQUASH, PINE NUTS, FETA

ROASTED BRUSSEL SPROUTS, CINNAMON SQUASH, PECANS & DRIED CHERRIES

TURKEY AND DRESSING

TURKEY VEGETABLE SOUP

Cookies and Bars · Family · My Roots · New Favorite · New Traditions

Cherry Bars

cathysmahaLeave a comment

Cherry desserts are one of my favorites and I had to try this Cherry Bars recipe from my late Aunt Joyce’s recipe box.  While I don’t recall ever having these, they are wonderful. The combination of almond and cherry…yum!

Leafing through old, handwritten recipe cards is such a treasure…a lost tradition in today’s world.

CHERRY BARS

1 cup butter, softened
1 3/4 cups sugar
4 eggs, beat after addition of each egg
3 cups flour
1/8 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. almond extract
1 can cherry pie filling

  • Preheat over to 350 degrees. Grease 10×15″ pan.
  • Cream together butter and sugar.  Add eggs one at a time and beat after each addition.
  • Sift together flour, salt and baking powder.
  • Slowly add flour mixture to batter.  Then add vanilla and almond extract.
  • Spread 1/2 of batter into pan.  Spool filling on top and spread to cover. Drop the remaining batter by spoonfuls over the top.
  • Bake for about 40 minutes.  Watch it to just golden brown.
  • Drizzle with glaze of 1 cup powdered sugar, 4 or more tsp. milk, a few drops of almond extract.  Add milk until the drizzle consistency is reached.
Thanksgiving Favorites
Family · Family Favorites · Holidays · Home

Thanksgiving Favorites

cathysmahaLeave a comment

Thanksgiving is such a wonderful time of year with friends and family gathering together, sharing a meal, counting our blessings, and probably take in some football games.

This year I am sharing some of my Fork-Lore.com favorite Thanksgiving recipes that our family has enjoyed for many, many years.

Wishing you and yours a wonderful Thanksgiving memories!

ROAST TURKEY AND DRESSINGroasting turkey

CRANBERRY RELISH

cranberry relish 026

PUMPKIN (OR APPLESAUCE) BARS

Pumpkin Bars iced and cut
Pumpkin Bars iced and cut

GRANDMA SUSIE’S PUMPKIN PIE

The Best Ever Pumpkin Pie
The Best Ever Pumpkin Pie

PUMPKIN BREAD

Pumpkin Bread Loaf
Pumpkin Bread Loaf

SILKY SQUASH SOUP

Butternut Squash and Apple Soup
Butternut Squash and Apple Soup

TURKEY VEGETABLE SOUP

Turkey Vegetable Soup
Turkey Vegetable Soup

New Favorite

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars…treat from Sarah

cathysmaha2 Comments

Some days that seem dark and depressing can be brightened by the gift of food…particularly my favorite antidepressant, chocolate.  Daughter, Sarah, was at the house and we decided to try out this new recipe she found on Pinterest/Pinch of Yum.

I can attest it is a big Yum!  I’m not a fan of cheesecake but a huge fan of chocolate chip cookies. This reminds me of chocolate chips cookies on steroids.

Interesting enough, my dark day brightened thanks to Ms. Sarah and Mr. Chocolate!

PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE CHEESECAKE BARS

1 stick butter, unsalted (1/2 cup), softened
½ cup white sugar
⅓ cup packed brown sugar
½ cup peanut butter
1 egg
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt (less if you don’t like salty/sweet)
½ cup rolled oats
2 cups chocolate chips
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
⅓ cup sugar
1 egg
½ teaspoon vanilla

  • Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
  • Cream the butter, sugars, and peanut butter until smooth and fluffy.
  • Add the egg and beat until incorporated.
  • In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, and salt.
  • Slowly add the flour mixture in with the butter and sugar, mixing well after each addition.
  • Stir in the oats and chocolate chips.
  • Make the cheesecake filling: Cream the cream cheese, egg, sugar, and vanilla until smooth.
  • Press half to two-thirds of the cookie dough in the bottom of a 9-inch square baking dish. Pour the cheesecake filling over the dough.
  • Crumble the remaining dough and sprinkle over the top, OR roll it into a flat layer and place it over the cheesecake layer.
  • Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes; remove foil and bake for another 15-20 minutes, or until tops is lightly browned and cheesecake layer is set. Serve warm or cold and store leftover bars in refrigerator.