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Lynsey Lou's

Enjoying Life One Bite at a Time!

Bars

S’more Brownies

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S’mores are one of my all time favorite treats.  There is just something magical about the combination of graham crackers, chocolate and ooey gooey toasted marshmallows.  What’s even better?  Sitting around a campfire on a cool night and enjoying s’mores.  There’s just nothing better!  Since we don’t go camping a whole lot I don’t get to enjoy the traditional s’mores as much as I would like so I’m always on the hunt for recipes that incorporate s’mores.  I’ve seen quite a few recipes out there that I’m dying to try; s’more bars and adult s’mores, just to name a few.  Finding recipes that incorporate these delicious little jewels is the best way to get my s’mores fix and bring the best of the outdoors in!

A few weeks ago Spencer made the first of many trips to the woods, hunting season is here!  Every time he and the guys go to the woods, the wives always make sure they are armed with plenty of snacks and goodies to get them through the weekend. While everyone normally changes up what they send each time, it has been requested that I continue to make brownies.  I typically stick with the same recipe, but this time I decided to change it up a bit and make s’more brownies.  S’mores. Camping. Woods.  I mean, it just fits!  These are “built” just like smores, but just baked rather than cooked over a campfire.  They were absolutely delicious.  The graham cracker crust, the fudgy brownies (with a hint of cayenne pepper), all topped off with the toasted and gooey marshmallows is pure goodness.  These s’more brownies are the perfect way to quench your craving while staying in the comfort of your own home.     

S’more Brownies

Ingredients:

For the crust-

1 1/3 Cups graham cracker crumbs
6 Tbsp butter, melted
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tbsp granulated sugar

For the brownies-

1 Oz. sweetened chocolate
2 Oz. unsweetened chocolate
2 Eggs
1/2 Cup sugar
3/4 Cup flour
1 Tsp vanilla
1/8 Tsp cayenne pepper
1 Tsp Kosher salt
1 Stick butter

For the topping-

2 1/-3 Cups jumbo marshmallows

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350.

Line an 8×8 pan with parchment paper (or foil) and spray with nonstick cooking spray.  Set aside.

For the crust-

Combine the butter, graham cracker crumbs, and sugars and stir to mix together.  Place the mixture in the prepared pan and press along the bottom of the pan to create an even layer.  Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the crust just begins to set.

For the brownies-

Roughly chop the chocolates.  Combine both chocolates and the butter in a medium saucepan and place over low-medium heat.  Leave over the heat until all ingredients are melted, about 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally to avoid burning.  One the butter and chocolates are melted, remove from the heat and add the sugar and stir until completely incorpated.  Add the vanilla, caynenne pepper, and salt and stir.  Add the eggs and mix together, followed by the flour.  Stir all ingredients together to completely combine.  Pour the brownie mixture over the graham cracker crust and return to oven for an additional 30-35 minutes, until toothpick inserted comes out clean.

For the topping-

Turn on the broiler.

Place marshmallows on top of the brownies, in a single layer and place the in the broiler for 3-5 minutes.  Place the pan as far away from the flame as possible.  Keep an eye on the brownies to ensure the marshmallows do not catch on fire, rotate pan if needed to ensure even browness.

Remove the brownies from the pan and allow to cool completely.  Cut into squares and store in an airtight container.

Recipe source: A Lynsey original   

Serendipity Deluxe Bars

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Tucker is still as in love with the mixer today as he was a year ago.  When he hears the mixer turn on it is only a matter of seconds before he’s by my side helping me scoop, pour and mix.  Now, he also knows, that whatever comes out of the mixer is something delicious and most of the time it’s sweet and he can’t wait to take a bite.  He, now, is under the assumption that anything that is stored in a Tupperware container is a cupcake.  The way he says it, however, is incredibly cute and very southern…”cup-caaaaake”!  And of course, whenever he sees the container, he points to it, says cupcake and insists on having at least 1 bite, if not the entire thing immediately.  It is needless to say that he is not a snob of whatever may come out of that container, even if it’s not a cupcake.  Maybe to him cupcakes equal something sweet and delicious?

