Category Archives: cookies and bars

Pumpkin Pie Bars


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1 1/2 cups flour

1 cup finely chopped pecans

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, divided

3/4 cup butter or margarine

1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin

1 (14 ounce) can EAGLE BRAND® Sweetened Condensed Milk

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon Flour

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In medium bowl, combine 1 1/2 cups flour, nuts, sugars and 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Add butter, mix until crumbly. Reserve 1 1/4 cups of the mixture. Pat remaining mixture on bottom of ungreased 13×9-inch baking pan.

Meanwhile, in large mixing bowl, combine pumpkin, sweetened condensed milk, eggs, remaining 1 teaspoon cinnamon, allspice and salt; mix well. Pour evenly over crust. Mix reserved crumbs with 1 tablespoon flour. Sprinkle over pumpkin mixture.

Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until set. Cool 10 minutes. Serve warm. Store leftovers in refrigerator.

Butterscotch Cashew Bars


1/2 pound (2 sticks, or 1 cup) butter
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 & 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
2 & 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
11 ounces butterscotch chips
3/4 cup light corn syrup
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon water

2 cups roasted salted whole cashews
Preheat oven to 350°. Spray a 9″x 13″ pan with cooking spray. Using two sheets of parchment paper, line the pan’s width and length, creating a parchment “sling.” Spray parchment paper with cooking spray.

Using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat butter, brown sugar, and salt for 1 to 1 & 1/2 minutes. Decrease mixer speed to low and add the flour. Mix just until combined. Lightly press dough evenly into the prepared pan. Poke holes in the dough with a fork. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until the crust is a golden color. Remove to wire rack to cool.

In a heavy saucepan over low heat, stir together butterscotch chips, corn syrup, and water.

Stir until mixture comes to a simmer and butterscotch chips are melted. Pour over crust.

 

 

Sprinkle cashews over the butterscotch caramel.

Bake for 5 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack. After cooling, remove from pan and use a very sharp knife to cut into bars.

Makes 2 dozen 2-inch bars.

Chocolate Chip Malted Milk Cookies


2 –  3/4 cups flour ( the recipe says you may need to increase by up to 1/4 cup but I didn’t)
3/4 cup plain malted milk powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs, (I used 2 eggs plus 1 yolk as my eggs were not what I would call large)
2 tsp. vanilla
2 tbsp. sweetened condensed milk
2 cups chocolate chips ( I used semisweet chips)
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Preheat oven to 350.1. In a medium bowl, combine flour, malted milk powder, baking soda and salt.
2. Cream butter and sugars in a mixing bowl on medium speed til light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
3. Add the eggs, vanilla and sweetened condensed milk and beat on medium speed til light and fluffy.
4. Stir in the dry ingredients, then the chocolate chips til just incorporated. Don’t overmix.
5. Form the dough into 1 1/4″ balls and place on the baking sheet, 2″ apart.
6. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or til the edges are slightly browned. ( Mine took a full 12 minutes).

Coconut Citrus Bars


Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup butter, softened
  • 1/3 cup confectioners’ sugar
  • 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup crisp rice cereal
  • FILLING:
  • 4 eggs
  • 1-1/2 cups sugar
  • 1 cup flaked coconut
  • 1/3 cup orange juice
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons lime juice
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 3 teaspoons grated orange peel
  • 2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons grated lime peel
  • Confectioners’ sugar

Directions

  • In a small bowl, cream butter and confectioners’ sugar until light and fluffy; gradually beat in flour until crumbly. Stir in cereal. Press into a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking pan. Bake at 350° for 18-22 minutes or until lightly browned.
  • Meanwhile, in a large bowl, beat the eggs, sugar, coconut, juices, flour and peels until frothy. Pour over the hot crust. Bake for 18-22 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack. Dust with confectioners’ sugar; cut into bars. Store in the refrigerator. Yield: 2 dozen.

Oatmeal Cranberry White Chocolate Chunk Cookies


2/3 c butter, softened
2/3 c brown sugar
2 large eggs
1-1/2 c old fashioned oats
1-1/2 c flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1, 6 oz package of Craisins Dried Cranberries
2/3 c white chocolate chunks, I used the white chocolate chips and added a handful of dark chocolate chips too (I’m flexible like that :) )

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375.
Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar together in medium mixing bowl until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, mixing well.  Combine the oats, flour, baking soda and salt in a separate bowl.  Add to butter mixture in several additions, mixing well after each.  Stir in the cranberries and the chocolate pieces.

Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.  Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.

Cool on wire rack.

Makes approximately 2-3 dozen cookies.

Hamantaschen


Ingredients

  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 3/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup orange juice
  • 5 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 cup fruit preserves, any flavor (we liked peach best)

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
  2. In a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar until lightly and fluffy. Stir in the oil, vanilla and orange juice. Combine the flour and baking powder; stir into the batter to form a stiff dough. If dough is not stiff enough to roll out, stir in more flour. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough out to 1/4 inch in thickness. Cut into circles using a cookie cutter or the rim or a drinking glass. Place cookies 2 inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheets. Spoon about 2 teaspoons of preserves into the center of each one. Pinch the edges to form three corners.  *Brush with beaten egg wash if desired.*
  3. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until lightly browned. Allow cookies to cool for 1 minute on the cookie sheet before removing to wire racks to cool completely.

