butter

Sugar Cookie Bars

June 30, 2015

Oh, what a week!!! Such a good freakin’ week!

Aside from the flat one of our cars has, things are rockin’!! Autumn is better from last week’s horribly, sucky, killer double ear infection. Price had a great time back in NY over the weekend doing Bachelor Party things for one of his friend’s. Autumn and I did some great shopping over the weekend. It’s a short work week with a holiday this upcoming weekend.

We are heading up to Maine for the holiday, and I can’t wait for it! I am so excited for this yearly summertime visit. We’ve never been for a visit at the Fourth of July so it’s going to be fun to experience it on the island. I already bought some snacks and goodies for us to bring up there for our visit. And I have recipes planned too. I might be bringing my Kitchenaid Stand Mixer with me…

Yep, I have no shame. It’s coming with me! I have donuts planned. yes!!!!!

And I wouldn’t mind if I got to make these Sugar Cookie Bars again.

That’s how your celebrate the country’s birthday… stuffing your face with sugar cookie bars.

I’ve blogged them about before, but I had to repost them as I love them so dang much. Making them again was a win for me, and sharing them again (I figure) is a win for you. Totally.

They are a soft, buttery, sugar bomb. Imagine sugar cookies, but softer. They stay soft and chewy, which is the best way for a cookie to be. I seriously don’t understand crisp cookies, which is why I l-o-v-e these so much.

Now I decorated them with red frosting and red, white, and blue sprinkles to jazz them up for the 4th, but you can make them all sorts of pretties for any holiday by what sprinkles you use. Duh! (Side note: I need these!!)

What are your 4th of July plans? You better say you are making these!!!!

Sugar Cookie Bars

Makes 24/32 bars

Ingredients:

For the cookie bars:

5 Cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 Cup room unsalted butter, room temperature
2 Cups sugar
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the frosting:

2 sticks of room temperature unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 cups confectioners’ sugar
3-5 tablespoons milk
Food coloring gel
Sprinkles

Process:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a large metal pan (9″x13″) with aluminum foil or parchment paper and grease.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and baking soda. Set aside.
Beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract and the eggs, one at a time. Mix until fully incorporated, scraping down the sides as needed. Add the flour mixture a little at a time until just combined.
Using your hands or a greased flat bottomed glass, press the cookie mixture into the baking pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until light golden brown and when a knife tip is inserted in the center it is clean upon removal. Gently lift out the cookie bars from the pan and cool completely on a wire rack.
To make the frosting: Cream together the butter until smooth. Add the vanilla extract and salt to the mixture. Slowly add the confectioners’ sugar until the frosting is smooth. Add the gel food coloring until the desired color is reached. Add the milk in 1 tablespoon at a time to create a smooth texture.
Evenly spread the frosting over the cool sugar cookie bars and add sprinkles. Cut into even sized bars.

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How to Make Perfect Brown Butter

December 11, 2014

Do you remember that moment when something just clicked for you? It was like the stars aligned.

Like when you were learning to ride a bike and then all of a sudden you got it? Or when you were practicing a piece of music and you played it through without any mistakes?

That is what I felt like when I made brown butter for the first time. Exactly that.

Everything else before then had been practice and okay, but once I made browned butter things were so much better. There was a richer flavor to things that just brought things to life. Cookies! Rice Krispie Treats! Pan Sauces! Pastries! Pies! Mashed Potatoes!

I basically want to use brown butter in ALL THE THINGS.

Side note: is it Browned Butter or Brown Butter? I’ve seen it both ways. I dunno.

Anyway, it’s so super simple to make that you will be kicking yourself that you didn’t make it earlier.

Let me walk you through the process…

Cut your butter into small pieces. This helps the butter melt evenly.

Over medium low heat, slowly melt the butter.

Once the butter has completely melted, turn the heat up slightly and begin to whisk it. Whisk the butter while it boils and gets frothy. Just don’t stop whisking it as it can easily burn.

The butter will start to turn a light golden color. It’s really important to keep a close eye on it can easily and quickly go from toasted, golden perfection to burned butter that you are tossing in the trash. If you’re phone rings while you are doing this… just ignore it. Call them back.

The process will be complete when the butter of a light brown color and the solids in the bottom of the saucepan are brown as well. Immediately pour into another heat proof container once the bits at the bottle of the saucepan are a light brown color.

And that’s it!!