I made these bars, or cupcakes as Tucker would call them, the other day and they were absolutely delicious.  When I saw the picture of them, I immediately knew I HAD TO MAKE THEM…and now, not later! There are so many different flavors and textures that make up these bars and when combined, it makes for a little slice of heaven.  The buttery sweetness of the crust, topped by the chocolate fudginess in the truffle filling, and completed by the rich caramel topping with crunch added by the pecans.  These have to be one of the best bars I’ve ever made.  They are rich, decadent and filling and the perfect way to end a meal or a great mid-afternoon snack.  What could make this better?  Hardly anything except enjoying them with a glass of ice cold milk or a hot cup of coffee.  Whether you need a dessert to take somewhere or you are just itching to make something sweet these are perfect for your need.  What’s even better?  All the ingredients in these bars are staples; you don’t even have to go to the store before you make these!  That’s awesome…or incredibly dangerous:)!  Either way…you have to make these.

 

Serendipity Deluxe Bars

Ingredients:

Crust-

1 Cup (2 sticks) cold butter, cubed
2 Cups all-purpose flour
1/2 Cup sugar
1/4 Tsp salt

Truffle filling-

1 Cup corn syrup
1 1/4 Cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 Cup sugar
4 Eggs
1 Tsp vanilla

Caramel crunch topping-

1/4 Cup corn syrup
3/4 Cup brown sugar, packed
1 Cup oats
1/2 Cup pecans, coarsley chopped
3/4 Cup (6 oz) butter, melted

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350.

Line 9×13 pan with foil, then grease the foil and set aside.

For the crust-

Place the butter, flour, sugar and salt in a food processor and pulse until coarse crumbs begin to form.  Pour the crumb mixture into the prepared pan and press the crumbs into an even layer.  Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until edges are lightly browned.

For the filling-

While the crust is baking, prepare the filling by placing the corn syrup and chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl.  Place the bowl in the microwave and heat the ingredients until the chocolate is melted, be sure to stir the mixture every 15-30 seconds to ensure the chocolate does not burn.  Let the mixture cool slightly, add the remaining ingredients and whisk to combine.  Pour over the hot crust and spread into an even layer.  Bake for 27-30 minutes, until the edges are slightly firm and the middle is very slightly jiggly.

For the caramel crunch topping-

Meanwhile, place the corn syrup, brown sugar, oats, pecans and melted butter in a medium bowl and stir together to incorporate. 

Let the filling and crust cool for 10 minutes, after removing from oven, then spoon the caramel crunch layer over the filling and spread evenly.  Return to the oven for an additional 25-30 minutes, until the bars are just set.

Let cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes.  Remove the bars from the pan and allow to cool completely before cutting.  Store in an airtight container.

Recipe source: seen on Baking Blonde, originally from A Passion for Baking

Congo Bars…and the Penzey’s Giveaway Winner!

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I am always scouring the internet, cookbooks, magazines and so on for recipes of all kinds.  Desserts, however, are my weakness.  I have tons of recipes marked and saved to make but I must say my dessert “to makes” way outnumber all of the others.  There is just something about sweets, they are my weakness and I look for any excuse to try out one of my many saved recipes.  One of the latest recipes I came across were for these Congo Bars from the curvy carrot, when I saw these they moved to the top of my list of things to make.  They include all of the flavors I love, but I mean how could you go wrong with butter, sugar, and chocolate?  Who doesn’t love all of those things, and they just get even better when they are put together!

I love all things sweet, but bars are kind of becoming an addiction of mine.  I don’t know what it is about them, but I just LOVE everything about dessert bars.  Bars are increadibly easy to make and a great alternative to cookies; it’s basically the same concept but a lot less time consuming.  These congo bars are absolutely delicious and can be enjoyed warm out of the oven and are just as good a day or two later.  As with all of my cookies and bars, if they aren’t fresh from the oven, I pop them in the microwave for a few seconds before eating.  These are a great treat, easy to put together and all the ingredients are staples in my pantry.  Desserts are great, but sometimes they become that much better when you don’t have to make a trip to the store before making.  Make these bars to quench your next sweet craving!   

