Showing posts with label cookies and bars. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cookies and bars. Show all posts
I had never heard of Bakewell anything until I moved over here to the UK. I have always, however, had a great fondness for almond flavoured cakes and bakes.
Don't get me started on chocolate covered almonds either . . . I cannot resist!
I had not been here very long when I ran into Bakewell Tarts . . . .
Little pastry cases filled with a layer of jam and topped an almond frangipane cake, and glazed with an almond iced, garnished with a candied cherry.
Todd just loves these. LOVES LOVES LOVES I have always found them a tiny bit cloying and somewhat too sweet.
That was my first experience with Bakewell, little did I know how very good they could actually be . . . until I baked my own . . . you can see those here.
That was when I truly fell in love with the Bakewell combination.
Since then I have played with the flavours of Bakewell baked goods, making Bakewell Whoopie Pies, Bakewell Slices, Bakewell Scones . . .
Raspberry Bakewell Overnight Oats, and . . . a traditional Bakewell Tart . . . just to name a few of my Bakewell creations.
Each one incredibly scrummy and yummy in their own unique Bakewell ways. But what is a Bakewell supposed to be you might well ask. Wikipedia describes it as thus:
The Bakewell tart developed as a variant of the Bakewell pudding in the 20th century. Although the terms Bakewell tart and Bakewell pudding have been used interchangeably, each name refers to a specific dessert recipe. The tart is closely associated with the town of Bakewell in Derbyshire.
Simple, right? Wrong . . . not so simple . . . there are as many variants and claims to invention as there are months in the year.
It is indeed a very intriguing question, one without a succinct answer except to say . . . almond flavour figures big when it comes to Bakewell anything.
And we shall leave it at that. This Bakewell Blondie is a small batch recipe I adapted from a full sized one I found here. The pictures looked amazing . . .
But in all honesty I didn't really want that much temptation laying around. Todd can only eat so much and I didn't want to be snuffling up the leftovers myself.
So I cut the recipe in half as best as I could and baked it in a 9 by 5-inch loaf tin, which is the perfect pan for baking small batch bars.
I was really pleased with the outcome until I realised that I had forgotten to put the almonds on top before baking . . . not a problem.
I drizzled an almond glaze over the cooled bars and then sprinkled toasted flaked almonds on top of that. Perfect!
These are fabulous little bars. FAB-EWE-LOUS! (And yes I know that is not the way to spell fabulous, I am trying to make a point here. They are really tasty!)
So good in fact that I am glad I only made a small batch. Rich, fudgy, sweet . . . dense and filled with white chocolate chips and almond flavours . . . with a swirl of raspberry jam and then that almond glaze and those flaked almonds.
Can you say M O R E I S H? I hope so because that is what these are! Incredibly edibly moreish.
Small Batch Bakewell Blondies
Yield: Makes 8 blondies
These amazing brownie type of bars are fudgy, sweet and gooey with jam. I have glazed them with an almond glaze and sprinkled toasted flaked almonds on top for a cookie bar you won't be able to resist!
Ingredients:
For the bars:
- 120g butter, melted (1/2 cup)
- 50g caster sugar (1/4 cup)
- 50g soft light brown sugar (1/4 cup packed)
- 1 large free range egg, beaten
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 50g ground almonds (1/3 cup)
- 100g plain flour (1 cup, minus 3 TBS)
- 1/2 TBS cornflour (cornstarch)
- 100g white chocolate chips (1/2 cup)
- 8 tsp raspberry jam
For the glaze and topping:
- 65g icing sugar (1/2 cup)
- few drops of almond extract
- hot water
- a handful of toasted flaked almonds
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Line a 9 by 5 inch loaf tin with baking parchment, leaving an overhang. Set aside.
- Beat together the melted butter and both sugars until smooth. Beat in the egg and almond extract. Stir in the flour, corn flour and ground almonds until smooth and well mixed. Stir in the white chocolate chips. Spoon the mixture into the prepared baking tin. Smooth the top.