Seriously, give it a try and head over to Pinterest and look up all the delicious recipes that use brown butter. You will love it!

Brown Butter

Ingredients

Butter- any quanity will do. I typically do it in half or whole stick incriments

Process

Slice the butter into thin pieces.
Add to a saucepan and melt over low heat.
Once the butter has melted, turn the heat up slightly and begin to whisk.
The butter will begin to bubble, just remain whisking. The butter will then get frothy on top, again, remain whisking.
The butter will start to turn a light golden color. Keep whisking while being cautious as the butter will continue to darken and then quickly burn.
Remove from the heat and pour into another heat proof container once the bits at the bottle of the saucepan are a light brown color.
Cool per the recipe that you are using the brown butter in or store in the refrigerator until needed.

No-Bake Snickers Pie

July 11, 2014

No-Bake Snickers Pie – A rich creamy peanut butter pie with Snickers candy bar dessert and caramel topping. Perfect for warm Summer nights!

We’re going camping tomorrow. Wish us luck!

Yeah, we might be a bit crazy to tackle that with a dog and a 7 month old but we are up for the challenge. Plus we are approaching it cautiously by only going 1 night and going to Pillsbury State Park, a campsite that we have already been to so we know exactly what to expect there.

One of the things that I am really looking forward to is being able to walk all around the camp grounds with Autumn and get to show her the lake, streams, and a waterfall too. We did a hike there last year when I was 6 months pregnant so it will be fun to do it now with Autumn. Hoping to be much faster this time!

While we’re roughing it this weekend, you should be cutting yourself a slice of this pie. You can easily whip it up while not turning your oven on in this summer heat! Isn’t that just the best thing ever? Pie and you don’t even need to get your kitchen hot!!

Plus, it’s LOADED up with pieces of Snickers. SNICKERS!!!

When I was at summer sleep away camp we could buy treats in the afternoon at the general store. ~~Occasionally~~ Every day I would get a Snickers bar to take out to the four square court. As I waited in line I’d eat my melting Snickers and right before it was my turn I’d shove that wrapper into my shorts pocket before I ~~dominated~~ played the game.

Since then I’ve loved Snickers. I can’t keep them in the house because they call to me from the refrigerator. Which is exactly why after Price and I each enjoyed a slice of this pie I emailed our dog walker telling her that there was a pie in our freezer for her to take. I had to hit send on that email quickly before I thought twice and considered eating it all myself. I hope her family enjoys it just as much as we did. And I hope you do too!

No Bake Snickers Pie

Make 1 9″ Pie Ingredients

For the crust

8 ounces chocolate cookies (I used a ‘dutch chocolate cookie‘)
3 Tablespoons butter, melted plus a little extra for greasing the pie plate

For the filling

8 ounces light cream cheese, softened at room temperature
1 1/2 Cups heavy whipping cream
1/2 Cup sugar
2/3 Cup smooth peanut butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/3 Cup caramel sauce

For the ganache topping

6 ounces milk chocolate, broken into small pieces (a mixture of milk and semi-sweet is fine as well)
1/4- 1/3 cup heavy cream
12 Fun Size Snickers bars, chopped up
Caramel Sauce

Process

Butter the bottom and sides of the pie plate. Set aside.
In a food processor, finely process the cookies until you produce a fine crumb. Add the melted butter and mix to combine. Using your fingers, press this mixture into the pie plate and up the sides. Place in the fridge to harden.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, whip the cream until it forms firm peaks. Transfer to a large bowl, and set aside.
Using mixing bowl you had perviously whipped the cream in, beat the cream cheese, sugar, peanut butter, and vanilla extract until it becomes smooth and creamy.
Scoop out dollops of the peanut butter mixture onto the bowl with the whipped cream. Gently fold together until there are no more streaks, but be careful not to over mix deflating the filling.
Remove the pie plate from the fridge and pour a thin, even layer of the caramel over the crust. Scoop the filling onto the caramel and evenly smooth out the top. Return to the freezer .
In the bowl of a double boiler, add the broken pieces of chocolate and heat over low heat until almost melted through. Add 1/4 Cup of the cream and continue to heat until the mixture to fuly melted and smooth. (If the chocolate ‘breaks’ then add a bit more cream until it is smooth again.)
Remove the pie from the freezer and pour the ganache over the top. Smooth the surface with an offset spatula. Spinkle the chopped up pieces of Snickers bars on top, then gently press into the warm ganache. Drizzle the caramel sauce on top and return to the freezer for at least 30 minutes.
Prior to serving, place the pie into the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to make cutting and serving easier.