White Chocolate Blondie Bars


 

 

8 ounces good quality white chocolate
1 tbsp. vanilla essence or extract
1 stick butter
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 eggs
Pinch of salt
1/3 cup sugar
1 cup white chocolate chips

 
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 180 degrees C/350 degrees F. Line a 9 x 9-inch square baking pan with aluminum foil, using enough foil so it overhangs on the sides of pan. This will help in lifting out the blondies when removing them from the pan when done. Grease foil with butter. (I have found that the Blondies maintain more humidity and turn out more fudgy by lining the pan with aluminum foil.)

Melt white chocolate and butter in a double boiler. Set aside to cool for 5 minutes.

In a large bowl, mix together eggs and sugar, add vanilla, the melted white chocolate, flour and salt. Fold in white chocolate chips.

Spoon mixture into prepared pan and bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Don’t over bake! The blondies must remain fudgy. Cool in pan for 15 minutes, then with aluminum foil overhang, lift blondies out of pan and place on wire rack and cool completely. Remove foil and cut into 12 squares.

Makes 12 blondies.

Tips for Baking Brownies and Bars


Tips for Preparation and Baking

Use butter, stick margarine (with at least 80% oil) or shortening. Whipped, tub, soft, liquid or
reduced-fat products contain air and water and will produce flat, tough bars or brownies.

Avoid overmixing the batter. If it’s handled too much, the gluten in the flour will be
developed and the bars or brownies will be tough.

Use dull aluminum baking pans or glass dishes. Dark-colored pans may cause
overbrowning.

Grease the pan with shortening or coat with non-stick cooking spray. To easily remove bars
and brownies from a pan, line the bottom of the pan with foil, then grease. Add the batter
and bake as directed.  It’s important to evenly spread batter in the pan. If one corner is
thinner than another, it will bake faster and be overbaked when the rest of the pan is
done.

Center the pan in the middle of the oven.  Use a kitchen timer.  Check bars when the
minimum baking time has been reached, baking longer if needed. Follow doneness tests given in individual recipes.

 

Tips for Cutting Bars and Brownies

A large pizza cutter will make quick work of cutting a pan of bars.

A bench knife can also be used to cut bar cookies. Press the bench knife down into
the cookies to cut; don’t drag it through.  You’ll be rewarded with straight, clean
edges on your bars.

For picture-perfect brownies and bars, bake bars in a foil- lined pan and use the
foil to lift them out after they’re cooled.  Trim the edges of the bars or brownies, then
cut into bars, squares or diamonds. The scraps can be crumbled and used as
a topping for ice cream or pudding.

An 8-in. square pan will yield 16 (2-in.) squares or 64 (1-in.) squares. A 9-in. square
pan will yield 54 (1-1/2- in. x 1-in.) bars or 81 (1-in.) squares. A 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in.
pan will yield 78 (1-1/2- in. x 1-in.) bars.

Cover a pan of uncut brownies and bars with foil – or put the pan in a large
resealable plastic bag.  (If made with perishable ingredients, like cream cheese, they
should be covered and refrigerated.) Once the bars are cut, store them in an airtight
container.

Most bars and brownies freeze well for up to 3 months. To freeze a pan of uncut
bars, place in an airtight container or resealable plastic bag.  Or wrap individual
bars in plastic wrap and stack in an airtight container. Thaw at room temperature
before serving.

Generally, bars and brownies should cool completely on a wire rack before being cut.
However, crisp bars should be cut while still slightly warm.

Cutting granola bars can be a sticky business.  To make it easier, spritz the knife
with non-stick cooking spray before starting to cut, repeating as needed.

When making a small batch of chocolate chip cookies, line a 13-inch x 9-inch baking pan
with parchment paper and then spread the entire batch of dough in the pan.  After it’s
baked and has cooled for 5 minutes, cut the giant cookie into squares with a pizza
cutter. This method cuts prep time and cleanup time!

 

Banana Cookies


INGREDIENTS

  • 1/2 cup of unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 cup of sugar
  • 1 egg, room temperature
  • 1 cup of mashed bananas (about 2 ½ large bananas)
  • 1 teaspoon of baking soda
  • 2 cups of flour
  • pinch of salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon of ground mace or nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon of ground cloves
  • 1 cup of pecans (walnuts and chocolate chips are fine alternatives)

METHOD

1 Preheat the oven to 350°F. Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the egg and continue to beat until the mixture is light and fluffy.

2 In a bowl, mix the mashed bananas and baking soda. Let sit for 2 minutes. The baking soda will react with the acid in the bananas which in turn will give the cookies their lift and rise.

3 Mix the banana mixture into the butter mixture. Mix together the flour, salt, and spices and sift into the butter and banana mixture and mix until just combined.

4 Fold into the batter the pecans or chocolate chips if using. Drop in dollops onto parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Bake for 11-13 minutes or until nicely golden brown. Let cool on wire racks.

Makes about 30 cookies.

Peanut Butter Rice Crispy Bars


1 cup packed light brown sugar (7 oz)
1 cup light corn syrup (8 oz)
1 cup peanut butter (8 oz)
1 cup salted dry-roasted peanuts, chopped (4 oz)
6 cups Rice Crispy cereal ( 6 oz)
1 cup peanut butter chips or semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted in microwave 30-60 seconds

1. Grease 13- by 9-inch baking pan. Bring sugar and corn syrup to simmer in large pot. Off heat, add peanut butter and peanuts, stirring until smooth. Add rice crispy cereal and stir until incorporated.

2. Scrape half the mixture into prepared pan and press into bottom and corners with greased spatula (or with greased gloved hands if making a large volume). Sprinkle peanut butter chips or chocolate chips, if using. Add the remaining mixture, pat the mixture down. Drizzle melted chocolate over top and spread to cover. Let cool completely, about 30 minutes. Slice and serve. (Bars can be stored in airtight container for 2 days.)