Category Archives: Brownies & Bars

Lemon Squares

Posted on April 16, 2010 by Veronica

I found this recipe on Carolyn’s Food Gal blog through Foodgawker and couldn’t resist the beautiful picture & write-up so I made them for Easter. The filling was different from what I am used to–very silky and velvety and while I would have loved it in a pie, for some reason I missed the firmer texture of the lemon bars I’ve had in the past. That being said, everyone else absolutely loved them so who cares what I think?! I probably won’t make them again, but I think I will try to make a tart with the filling recipe–it’s really fabulous both taste and texture-wise.

Lemon Squares
Printable Recipe

Makes 24 squares

For crust:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
6 ounces (12 tablespoons) cold unsalted, butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

For filling:
6 large eggs
3 cups granulated sugar
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup all-purpose flour

For garnishing:
About 3 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar

To make the crust: Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Combine flour and confectioners’ sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on low speed until mixed. Add butter and continue to mix until butter is the size of small peas, about 30 seconds. The mixture will be very dry. Gently press mixture evenly onto the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking pan.

Bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool to room temperature. Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees.

To make filling: In a large bowl, whisk together eggs and granulated sugar until smooth. Stir in lemon juice and then the flour. Pour filling on top of crust.

Bake until lemon filling is set, about 40 minutes. (Mine took 50 minutes.) Let cool to room temperature and then put in the refrigerator for 1 hour or keep at room temperature for 3 hours before cutting. Cut into squares measuring about 2 1/4 inches and dust the tops with confectioners’ sugar.

Planning Ahead: The squares may be made a day in advance, covered, and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature before serving. (I actually liked them better cold.)

Recipe Source: Classic Stars Desserts by Emily Luchetti

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Cookie Mondays: Millionaire Bars

Posted on January 18, 2010 by Veronica

I made these bars in my new Perfect Brownie pan and now I’m going to make a batch of brownies tonight because it worked so well, I can’t wait to see how perfect it will turn out the product it was intended for!

These bars consist of a buttery, flaky shortbread layer, a creamy caramel layer and a chocolate layer. They are sooo delicious and for the first time since cookie Mondays, Dennis didn’t return home with any leftovers. They remind me a lot of Twix and I’ve seen them turned into homemade Twix bars here, so I might try that next time just for fun!

Millionaire’s Shortbread Bars
Recipe from Joy of Baking

SHORTBREAD:
3/4 cup (1 1/2 stick) (170 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated white sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups (210 grams) all purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt

CARAMEL FILLING:
1 – 14 ounce can (1 cup) Dulce de Leche or sweetened condensed milk

CHOCOLATE TOPPING:
6 ounces (170 grams) semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate, cut into pieces
1 teaspoon unsalted butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Grease with butter (or use a cooking spray) a 9 x 9 inch (23 x 23 cm) pan.

FOR SHORTBREAD: In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla extract. Add the flour and salt and beat until the dough just comes together. Press onto the bottom of your greased pan and bake for about 20 minutes, or until pale golden in color. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool while you make the filling.

FOR CARAMEL FILLING: If using Dulce de Leche then simply warm the caramel in the microwave or in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water. If using sweetened condensed milk, pour the milk into a heatproof bowl and place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Cover and cook, over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 60 to 90 minutes or until the milk has thickened and has turned a caramel color. Remove from heat and beat until smooth. Pour the caramel over the baked shortbread and leave to set.

Note: You can also do this step in a microwave oven. Place the sweetened condensed milk in a large microwaveable bowl and cook on medium power for about 4 minutes, stirring halfway through baking time. Reduce the powder to medium-low and continue to cook for another 8 to 12 minutes, or until the milk has thicken and has turned a light caramel color. Remove from microwave and beat until smooth.

FOR TOPPING: Melt the chocolate and butter either in the microwave oven or in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water. Pour the melted chocolate evenly over the caramel and leave to set. Cut the shortbread into pieces using a sharp knife.

Store the shortbread in the refrigerator to keep the chocolate nice and firm. (I found this unnecessary–it was hard at room temperature.)

Yield: 16 – 2 inch (5 cm) squares

If you’d like to make this in your Perfect Brownie pan, spray the pan & insert with cooking spray. Press the shortbread into the pan with some waxed paper (it was sticking to my hands and this worked perfect) and then press the insert into place before baking. You don’t need to bake it on top of a cookie sheet–the shortbread won’t leak out. After removing the shortbread (I only had to cook mine about 18 minutes), you can immediately remove the insert. Take a minute to admire the perfection of the shortbread squares.