- Dollop the raspberry jam evenly spaced over top in little puddles. Using a skewer, lightly swirl it through the blondie mixture.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, until they are done with a slight wobble in the centre. This could take longer, or it could take less time. Start checking at 25 minutes. It all depends on how hot your oven runs.
- Leave to cool completely in the tin before lifting out onto a cutting board.
- Whisk together the icing sugar, almond extract and just enough water to give you a thickish drizzle that you can easily flick over the top of the bars. Drizzle it over and then sprinkle with the almonds.
- Allow to set and then cut into 8 bars. Store any leftovers in an airtight container.
If you only bake one thing this weekend, let it be these!
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Magic Cookie Bars. These eagle brand magic cookie bars are nothing new. I've been baking them for my family for years and years. I am sure you have as well. They are delicious!
I think I got the original recipe from a magazine advert back in the 1980's for Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk.
My children always loved them, and no small wonder. They are sweet, sweet, sweet!
If you are a diabetic look away now!
These are so easy to make and always a hit. They are a classic dessert which everyone loves. I believe they are also called Hello Dolly Bars.
The original recipe makes 16 large bars. I have downsized it to make only 8, and actually you could probably cut them in half and make 16 small bites if you wanted to. (Which is probably a lot healthier sugar wise!)
I have also seen them called Seven Layer Bars because they are composed of layers of different things.
You begin with a layer of graham cracker crumbs and melted butter. We don't get graham crackers here, but digestive biscuits make a great substitute.
I weighed them out and 6 regular sized Digestive biscuits are the equivalent of 3/4 cup of crumbs, weighing 90g.
I don't know how I would get along without my digital scales.
I used pecan nuts next. I like to toast my nuts before using them in anything. They just taste nuttier if you do that small thing.
A few minutes in a hot oven on a baking sheet does the trick. They will be done when they are smelling nice and nutty.
On goes a layer of them, and then you layer on a combination of baking chips.
I used semi-sweet, white chocolate (which really isn't chocolate at all) and peanut butter chips, which is all I had.
But you can use butterscotch chips and milk chocolate chips along with the semi sweet chips. Or just the milk, white and semi sweet chips.
I don't think it really matters. Sweet is sweet.
And if you thought they were not sweet enough, now you get to pour some sweetened condensed milk over top.
Make sure you use the sweetened condensed milk and not evaporated milk. There is a HUGE difference.
The major difference that sets these two canned milk products apart is sugar content; sweetened condensed milk, as the name implies, is always sweetened, while evaporated milk is unsweetened.
Sweetened condensed milk is also appreciably thicker and comes in a much smaller can!
Finally you sprinkle some sweetened flaked coconut over everything.
I suppose you could use dessicated coconut, which is all you can get here in the normal shops.
I always buy my chocolate chips and coconut from an online American ingredient supply shop called Skyco.
I have been buying things like this and a few other things from them for about 12 or 13 years now.
Yes, they cost a bit, but for the odd bake I think it is worth it. Especially special bakes like this one.
Its not like we eat things like this every day or even every week! Sometimes it wouldn't even be every month. I find as we get older we don't eat stuff like this as much.
And to be honest I mostly give it to my next-door neighbor. She has a lad and he enjoys it.
Which is not to say I don't, but as a diabetic these would put me into a coma. LOL
In any case if you are looking for a small batch recipe for something sweet, to either enjoy at home or gift to someone, you can't go wrong with these.
Incredibly lush. Moreishy delish. Much beloved. Oh, and incredibly easy to make, bake and eat! Perfect for pot lucks, families and so much more. I have never had anyone turn one of these down!
Magic Cookie Bars, Small Batch
Yield: Makes approximately 8 bars
An old family favourite downsized for the smaller family.
Ingredients:
- 60g butter, melted (1/4 cup)
- 90g digestive biscuit crumbs or graham cracker crumbs (3/4 cup)
- 65g chopped toasted pecans (1/2 cup)
- 90g semi-sweet chocolate chips (1/2 cup)
- 90g white chocolate chips (1/2 cup)
- 90g butterscotch or peanut butter chips (1/2 cup)
- 60g sweetened shredded coconut (3/4 cup)
- 200g sweetened condensed milk (7 ounces)
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Line a 7 by 11 inch baking dish with aluminium foil and spray the foil with canola cooking spray. Set aside.
