My Talent Is Baking (Mocha Crumble Bars)

It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything! Life has been a little crazy for the past couple of months, but it might calm down a little bit now! I had eye surgery 10 days ago, so I’m starting to get back to normal. In fact, my job search will even start next week! There’s going to be some culture shock around here when I go to work. I will start needing help with household chores, breakfast may not be the same every day, and the Crockpot and BBQ will be much more active!

The dogs will be completely confused and unhappy. Bogey can handle it, he’s seen it before. But I can only imagine the chaos Chloe, AKA Captain Naughty will cause!

I have an awful lot to do in the meantime! We’re running out of canned food from last year, just in time for the produce stands to open. My favorite opens June 15, and then it’s game on! We’re out of jalapeños, pickles, salsa, corn, green beans, and our favorite jams. Crisis!!

Jalapeños will be first on the list. Shane’s two favorite things are jalapeños and bass guitars. Some of you know, he has quite the impressive collection of basses. In fact, he’s one month into a year-long buying hiatus. As I have jewelry credit to match the amount he spends, I must have some pretty stuff coming, too!

He has a new band forming, which is really exciting. He plays at church some, too, and played in the church talent show earlier in the month, which is always fun. They always ask me what I plan on doing for the talent show. I was musical when I was younger, but my talent now is, well, baking! So I baked.

I love chocolate. I love coffee. I probably love them in equal amounts, but I know I love them a lot! For my baking “talent,” I combined the two and made a Food.com recipe I had been looking at: Mocha Crumble Bars. I have to say, they turned out yummy!! And a little messy, but whatever! Lick your fingers and you’ll be fine!

This recipe makes about 50 bars, depending how you cut them. I decided serving them cut and in cupcake liners was a good idea, and it turned out perfect!

Ingredients:
1 cup softened butter (2 sticks)
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1 egg
2 cups flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp cinnamon divided
2 cups quick oats
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
2 cups chocolate chips
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 T instant coffee

Preheat oven to 350.
Line a 15″x10″ baking sheet with foil.

In a medium bowl with an electric mixer, beat butter and brown sugar. Add egg. In another bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and 1/2 tsp cinnamon. Gradually add to butter mixture. Add oats and walnuts.
Tip: if you don’t have quick oats, add old fashioned oats to food processor and pulse three quick times.

Reserve one cup of mixture. Press remaining mixture in the prepared pan.

In a saucepan, melt, stirring, 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, coffee, and remaining cinnamon until smooth. Spread on top of mixture in pan. If it doesn’t look perfect, don’t worry!

Drop remaining flour/butter mixture on top of chocolate in crumbles. Sprinkle with remaining chocolate chips.

Bake for 20 minutes until lightless browned. Cool completely on a wire rack. Lift from pan by foil and cut into 1×1 squares.

And because they’re messy and yummy, lick every spoon and knife you use to make hese!! Well, be careful with the knife!

Are you bringing pie?? (Cherry Pie Bars)

It’s been a while since I’ve been here ~ and I missed writing! Luckily, I was still cooking and baking, so I have lots to share over the next few days!

There’s been a lot going on for us lately. We’ve been spending a lot of time with a friend and his family. We’ve done a lot of talking, started some new friendships, and done a LOT of eating. It goes along with my theory, though: when you get a group together, all you need is food. That’s it. When people get together to eat, conversation naturally follows and everyone is happy (most of the time!).

Party planning rule #1: provide lots of food!

So of course, I’m in heaven cooking for a group! Especially when the little people in the group hear me mention something and ask me later if I’ll make it. But who wouldn’t want strawberry white-chocolate-chip pancakes?!

But man, I need to get to the gym! As it turns out, there’s some eye surgery in my near future, so I won’t be at the gym for a couple of months. We’re going to have to turn to some healthier cooking!

That definitely hasn’t been the case lately, though. Somehow there’s been dessert every night, and lots of it. There’s been ice cream, brownies, all kinds of stuff. One night another friend even brought pies from Nations. Since “going for pie” is already one of our favorite ways to extend a night out with friends, the guys were in heaven, too, and it’s become the favorite question: “Are you bringing pie?”

As it happens, I am! I found this great recipe on an amazing blog written by Six Sisters for Cherry Pie Bars. The picture sold me, but then I made them and it was on!! I’ve made them several times in the last two weeks. They’re insanely easy, and mostly things you would have in your own kitchen. The only exception is probably cherry pie filling.

As I’ve mentioned, I’m not a fan of canned (processed) foods, unless its something I canned myself. I do make a lot of recipes that call for a can of pie filling. I usually substitute fresh fruit with a little juice, sugar, and cornstarch or flour. Mix and heat while stirring for a few minutes and you’ve got pie filling. In this recipe, though, I used two jars if homemade cherry jam I made last year and it turned out perfect! I also made it with apricot jam. I don’t think I would use store-bought jam, though. It’s just not the same. If you want to try it, let me know ~ I have lots of jam!