Spread the warmed dulce de leche over the bars after you remove the insert and let them cool. Then spread on the chocolate layer. Now this is where I went wrong. I let the chocolate layer set up before I tried to put the insert back to re-divide the bars. The insert isn’t sharp enough to cut into that hard chocolate layer, so I had to cut into it with a knife in order to separate the bars. Next time I would spray the insert again with cooking spray and insert it while the chocolate is still warm and then remove it once set. That should work!

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Salted Brown Butter Crispy Treats

Posted on November 20, 2009 by Veronica

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

THESE ARE SO GOOD!

Everyone likes Rice Krispies Treats, but browning the butter before making them really kicks these up a notch. I go through about 3 lbs of butter a week, so that probably counts as an obsession, but what I’m really obsessed with is browning it. I just LOVE the flavor of browned butter. I love the smell of it as it’s cooking. I love the look of it, with the dark brown specks (which also fleck these treats). I just love everything about it. So, naturally, I love these.

I made a double batch, and I’m glad I did b/c my husband and I ate half the recipe immediately, which left just enough to package up to ship out for gifts.

These are very simple, the only difference between it and the original recipe being that you add salt and brown the butter first, which just tacks on about 5 minutes to the prep time. (OK fine, that and the fact that there’s a LOT more butter in it…but I can’t complain about that!) These would be great for Christmas, all-occasion gifts, bake sales, potlucks, after-school snacks, after dinner treats, afternoon snacks, after-breakfast snacks, midnight snacks, “I just ate a tomato so I need to eat something unhealthy to balance out my diet” snacks….I think you get the picture.

I don’t, however, recommend doubling the recipe unless you have a lot of people to feed because, if you’re anything like me, you won’t be able to stop eating them until they’re gone.

Salted Brown Butter Crispy Treats
From Smitten Kitchen, with slightly modified instructions

1 stick unsalted butter, plus extra for the pan
1 10-ounce bag marshmallows
Heaping 1/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt
6 cups Rice Krispies cereal (about half a 12-ounce box)

Butter (or coat with non-stick spray) an 8-inch square cake pan with 2-inch sides.

In a large pot, melt butter over medium-low heat. It will melt, then foam, then turn clear golden and finally start to turn brown and smell nutty. Stir frequently, scraping up any bits from the bottom as you do.

When the butter takes on a nutty color and the solids have turned a chocolate-brown, stir in the salt & marshmallows. Turn off the heat once the marshmallows are melted and the mixture is smooth.

Remove the pot from the stove and stir in the cereal. Quickly spread into prepared pan. I liked to use a piece of waxed or parchment paper that I’ve sprayed with oil to press it firmly and evenly into the edges and corners, though a silicon spatula works almost as well.

Let cool, cut into squares and get ready to make new friends.

Veronica’s Notes: If you use salted butter, omit the salt from the recipe. If you use table salt, use a scant 1/4 teaspoon.

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Posted in Brownies & Bars, My Favorites, Sweets and tagged brown butter, crispy, rice krispies, treats. Bookmark the permalink.

Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake

Posted on October 25, 2009 by Veronica

I have been making this dessert every fall for about five years because not only is it my favorite fall dessert, but it is usually requested at our Thanksgiving gathering. Although “Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake” is the official name, I feel that “Pumpkin Bars” is more apt and usually refer to them that way. The bottom layer is like a cross between cookie and cake and the pumpkin filling is sweet, perfectly spiced and ultra creamy (not what I would call gooey, though it does jiggle when you take it out of the oven).

If you want to know how this recipe rates, here’s is the list of my top five favorite desserts (that I make):
1. Laura’s Cherry Crumble Bars
2. Laura’s Chocolate Chip Cookies
3. Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake
4. Dark chocolate Raspberry Cake
5. Zesty Lemon Pound Cakes

And if you still don’t believe me, here’s further proof that this is a must-try. I brought this to the charity bake sale at work last week and it sold out faster than anything else. I watched one woman scrape her container of every crumb after finishing the slice she bought, then go back to buy another only to find they’d all sold in the time it took her to eat it. When she found out I’d made it, she made me promise to bring more next week!

She is not the first to catch the butter cake fever and won’t be the last.

Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake

Printable recipe
Printable recipe with picture

Cake:
1 (18 1/4-ounce) package yellow cake mix
1 egg
1 stick butter, melted

Filling:
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 stick butter, melted
1 (16-ounce) box powdered sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine the cake mix, egg, and butter and mix well with an electric mixer. Pat the mixture into the bottom of a lightly greased 13 by 9-inch baking pan.