Insprired from Not Quiet Nigella

Buttermilk Chess Pie

June 6, 2014

Florida here we come!

Autumn and I are heading down to Florida today to visit my mom and grandmother. This will be Autumn’s first flight. I’m up for the challenge but I’m really hoping that it goes well. She typically takes a nap mid morning and that is when we are flying so I’m hoping she will get snuggily and sleep. But you never know how it goes until you’re just stuck at 35,000 ft with a screaming baby. She is teething now (her 2nd tooth broken through yesterday morning) so she had a fever last night. At least now I can really drug her for the flight and it would be legitimate! ha!

This will also be my grandmother’s first time meeting Autumn. It will be a lot of fun for them to meet. I’ll be sure to get a lot of photos of them together. Plus have someone take a picture of all 4 generations. awww!

Since I’m heading to thee South I’ve made a Southern Classic to share today!

I’ve always wanted to try a Chess Pie so I’ve decided this is going to be a month of Chess Pies. I picked Buttermilk Chess Pie to kick things off. It was a good decision!

I’ve mentioned before that I’ve been lazy about making pie crust dough (with the exception of graham cracker/cookie crusts) but this was so easy that I’ve become a convert. Soo easy. and it felt so satisfying to make the whole thing myself. Believe them I am all about convenience but this didn’t take much effort so I will be making more pie crusts from now on.

This pie is super rich! I typically cut 8 slices in a pie but I think 12-16 slices would be fine since it’s so sweet and buttery. Oh the butter!! There are 2 sticks of butter in this pie between the crust and filling. So yeah, this is Southern!

I hope you enjoy a slice this weekend while I soak up the sun. Oh, I can’t wait!!

Buttermilk Chess Pie

Makes a 9″ Pie

Ingredients

For the Crust

1 Cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) COLD unsalted butter
3-4 Tablespoon ice water

For the Filling

1 1/2 Cups sugar
2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
5 large eggs
2/3 Cup buttermilk
1/2 Cup unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla

Process

To make the crust

Cut the butter into small pieces. Put back the freezer for at least 10 minutes.
Place the flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor. Pulse the mixture couple times. Add the butter to the mixture and pulse until the butter is cut into the size of peas. Add 3 tablespoons of ice cold water and pulse until the mixture looks like tiny pebbles. If needed add 1 more tablespoon of water.
Pour out the crumbly dough out onto a well floured work surface and press into a disk. Roll flat until 1/2″ thick, then fold the dough into thirds, towards the center. Roll flat again and fold into thirds again toward the center. Roll out again and then fold in thirds, then in thirds in the other direction, so the dough looks like a little cube. Press into a disk and wrap in plastic.
Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

To make the pie

While the crust is chilling, preheat oven to 350.
Lightly beat the eggs in a large bowl. Add the buttermilk and light mix to combine.
Add the sugar and flour and mix again until combined.
Stir in melted butter and vanilla extract until combined.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator. On a well floured surface, evenly roll out the disk until it is large enough to fit into a 9″ pie plate. Transfer into the pie plate, and then trim and crimp the edges as needed.
Pour the filling into the unbaked pie crust.
Bake for 45 minutes or until just set. Cool the pie on a wire rack at least an hour prior to serving. Store leftovers, well-wrapped in the refrigerator.

Crust sourced from A Spicy Perspective, Filling Sourced from A Cook and Her Books

Fresh Berry White Chocolate Streusel Bars- SRC

May 18, 2013

I made these Fresh Berry White Chocolate Streusel Bars for Memorial Day weekend. We munched on these while we watched the Coke 600 NASCAR race. It made the race even better. How can you not love a sweet treat and hot guys!?! ha 🙂

Well, these were a fantastic pick for this month’s Secret Recipe Club. Huge hit. It made the house smell great while baking so that we agonized waiting the hour for them to cool before cutting. I’m just so glad that this month I had Avril’s blog Baking and Creating with Avril and we picked these bars.

The bars are super simple to make and are bursting with fresh berry flavor. I used strawberries and blueberries but feel free to add some raspberries in there as well. We loved that so much at we felt that the white chocolate is not even needed. It’s great but if you don’t have it on hand (I don’t normally), don’t stress out. These will kick butt with the buttery crust, fresh fruit and crumbly topping.

