Fudgy Oatmeal Bars

OOOOHHHH FUDGE!!!

 Salty oatmeal crust, ooey gooey fudgy middle.

Sinfully indulgent.

One of the VERY best things about this recipe, is the fudgy center stays gooey!  Whenever I make these I stick a dozen or so in the freezer for an, "I need something sweet right now or I might throat punch someone" kind of moment. The fudge is soft even while frozen!

Truth.



Crust

Cream together:

1 1/2 cups butter

3 eggs

3 c. brown sugar

2 t. vanilla (I use Rona's homemade) ;)

Sift together and add:

3 3/4 c. flour

5 c. oatmeal

1 1/2 t. baking soda

2 t. salt

Press 2/3 of the dough on the bottom of a large jelly role pan.

Fudgy middle

Put two cans of sweetened condensed milk and 3 T. butter in a microwave safe bowl.  Heat for a minute, take out and stir. Put back in for another minute and stir. When the butter is melted and the s&c milk seems warm, add 2 c. milk chocolate chips and stir until smooth. Add 1t. vanilla and 1/2 t. salt.

Pour melted fudge and spread over the dough. At this point feel free to shove your face in the fudge bowl and have your way with it.

Crumble remaining dough evenly on top of fudge.

Sprinkle a pinch of salt over the top of the entire pan. Just because you can.

Bake at 350* for about 35 minutes or until crumbles are golden.

This is how it will look before it's baked.

And after:

FUDGE YEAH!!!!

Posted by Cambria

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Not much in life can compare to a warm, gooey, fresh from the oven chocolate chip cookie.  Perfect for any occasion really, or no occasion at all.   

Little people LOVE to get in on the action of cookie-makin'!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 lb. butter (2 cups) -NO substitutions here!
2 cups brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
4 eggs
1 T vanilla
2 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
5 cups flour (do a tester cookie to make sure, if they're too flat, add a bit more.  Trust me, it's ALWAYS worth the time to do a tester cookie.  See note below)
2 bags chocolate chips (Guittard are the best - use either milk or semi-sweet, or a combo of the two!)

Cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. (like 3-4 minutes on high)  Add eggs and vanilla.  Mix together dry ingredients and add to butter mixture.  Add chocolate chips. Eat a nice, big wad of it.  (yes that is part of the directions!) 

Bake at 350 degrees for 8 - 10 minutes.  We always bake on the second rack from the top and always on a light aluminum sheet cake pan.  If you use a bad pan, your cookies will likely burn on the bottom.

Remove to cool on paper towels, after they've set up for about a minute. 

* About the flour, we always make one tester cookie first to check the flour level.  You don't want a flat, sheer cookie (it will brown on the bottom too much) and you don't want a too firm ball (will be dry and yucky).  So many things play a factor in the flour content, moisture in the butter, size of eggs, altitude.  So before you wreck a whole batch, always test one first and add more flour if needed. I live at 6,500 elevation almost always have to add more.

Back to school has many traditions, but this one is my favorite and one that I will most definitely be passing on to my kids.  Nothing beats walking in the door after a nerve-wracking first day back, to warm chocolate chip cookies.  We would pull up a seat the the bar, pour an ice cold glass of milk, and tell our mom all about our first day.  Here's my sweetie after his first day of Kindergarten.

Follow it up with a tall glass of milk and a board game!  Bliss.

Pudding Cookies

My Go-To cookie recipe!

- 2 1/4 cup flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 cup butter or margarine
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1 3.4 oz package INSTANT pudding mix (it's the small box).  I usually use vanilla but you can do any flavor. Chocolate and butterscotch with white/butterscotch chips are delicious as well!
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 eggs
- chocolate chips

Mix sugars, eggs, butter, vanilla, baking soda, and pudding together.  Mix in flour then stir in chocolate chips.  Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes.  Makes about 2 dozen.  They stay soft for days!

Sara

PB Cookies

(Not my photo. All PB cookies look the same.)

Here is your recipe for the sudden sweet tooth cravings for home baked goods or when you need to whip up something quick for the neighbor.  ONLY 3 INGREDIENTS!

*1 cup sugar (I usually add a tiny bit more to stiffen up the dough)
*1 egg
*1 cup peanut butter (Any kind will do...crunchy, creamy, natural...)

Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes. Makes about 1 dozen. 


Sara

White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies

These are one of my favorite types of cookies, so awhile back I started experimenting and came up with this recipe.  It works every time.  One tip, buy GOOD white chocolate chips.  I like the Guittard brand.  It will make all the difference.  One challenge though, try not to eat all the dough before you get around to baking the cookies.

1 cup room-temp butter
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
        Cream together these 3 ingredients on high speed for a good 2-3 minutes, then add:

2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp salt
       Turn mixer back to high for another minute, making sure everything gets nicely incorporated.  Once it's looking good and fluffy, switch to the paddle attachment and add:

3 (ish) cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
       Mix just for a bit to combine, don't over-mix this part.  Next add 1 bag of white chocolate chips and 1 5 oz. bag of macadamia nuts.  Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes.  I like to bake these on a stone, and if I do that, it seems to need a minute or so longer than if I bake them on a regular cookie sheet.  Also, I never really measure the flour exact, so add it gradually and do a tester cookie to see if you need more flour.  If the cookie comes out flat, add a little more flour until it comes out right!

Posted by: Tiffany