To make the filling: In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and pumpkin until smooth. Add the eggs, vanilla, and butter, and beat together. Next, add the powdered sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and mix well. Spread pumpkin mixture over cake batter and bake for 40 to 50 minutes (I usually do 45 minutes). Make sure not to overbake as the center should be a little gooey.

Serve with fresh whipped cream.

From Paula Deen’s Lady & Sons Savannah Country Cookbook

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Posted in Brownies & Bars, My Favorites and tagged bars, butter, cake, fall, gooey, pumpkin. Bookmark the permalink.

Dulce de Leche Bars

Posted on September 24, 2009 by Veronica

I came up with this recipe for the “mix it up” contest at the fair. You could either use a mix for something it wasn’t intended for or make a cake with a mix and put a twist on it. I went for the former and used a cake mix for the base of these indulgent treats. Although they didn’t place, the judges wrote “Very good–wonderful flavor!” in the notes on my eval sheet and everyone I’ve served them to agrees. My favorite thing about them is that you can whip them up and have them in the oven in less than 10 minutes. Perfect for us busy people!

Dulce de Leche Bars

1 (18.25 oz) Golden Butter Recipe cake mix
1 egg
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
1 (13.4 oz) can Nestle Dulce de Leche (or 1 cup homemade)
1 cup pecan pieces
½ cup sweetened shredded coconut
1cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
½ cup Heath candy baking bits

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease the bottom and sides of a 9×13 pan.

In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, egg & butter. Beat on medium speed until well mixed. Shape the dough into a ball and, using your hands, press it out into the bottom of the prepared pan until it is in an even layer & reaches the edges.

Spread the dulce de leche over the cake mix layer, all the way to the edges. Sprinkle the remaining ingredients over the top, layering half of each and then repeating, and bake for 35 minutes. Remove from oven and give it a few hard taps against a heat resistant surface to settle any puffiness. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack before cutting.

Cherry Crumble Bars

Posted on August 20, 2009 by Veronica

This is my favorite recipe of Laura’s. The chocolate chip cookies are my favorite cookie but this is my favorite recipe of hers….so far. I have a lot left to try. The buttery cherry-almond combo here is very good. I’m being very reserved because if I unleashed my enthusiasm for this recipe, I’d probably be put in a straight jacket in a padded cell.

Cherry Crumble Bars

Cookie base and topping
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking powder
1/3 cup almond paste (not marzipan)
1/4th teaspoon almond extract
1 stick (1/2 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
½ cup sliced almonds (Reserve for topping)

Filling
2 cups frozen cherries
3/4th cups sugar
3 Tablespoons water
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
Pinch of salt

Icing
1/3 cup powdered sugar or more if needed, whisked or sifted
2 Tablespoons heavy cream
1/4th teaspoon almond extract
Pinch of salt

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9 inch square pan with foil and grease lightly with vegetable or olive oil.

In a food processor add flour, sugar, salt and baking powder and process to fluff and combine. Add almond paste and almond extract and pulse to combine. Add cold butter pieces and pulse until crumbly. Remove 1 cup of the mixture and set aside for topping.

Put the rest of the mixture into the pan, spread out evenly, and press with the bottom of a measuring cup to make a crust. Bake for 15-17 minutes until crust starts to brown slightly around the edges. Remove and leave the oven on.

Meanwhile dump all the filling ingredients into a saucepan and cook on medium high heat until thickened and translucent. About 8 to 10 minutes. Spread the filling over the crust.

Sprinkle the top with the reserved crumb mixture and top with the sliced almonds. Bake for about 28 to 30 minutes or until the filling bubbles and the top is golden. Let cool completely in the pan on a cooling rack.

Whisk or beat the icing ingredients together, drizzle over bars.

Hint: To easily remove bars from the pan freeze for 30 minutes and lift out by the foil edges. Peel off foil and cut into squares or diamonds.

Veronica’s Notes: I’ve also made this successfully with a can of tart cherries. To do this, put a (14.5 oz) can red tart cherries packed in water in the saucepan, water and all, along with the other filling ingredients but omit the water & lemon juice. It won’t have the same deep red color as the frozen cherries give, so you can add some red food coloring if you wish.

