6 oz unsweetened baking chocolate

2 sticks (1/2 lb) butter

2 cups sugar

4 lg eggs

1 cup flour

1 tbs pure vanilla extract

2 cups mini marshmallows

1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips, divided

preheat oven to 300 degrees. (do not attempt to bake at a higher temperature or the brownies will burn.) generously grease an 8″x12″ baking pan, or use a foil pan from the grocery store which is great for freezing or presenting the brownies as a gift.

combine chocolate and butter in a medium saucepan. melt over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the chocolate is nearly melted. remove from heat and stir until smooth.

whisk in the sugar until blended, followed by the eggs, one at a time, the flour and the vanilla.

fold in the mini marshmallows and 1 cup of chocolate chips.

pour into the prepared baking pan and smooth evenly. sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup chocolate chips on top.

bake for about 53-55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. do  not overbake. cool to room temperature. wrap in foil and store at room temperature or freeze.

makes 48 brownies

club crackers

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 cup crushed graham crackers

1/4 cup milk

1 stick margarine OR butter

2/3 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup chocolate chips

1/2 cup butterscotch chips

line a lightly greased 9″x13″ pan with whole club crackers. bring sugars, graham crackers, milk and margarine or butter to a slow boil. pour over crackers in pan and add another layer of club crackers. melt together peanut butter, chocolate chips, and butterscotch chips. pour over top layer of club crackers and cool.

1 stick butter
2 ½ oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla
¼ cup flour
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp ground cardamom
1 ½ tbs instant espresso

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Grease and flour an 8” square pan. Shake out excess flour.

Melt the butter and chocolate in a 3 qt saucepan over low heat. Remove from heat; cool slightly. Stir in sugar, eggs, and vanilla.

In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, salt, cardamom and coffee. Stir into the chocolate mixture, combining just until the flour disappears. DO NOT OVER STIR!

Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool the pan on a wire rack completely before cutting into squares.

Serve with your favorite coffee, cappuccino or espresso!

FOR THE SHORTBREAD CRUST:

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature
1 cup 10x sugar
½ tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
½ cup creamy peanut butter

FOR THE CARAMEL LAYER:

1 cup plus 2 tbs sugar
½ cup light corn syrup
5 tbs water
½ tsp salt
½ cup heavy cream
1 ½ tsp vanilla

FOR THE CHOCOLATE LAYER:

3 cups chopped dark OR bittersweet chocolate
1 tbs butter
sea salt, for sprinkling (optional)

PREPARE THE CRUST:

Line a 9”x13” pan with foil, spray or butter, and set aside.

In a medium bowl, beat together the butter, sugar, salt and vanilla. Gradually add the flour, about ½ cup at a time, and mix until the dough comes together.

Press the dough evenly into the prepared pan. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Prick the crust all over with a fork.

Bake the crust for 30-35 minutes or until the top is light golden in color and the edges are browned. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 5 minutes. Spread the peanut butter over the still-warm crust. Set the crust aside and cool completely before adding the caramel.

PREPARE THE CARAMEL:

In a heavy saucepan, combine the sugar, corn syrup, water, and salt. Over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, bring the mixture to a boil. Once it boils, STOP stirring, and cook the mixture until it turns a golden caramel color. Depending on the intensity of the heat, this can take 10-20 minutes. If you are new to caramel, I would do this on a lower heat setting. It will take longer, but you will be able to see the amazing process and are less likely to burn it. (Swirl the pan as needed so the caramel cooks evenly). Remove from the heat and carefully add the cream and vanilla. The mixture will bubble and spurt so don’t stand too close to the pan. Once everything has settled down, stir until the caramel smooths out into a beautiful, rich sauce. Immediately pour the sauce over the cooled crust.

Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour to allow the caramel to set.

PREPARE THE CHOCOLATE LAYER:

Place the chocolate and butter into a heatproof bowl. Set the bowl over a pan of simmering water (double-boiler style.) Stir the chocolate from time to time, until it’s completely melted and smooth. Don’t allow it to become to heated or it will separate.