I found it a bit easier to gently cut the bars when they were still warm so that it made cutting through them when they cooled easier. Like scoring something before you cut it- that’s my 7 yrs of maki. As well, made for thing a bit easier when cutting through the chocolate so it wouldn’t make a mess breaking the drizzle up.

I swear you won’t be able to eat just one of these. So fantastic!

Fresh Berry White Chocolate Streusel Bars

Makes 24 bars

Ingredients

2 cups oats
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup COLD butter, cut into small pieces
8 ounces strawberry jam
1 tsp lemon zest
2 cups fresh berries (chop or slice strawberries if you use them)
3 ounces white chocolate chips

Process

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Set aside at 15×10 jellyroll pan (rimmed baking sheet.
In a large bowl whisk together oats, flour, both sugars, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add in COLD butter that has been cut into small pieces. Combine the butter into the dry ingredients either with your hands or a pastry cutter until butter is well incorporated as little crumbles. Remove 1 cup of the mixture, set aside. Evenly press the remaining mixture into a jellyroll pan.
Bake for 12-13 minutes or until it is firm to the touch, but not browned.
Warm the jam in microwave for 30 seconds. Add in lemon zest to combine. Spread the warm jam over the crust.
Evenly sprinkle the berries over the jam layer and then sprinkle the reserved crumb mixture.
Bake for 20-25 minutes until topping is a light brown. Remove from oven and let cool 1 hour before cutting. Once cut pour the melted chocolate over the bars in the pan.

Slightly Adapted from: Baking and Creative with Avril

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Check out my previous Secret Recipe Club Posts

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Sugar Cookie Bars

May 15, 2012

I feel that the blog-osphere blew up this spring since just about everywhere I looked I saw sugar cookie bars. Same goes for pinterest… sugar cookie bars all over the place. Well, I figured I would join in on the fun and make some. Once I made them I kept asking myself why I didn’t make them sooner!!

I made a batch for the general contractors working on the project that is keeping me so busy at work. I’m busy but they are slammed working on the project. They have to take turns working on Saturdays supervising the work that is underway as well as the normal M-F 10hr days. Which is exactly why I brought these babies in to them one Saturday morning. I then heard the following Monday how they were flying off the carrier that I carried them in on. Thankfully everyone really enjoyed them 🙂

I used the sugar cookie bar recipe from Kita’s blog Pass The Sushi. I made some adjustments because I didn’t have a lemon so I didn’t use the lemon zest that original recipe called for and I think that the bars didn’t hurt from it. Once I had it all laid out I realized that I didn’t have that large of a baking sheet for the cookie bars. I used a 9×13 lined pan and just adjusted the length of baking. The hardest part is knowing then they are done as they are still very soft in the middle. Once I tested the cookies with a small knife and it was clean upon removal I took them out to cool. I suggest that you wait for them to cool for a few hours or over night, which will help them set up in the center and prevent the frosting from melting when put on the bars. I had some melting as I was rushing because I was making them at 6am to delivery around 8.30… learn from my foolish goofs!

Sugar Cookie Bars

-Serves 32-

Ingredients:

For the cookie bars:

5 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 sticks of room temperature unsalted butter
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs
2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the frosting:

2 sticks of room temperature unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 cups confectioners’ sugar
3-5 tablespoons milk
Food coloring gel
Sprinkles

Process:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a large metal pan (9″x13″) with aluminum foil or parchment paper and grease.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and baking soda. Set aside.
Beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract and the eggs one at a time. Mix until fully incorporated, scraping down the sides as needed. Add the flour mixture a little at a time until just combined.
Using your hands or a greased flat bottomed glass, press the cookie mixture into the baking pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until light golden brown and when a knife tip is inserted in the center it is clean upon removal. Gently lift out the cookie bars from the pan and cool completely on a wire rack.
To make the frosting: Cream together the butter until smooth. Add the vanilla extract and salt to the mixture. Slowly add the confectioners’ sugar until the frosting is smooth. Add the gel food coloring until the desired color is reached. Add the milk in 1 tablespoon at a time to create a smooth texture.
Evenly spread the frosting over the cool sugar cookie bars and add sprinkles. Cut into even sized bars.

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Thanks for visiting. Please leave me a comment to provide some feedback. I appreciate all the comments I receive.