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Brownie Mania: Mocha-Frosted Kahlua, Peanut Butter Truffle & Chocolate Caramel Walnut

Posted on May 11, 2009 by Veronica

I went a bit brownie crazy early in the week and baked five 9×13-sized pans (5 pans but only three kinds) of them. I mailed two pans to a friend serving in Iraq (this required some mad packing skills & ingenuity on my part) for his birthday and the rest were frozen* until ready to use for two potlucks we were attending this weekend.

Here are the brownies I made (I dare you not to get a toothache after reading them): Mocha-Frosted Kahlua Brownies, Peanut Butter Truffle Brownies and Chocolate Caramel Walnut Brownies.

Although I’m partial to the Kahlua Brownies b/c they are my own recipe, I have to say that the Peanut Butter Truffle Brownies are my new favorite (yes, of all time!). The Chocolate Caramel Walnut Brownies are very decadent, but somehow not as refined (if a brownie can be called refined) as the former two–they remind me more of a juvenile treat but this doesn’t keep them from being outstanding. Brownies with thick, gooey caramel and dripping with chocolate chips and walnuts? What could be wrong with that?

I have to apologize to all the people who are going to be aghast that I dared to use brownie mix instead of measuring out flour & sugar, but I just prefer the mix, people! I’ve made scratch brownies and I just don’t like them as much. I guess I should try some more recipes before I set my mind against from-scratch brownies but why mess with perfection when it’s this easy? If you’re passionate about this subject and have a great recipe that you think would change my mind, please share!

Kahlua Brownies
These brownies are best-sellers at the Flying Pig Gift Boutique. It doesn’t matter what kind of outlandish treats I bring in to sell, if the brownies are sitting there alongside them, the other stuff only goes after the brownies are sold out. Which never takes very long.

Brownies
1 box fudge brownie mix
2 eggs
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, melted
1/4 cup Kahlua

Frosting
2 Tbsp. Kahlua
1 tablespoon instant coffee crystals
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 sticks (1 cup) butter, softened

Make the brownies: mix up everything, spread in a 9×13 pan (grease the bottom only) and bake at 350 for however long the box says. Don’t overbake unless you like dry brownies. Cool COMPLETELY before frosting.

Make the frosting: Microwave the Kahlua for 30 seconds or until boiling (I use a glass 1-cup measuring cup and fill it 1/2 way to the 1/4 cup line). Stir in the instant coffee and place in the freezer to cool. Melt the chocolate in the microwave for 1 minute, stir and then give it another 30 seconds, stirring again. It should be melted but if not, continue this cycle in 30 second intervals. Once smooth, set aside to cool. Cream the butter then beat in the cooled chocolate. Last, add the coffee mixture and beat it until everything is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl. Spread over the cooled brownies.

Peanut Butter Truffle Brownies
Recipe from Betty Crocker with instructions modifed by me.

1 9×13 pan of brownies, cooled (if using a mix, be sure to substitute melted butter for the oil)

Filling
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 cups powdered sugar
2 tsp. milk

Topping
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup butter

Directions:
Beat filling ingredients until smooth and spread evenly over the cooled brownies. An offset spatula is almost required for this task as the filling is thick and hard to spread.

Microwave the topping ingredients in 30-second intervals, stirring between, until smooth (should only take a couple times). Cool 10 minutes, then spread over the filling layer. Again, I would never try this without an offset spatula. The layer has to be spread very very thin and I can’t imagine doing it without one. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes before cutting–you want the chocolate on top to be hardened so that the brownies cut easily. I cut mine frozen and that worked fine.

Chocolate Caramel Walnut Brownies
Recipe from the back of a generic sweetened condensed milk label

2 boxes of fudge brownie mix

Caramel Topping
1/2 cup butter
2 cups packed brown sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
dash of salt
1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups walnuts
2 cups chocolate chips

Prepare the brownies according to package directions (except substituting melted butter for the oil) and stick them in the oven to bake according to the package directions. As soon as they’re in, start the caramel topping.

Melt the butter in a heavy 3 quart saucepan. Stir in sugar, corn syrup and salt. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Blend in sweetened condensed milk, continue stirring, and heat to 245 degrees (approximately 10 minutes). I heated mine to 250 degrees to no ill result. Remove from heat and add vanilla. Let caramel cool while brownies finish baking.

Pour the caramel over the brownies when they come out of the oven. Scatter the walnuts & chocolate chips over the top and let cool completely before attempting to cut into bars.

*Brownies freeze extremely well! They retain their moisture and texture perfectly and are never any worse for wear after defrosting. They are a perfect make-ahead treat in any instance when you need to make-ahead or just want to make something to keep on hand in case of emergency.