Pour the chocolate over the hardened caramel layer. Cover and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

1 ¾ cups quick OR old-fashioned oats
1 ¾ cups flour, divided
¾ cup packed brown sugar
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt (optional)
¾ cup (1 ½ sticks) butter OR margarine, melted
1 cup chopped nuts
2 cups (12 oz pkg) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup caramel ice cream topping

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Combine oats, 1 ½ cups flour, brown sugar, baking soda and salt in a large bowl; stir to break up brown sugar.

Stir in butter, mixing until well blended.

Reserve 1 cup oat mixture; press remaining oat mixture onto the bottom of a greased 13”x9” baking pan.

Bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes or until light brown; cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes.

Sprinkle with nuts and chocolate chips.

Mix caramel topping with remaining flour in a small bowl; drizzle over chocolate chips to within 1/4” of pan edges.

Sprinkle with reserved oat mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees for 18-22 minutes or until golden brown.

Cool in the pan on a wire rack; chill until firm.

Cut into bars.

1 (8 oz) pkg oreo crunchies
2 tbs margarine OR butter, melted
¾ cup white chocolate chips
¾ cup mini marshmallows
¾ cup walnuts, chopped
1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine crunchies and margarine or butter in a small bowl. Sprinkle 1 cup crumb mixture over the bottom of a lightly greased 8”x8”x2” baking pan. Sprinkle with white chocolate chips, marshmallows and walnuts; top with remaining crumbs. Pour condensed milk evenly over crumbs.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Cool completely in pan. Cut into bars; store in an airtight container.

Makes 16 bars

¾ cup (1 ½ sticks) butter OR margarine, softened, divided
1 ¼ cups sugar, divided
½ cup PLUS 3 tbs flour, divided
1 ½ cups finely chopped pecans, divided
2 lg eggs
1 tbs vanilla
1 ¾ cups m&m’s chocolate mini baking bits, divided
1 cup shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 13”x9”x2” baking pan; set aside. Melt ¼ cup butter. In a large bowl, combine ¾ cup sugar, ½ cup flour and ½ cup pecans; add melted butter and mix well. Press mixture into bottom of prepared pan. Bake 10 minutes or until set; cool slightly. In a large bowl, cream remaining ½ cup butter and ½ cup sugar; beat in eggs and vanilla. Combine 1 cup m&m’s and remaining 3 tbs flour; stir into creamed mixture. Spread mixture over cooled crust. Combine coconut and remaining 1 cup pecans; sprinkle over batter. Sprinkle remaining ¾ cup m&m’s over coconut and pecans; pat down lightly. Bake 25-30 minutes or until set. Cool completely. Cut into bars. Store in a tightly covered container.

Makes 24 bars

1 (30 oz) pkg chocolate chip cookie dough

2 (8 oz) pkgs cream cheese, room temperature

1 egg

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla

preheat oven to 350 degrees. cut chocolate chip cookie dough in half. cover the bottom of an ungreased 13″x9″ baking pan or casserole dish with half of the dough, forming a crust. use your hands for this as if you were filing a pie plate with a homemade pie crust. bake for 10 minutes. while the crust is baking, beat the cream cheese, egg (or egg substitute), sugar (or no calorie sugar sweetener), and vanilla in a bowl until well blended. take the crust out of the oven and spread the cream cheese mixture on the top, being sure to cover the entire top. it will be ooey and gooey and may blend with the crust but this is OKAY). take the other half of the cookie dough and crumble it on top of the cream cheese coating, being sure to cover it all. bake for 35 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean. cool in the refrigerator for a few hours before cutting into bars. store in the fridge due to the cream cheese.

1 (1 lb) pkg nutter butter cookies

5 cups large marshmallows

4 tbs butter

place nutter butters in a food processor and pulse until ground. melt marshmallows and butter in microwave until puffed, about 1 1/2-2 minutes. remove and pour in ground cookies. stir to combine then transfer to a foil-lined 8″x8″ baking pan. let set for 10 minutes. remove bars out of pan with edges of foil and cut into squares.

makes 9-16 bars