In fact, this year as I make jam, I’ll be making some larger jars of each kind just for this recipe! Doesn’t blackberry pie sound amazing?!

So YES, I’m bringing pie!

Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract
3 cups of flour
1 tsp salt
1 can cherry pie filling or 2 cups homemade jam

Glaze!
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
2 T milk

Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9×13 dish (I like to use butter for this recipe).

In your mixer bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and extracts, then dry ingredients.

Spread about 2/3 of mixture in your pan. The dough will be sticky. A metal spoon works fine for this. I also used a rubber spatula sprayed with cooking spray, which worked well, too. Spread your fruit evenly over the crust. Tip: if you’re using jam, make sure it’s not refrigerated ~ that would be hard to spread evenly! Drop the remaining crust over the fruit by the spoonful.

Bake at 350 for 35 minutes until a knife comes out clean. It actually took me another five minutes. Cool and glaze.

Little serving tip: I cut these into 32 bars (8 by 4) and put the individual bars in a paper cupcake liner on a tray. They cut neatly, but they’re a little messy as a finger food, so they’re easier for people to grab in the papers!

And yes, this beater is worth liking, as is the spoon you use for the jam!!

Man, I love that Martha Stewart lady! (strawberry shortcake cookies)

Really, I do love Martha. Sure, she went to prison. But let’s be real here. If you were told a company was struggling and you owned stock, wouldn’t you sell? She’s too smart not to! I get it, rules and all, etc. but still. And sure,Moshe can be so annoying. But holy wow, she and her staff come up with some amazing stuff!! I got into her website one night for something. It was like quicksand. I was there for at least an hour, happily pinning away!

Because of that, Shane is now a Martha fan, too, even if he doesn’t realize it!!

He said tonight’s yummies were highly addicting. We take that word seriously in this house!

It’s been a crazy day. Actually, a crazy week. Somehow we’ve already had a week’s worth of stuff and it’s only Tuesday! And the rest of the week, through next Sunday, is just as crazy. Gulp. Today I kicked it in high gear. I dealt with insurance issues and event issues this morning, requiring several morning errands. I stopped by a friend’s office. I came home and made cookies, made Shane’s lunch for the rest of the week, and started dinner for tonight and tomorrow night in two hours. Doctor and more errands. Finished dinner and ate. Went to a meeting at 7:00. Three more errands at 8:00. FINALLY jammies, some paperwork emailed, event fliers posted, and I can be here for you! You know who you are! 🙂

Who has time to work?!

For me, though, as long as I have a good arsenal of recipes, I can make life work. I think that’s one reason I love Pinterest. I have good stuff, but it’s good to have new ideas! Follow me there if you don’t already! And follow me here so I can share the good ones with you!

I finally made my first trip to the strawberry stand today. I’m a couple weeks behind!! They were amazing. I can’t describe it. Amazing! I bought a half flat (6 baskets). I baked with a third. Another third are cut up in the fridge. The last third are, well, gone. Regrettably, the strawberry monster stole them.

I’m just excited about what I can do with those other third!!

It’s a good thing to be connected to me if you’re hungry. It’s my job to feed the world. I go to the doctor and take goodies for everyone (he doesn’t share so I have to take a separate plate for his staff). I have a meeting, I take goodies. It works out for everyone. For them, for Shane, for me ~ I was asked to take a catering gig off my goodies at this meeting!

So of course today we used (wait for it) strawberries!! I’ve already shared my love of strawberry cobbler and shortcake, but I needed a cookie. My friend, Martha, had the perfect recipe for Strawberry-Shortcake Cookies. Is this HEAVEN?? Yes!!

I have to start with a disclaimer. Martha is more domestic and in a more pure way than me. She says mix by hand and I say sure, let me get my dough hook for the Kitchen Aid. I’ll include both our ways.

Ingredients:
2 cups hulled and diced strawberries
1 tsp lemon juice
1/2 cup plus 1 T sugar
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp coarse salt (I used canning salt)
6 T cold butter cut into pieces
2/3 cup heavy cream

Preheat oven to 375.

Mix berries, juice, and 2 T sugar. Set aside.

Mix flour, the rest of the sugar, baking soda, and salt together. Cut in butter with a pastry cutter (the Martha way) or with your Kitchen Aid paddle attachment (the Sarah way) until it resembles crumbs. Add cream slowly as you mix until a dough forms. Stir in strawberry mixture (Martha) using the dough hook attachment (Sarah). You’ll know when you’re done.

Scoop onto a parchment lined sheet using a large cookie dough scoop. Bake for 22-25 minutes, until golden brown. Serve right away. I only made what we would eat today and refrigerated the rest of the dough from my double batch!

And seriously. Don’t just lick the beater. Grab a spoon and get a good bite of this dough!!