- Mix together the crumbs and melted butter. Press them into the bottom of the dish in an even layer.
- Sprinkle with the toasted pecans, and then the various chips, spreading them out evenly.
- Spoon the sweetened condensed milk evenly over top of everything.
- Finally sprinkle the coconut over top.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes or unil he op is a light golden brown.
- Let cool completely before cutting into bars. (I put mine in the refrigerator for about an hour before I cut them, lift them out by the tinfoil and then cut.)
Yes, I had a bite and I will be sadly paying for it for the remainder of the day. Todd has enjoyed one and I sent the rest next door. They are just too irresistible for words!
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at mariealicejoan at aol dot com.
I think of all the cookies and bars in the world Chocolate Chip bars have to be my absolute favourite! Golden brown and stogged full of semi sweet chocolate chips. So good with a glass of ice cold milk, or a cup of tea, a cup of coffee, or whatever beverage that floats your boat!
The cookie/bar part is beautifully crisp and buttery . . . those chocolate chips creamy and chocolaty . . . oh, they are so very delicious.
They are not something I have made really often, largely due to the fact that most recipes make far too many and we are only two, and to be honest, cookies and bars are at their very best on the day that they are baked.
Not that that has ever stopped me from enjoying my fill every day that I have them in my house. Therein lies my dilema. I just cannot be trusted with a full cookie jar. In my quest for smaller recipes for the smaller family, and to lessen my temptation, I present to you Small Batch Chocolate Chip Bars!
Small in size, but HUGE on flavour! These incredibly moreish bars lack none of the tastiness of their larger sized counterpart!
They bake to perfect golden crispness in a 9 by 5 inch loaf tin! Just the perfect size for only two!
I suppose you could cut them into squares or rectangles, but I like to add interest and cut them into wedges.
Beautifully crisp and buttery . . . not overly sweet. They are just sweet enough, with an almost shortbread-like texture!
I toyed with the idea of adding toasted pecans and perhaps some sultana raisins, but in the end I went old school with just the chocolate chips.
And now I am wondering how nice they might be with chopped cranberries and white chocolate chips. Oh boy, that would be tasty. I would add some grated orange zest in that case.
These however, are pretty perfect just as they are. They scratch the itch without going over the top. They fill that chocolate chip cookie bar gap.
This recipe is just the perfect size for us . . . a husband who can annoyingly eat whatever he wants without gaining an ounce . . .
And me who shouldn't be eating anything like this at all. Not at all . . . but at least with this recipe there is less temptation around to break my will.
They are incredibly temptingly delicious however . . . and I could not resist enjoying one.
And like a child I had it with a small glass of milk. Oh boy . . . some good.
Small Batch Chocolate Chip Bars
Yield: About 8 bars
An incredibly edibly moreish small batch bar recipe for the small family. Crisp and buttery and filled with lots of semi-sweet chocolate chips!
ingredients:
- 105g plain flour (3/4 cup)
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 60g softened butter (1/4 cup)
- 50g soft light brown sugar (1/4 cup)
- 2 TBS granulated sugar
- 1 large free range egg yolk
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 90g good quality chocolate chips (1/2 cup)
instructions:
How to cook Small Batch Chocolate Chip Bars
- Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Line a 9 by 5 inch loaf pan with baking paper. Set aside.
- Cream together both sugars and the butter until smooth and creamy. Beat in the egg yolk and the vanilla.
- Sift together the flour, salt, soda and baking powder. Stir into the creamed mixture. It will look quite crumbly. Stir in the chocolate chips and then press the dough evenly into the lined pan, pressing it down firmly.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 23 minutes, until puffed and golden brown. Remove from the oven and let sit in the pan for 15 minutes before lifting out and cutting into serving sized wedges. Store any leftovers in an airtight container.
If you are a smaller family and are looking for something incredibly tasty this might well be it. If you are a larger family and are wanting not a lot of temptation hanging about to cause you to go over board, this might still be it. Enjoy!
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