And now for the Penzey’s giveaway winner!  Congratulations to Lindsey of Lindsey’s Kitchen , comment number 11, you are the winner of a $15.00 giftcard from Penzey’s!

Congo Bars

Ingredients:

1 1/2 Cups all-purpose flour
1 Tsp baking powder
1/2 Tsp salt
12 Tbsp (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 1/2 Cups packed light brown sugar
2 Large eggs
1 1/2 Tsp vanilla extract
1 Cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, divided
1 Cup white choclate chips, divided
1 1/2 Cups shredded unsweetend coconut, toasted plus additional for topping the bars
1 1/2 Tbsp sweetened coconut
1 Cup almonds, toasted and coarsley chopped (I used walnuts since I didn’t have almonds on hand…can’t wait to make them with almonds next!)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350.

Line a 9×13 pan with 1-2 pieces foil, spray with cooking spray and set aside.

In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt and set aside.

Fit the mixer with the paddle attachment.  Put both the melted butter and brown sugar in the bowl and mix until combined.

Add the eggs and vanilla and mix on medium-low speed until ingredients combined completely.

Remove the bowl from the stand, add the flour mixture and fold in by hand.  Add 1/2 cup of the semi-sweet, 1/2 cup of the white chocolate chips and 1 tablespoon of the toasted coconut and stir together. 

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly. 

Bake for 22-25 minutes.  (Until the top begins to crack and the bars feel firm to touch)  The cooking time may need to be increased to achieve desired wellness. 

Remove the bars from the oven and garnish with the remaining white and semi-sweet chips as well as the unsweetened and sweetened coconut.  Remove from pan and cool on wire rack.  Once they are completely cooled, cut the bars (12 bars) and store in an air-tight container.

Recipe source: The Curvy Carrot, originally from Baking Illustrated

Cappuccino-Caramel Oat Bars

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There is just something about a cold, snowy day that gives me the urge to bake, especially something sweet.  On our most recent snow day I decided to make these cappuccinio-caramel oat bars that made my house smell so amazing.  They consist of a coffee, walnut and oat crust, topped by caramel, another layer of the coffee, walnut and oat mixture and topped off with chocolate and walnuts.  These were so simple but so very delicious.

Although it’s hard to beat a good cookie, bar cookies run a close second.  Bar cookies provide the same level of enjoyment and taste but with half the effort.  With cookies you have to scoop, form and drop them and then there is the dreaded worry of the finished product and if it’s going to be the right consistency or texture.  Don’t worry, this doesn’t mean you won’t be seeing cookies anymore you’ll just be seeing a lot more bars.  The next time you get the urge to bake something sweet, try these bars.  They are simple and so easy to assemble and they taste fabulous!  

Cappuccino-Caramel Oat Bars

One year ago today: Garlic Knots  
Ingredients:

3 Cups rolled oats
2 1/3 Cups all purpose flour
1 Cup chopped walnuts + 1/2 cup
1 Teaspoon baking soda
1/4 Teaspoon salt
1 Cup butter, softened
2 Cups packed brown sugar
2 Eggs
1 Heaping tablespoon instant coffee grounds
2 Teaspoons vanilla
1 Cup caramel ice cream topping
1/2 Cup chocolate chip morsels, semi-sweet

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly grease a 9×13 pan and set aside.

In a large bowl stir together the oats, flour, 1 cup chopped walnuts, baking soda and salt then set aside.  Place the butter large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on medium for about 30 seconds.  Add the brown sugar and beat until well combined, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally.  Gradually add the flour and oat mixture to the butter and sugar mixture until all is combined.  Once the mixture is combined reserve two cups for the topping.

Lightly flour hands and press the mixture in preapared 9×13 pan.  Spread the caramel topping over the oat mixture to within 1/4 inch of the edges.  Drop spoonfuls of the reserved topping over caramel mixture.  Sprinkle with 1/2 cup chopped walnuts and 1/2 cup chocolate chips. 

Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until edges are set (do not overbake). 

Recipe Source: Adapted from Better Homes and Gardens

Gluten-Free Graham Wafers and Nanaimo Bars

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The January 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Lauren of Celiac Teen. Lauren chose Gluten-Free Graham Wafers and Nanaimo Bars as the challenge for the month. The sources she based her recipe on are 101 Cookbooks and www.nanaimo.ca. 

I was pretty excited when I read this challenge for many reasons, but mainly because it called for a lot of products that I wasn’t familiar with.  It is always interesting to learn about how other areas of the world cook and what they use to cook, one of the many things I like about the daring bakers is that it has members from all over the world.  It’s easy to get in a routine cooking with ingredients that we’re accustom to using and never challenge ourselves with using or working with new ingredients.  I really liked this challenge because it challenged me to find the ingredients that weren’t a common staple in my kitchen and also because I had to make crackers, which I had never done before.  I really learned a lot in this challenge and really enjoyed working on the wafers and bars, it was fun but it was definitely a challenge!

For Gluten-Free Graham Wafers
Ingredients
1 cup Sweet rice flour (also known as glutinous rice flour)
3/4 cup Tapioca Starch/Flour
1/2 cup Sorghum Flour
1 cup Dark Brown Sugar, Lightly packed
1 teaspoon Baking soda
3/4 teaspoon Kosher Salt
7 tablespoons Unsalted Butter (Cut into 1-inch cubes and frozen)
1/3 cup Honey, Mild-flavoured such as clover.
5 tablespoons Whole Milk
2 tablespoons Pure Vanilla Extract

Directions:
1. In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, combine the flours, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt. Pulse on low to incorporate. Add the butter and pulse on and off, until the mixture is the consistency of a coarse meal. If making by hand, combine aforementioned dry ingredients with a whisk, then cut in butter until you have a coarse meal. No chunks of butter should be visible.
2. In a small bowl or liquid measuring cup, whisk together the honey, milk and vanilla. Add to the flour mixture until the dough barely comes together. It will be very soft and sticky.
3. Turn the dough onto a surface well-floured with sweet rice flour and pat the dough into a rectangle about 1 inch thick. Wrap in plastic and chill until firm, about 2 hours, or overnight.
4. Divide the dough in half and return one half to the refrigerator. Sift an even layer of sweet rice flour onto the work surface and roll the dough into a long rectangle, about 1/8 inch thick. The dough will be quite sticky, so flour as necessary. Cut into 4 by 4 inch squares. Gather the scraps together and set aside. Place wafers on one or two parchment-lined baking sheets. Chill until firm, about 30 to 45 minutes. Repeat with the second batch of dough.
5. Adjust the rack to the upper and lower positions and preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (180 degrees Celsius).
6. Gather the scraps together into a ball, chill until firm, and reroll. Dust the surface with more sweet rice flour and roll out the dough to get a couple more wafers.
7. Prick the wafers with toothpick or fork, not all the way through, in two or more rows.
8. Bake for 25 minutes, until browned and slightly firm to the touch, rotating sheets halfway through to ensure even baking. Might take less, and the starting location of each sheet may determine its required time. The ones that started on the bottom browned faster.
9. When cooled completely, place enough wafers in food processor to make 1 ¼ cups (300 mL) of crumbs. Another way to do this is to place in a large ziplock bag, force all air out and smash with a rolling pin until wafers are crumbs.

Nanaimo Bars
Ingredients:

For Nanaimo Bars — Bottom Layer
1/2 cup Unsalted Butter
1/4 cup Granulated Sugar
5 tablespoons Unsweetened Cocoa
1 Large Egg, Beaten
1 1/4 cups Gluten Free Graham Wafer Crumbs (See previous recipe)
1/2 cup Almonds (Any type, Finely chopped)
1 cup Coconut (Shredded, sweetened or unsweetened)

For Nanaimo Bars — Middle Layer
1/2 cup Unsalted Butter
2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons Heavy Cream
2 tablespoons Vanilla Custard Powder (Such as Bird’s. Vanilla pudding mix may be substituted.)
2 cups Icing Sugar

For Nanaimo Bars — Top Layer
4 ounces Semi-sweet chocolate
2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter

Directions:
1. For bottom Layer: Melt unsalted butter, sugar and cocoa in top of a double boiler. Add egg and stir to cook and thicken. Remove from heat. Stir in crumbs, nuts and coconut. Press firmly into an ungreased 8 by 8 inch pan.
2. For Middle Layer: Cream butter, cream, custard powder, and icing sugar together well. Beat until light in colour. Spread over bottom layer.
3. For Top Layer: Melt chocolate and unsalted butter over low heat. Cool. Once cool, pour over middle layer and chill.

Additional Information:

These bars freeze very well, so don’t be afraid to pop some into the freezer.

The graham wafers may be kept in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. Mine lasted about that long.

If making the graham crackers with wheat, replace the gluten-free flours (tapioca starch, sweet rice flour, and sorghum flour) with 2 ½ cups plus 2 tbsp of all-purpose wheat flour, or wheat pastry flour. Watch the wheat-based graham wafers very closely in the oven, as they bake faster than the gluten-free ones, sometimes only 12 minutes.

For the Nanaimo Bars, if making with wheat, replace the gluten-free graham wafer crumbs with equal parts wheat graham wafer crumbs.

There's a Blondie in my Oven!

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And they look and smell so good!!!  Is there anything better than smelling something sweet baking on a cool night, or any night for that matter?  My answer to that is no!  I love baking stuff and I love the smell of my house during and right after baking.  

I think blondies are one of my new favorite dessert items.  They are so simple to cook, there’s not a lot to them and they taste wonderful.  It’s been a long time since I’ve had blondies, my parents used to cook them all the time.  We used to just have them plain with nothing mixed in, they are wonderful that way but they are also a blank slate where practically anything can be added.  

I made pumpkin spice blondies the other day and they turned out incredible.  This time I decided to do a household favorite, peanut butter and chocolate.  Spencer loves Reese’s cups, so any mixture of peanut butter and chocolate is always a winner with him!  I was really pleased with the way these turned out, they had just the right amount of everything.  Next time I’m probably going to try mixing in some peanut butter, just to enhance the flavor a little. 

Ingredients:

6-8 Tablespoons butter- softened (I used 8 in this batch)

1/4 Cup granulated sugar

3/4 Cup brown sugar

1 Egg

1 Teaspoon vanilla

1 Cup flour

1/4 Teaspoon baking powder

1/4-1/2 Milk chocolate chips

1/4-1/2 Reeses peanut butter chips

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 F.

In bowl or mixer cream butter and both sugars until smooth.  Once blended incorporate the egg and vanilla.  Sift flout and baking powder together and slowly add to mixture. 

Add chocolate and peanut butter chips and stir until evenly incorporated.

Line 8×8 pan with foil and spray with cooking spray.  Pour in Blondie Mixture.  Bake for about 20-25 minutes.  Let cool before cutting.


 

Recipe from: Lynsey Lou

A little spice in my life…

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Pumpkin spice to be exact!  Since I’ve discovered the pumpkin spice kisses by Hershey’s I’ve been obsessed with them.  I’ve seen quite a lot of different recipes being made that incorporate these kisses.  After looking around at all the different recipes with these I decided to try my hand at baking something with them.  The result was awesome; you could definitely taste all the flavors of the kiss as well as the other flavors in the recipe.

This time I decided to bake some blondies and add some pumpkin kisses.  They turned out awesome.  I probably could have added more kisses, but since this was the first time I had baked with them I didn’t want the flavor to be too much or too overwhelming.  Everything blended together nicely and this ended up being a nice, light dessert. 

Ingredients:

6 Tablespoons butter- softened

1/4 Cup granulated sugar

3/4 Cup brown sugar

1 Egg

1 Teaspoon vanilla

1 Cup flour

1/4 Teaspoon baking powder

6 Pumpkin spice kisses, chilled and coarsely chopped

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 F.

In bowl or mixer cream butter and both sugars until smooth.  Once blended incorporate the egg and vanilla.  Sift flout and baking powder together and slowly add to mixture. 

Stir in pumpkin spice kisses, stir until evenly incorporated.

Line 8×8 pan with foil and spray with cooking spray.  Pour in Blondie Mixture.  Bake for about 20-25 minutes.  Let cool before cutting.

 
 

 

Recipe by: Lynsey Lou

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