Gluten Free Mocha Fudge Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

December 29, 2013 · by ·

cookie-bars

Have I told you lately how much I love cookie bars? Cookie bars make my life easier. They make it so I don’t have to get a cookie scoop or an extra tablespoon dirty. I don’t have to shape anything. I don’t have to roll anything. I place the dough or batter in whatever form, in to a pan. And then I bake. It’s that simple.

Can I tell you about something else that is also amazing and makes my life easier? Prepared Cookie Dough. Gluten Free Pillsbury Cookie Dough. It comes in a tub. Whoa! It’s also amazingly delicious. Everyone who tastes the cookies that come out of this prepared cookie dough can’t believe that it’s gluten free. Pillsbury has also released a few other gluten free options. I can’t wait to try them all.

I know that I just shared some gluten free cookie bars with you made with this same dough. I had to use the dough again though. I needed to see what else could be done with it.

I decided to make another layered cookie bar. I had some sweetened condensed milk in my pantry and I’ve been meaning to make some fudge with it for a while now. I decided to make some mocha fudge to layer on to the chocolate chip cookie layer. I’ve been told that it’s super easy to make fudge using a can of the sweetened condensed milk. And it is easy. And it comes out amazing.

I preheated the oven to 350. Then, I pressed the cookie dough in to a sprayed 9×13 glass baking dish.

pressed-dough

I baked the cookie dough layer in the oven for about 11 minutes, until I saw it begin to brown.

While the cookie layer baked, I made the fudge layer. I heated up the sweetened condensed milk in a heavy pan and mixed it with some chocolate chips. I let everything melt and and incorporate in to each other. I mixed in some instant espresso powder.

Once that mixture was ready, I poured it over the baked chocolate chip cookie layer. Holy deliciousness! I smoothed the fudge layer and sprinkled over some toffee pieces.

pouring-fudge

I made sure the pan was cool and then I placed it in the fridge to cool and set for a few hours. Then I dug in. Amazing! So rich and decadent. And super easy to make. Definitely put this on your next gluten free dessert list!

finished-bars

**This post was sponsored by Pillsbury. The recipe and content are my own. 

Gluten Free Mocha Fudge Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Dessert, Gluten Free
Ingredients
  • 1 tub of Pillsbury Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
  • 1.5 cups Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
  • 1 can Sweetened Condensed Milk
  • 3 tbsp. Instant Espresso Powder
  • 2-3 tbsp. Toffee Bits (optional)
Instructions
  1. Press the cookie dough in to a sprayed 9x13 baking dish.
  2. Bake the cookie dough in the oven for about 11 minutes.
  3. Remove from oven and cool.
  4. While cookie layer bakes, prepare the fudge layer.
  5. In a heavy bottomed saucepan, mix the sweetened condensed milk with the chocolate chips and instant espresso powder. Cook over low heat until everything is melted and mixed together.
  6. Pour mocha mixture over the baked cookie dough.
  7. Sprinkle toffee bits over the mocha fudge mixture. (optional)
  8. Let pan cool.
  9. Place cookie bars in refrigerator to cool and set. Should take 2-3 hours.
  10. Slice and enjoy!

cookie-bars

Filed Under: bars, chocolate, Dessert, Gluten Free, recipes · Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Gluten Free Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Caramel Cookie Bars

December 19, 2013 · by ·

cookie-bars

Did you know that Pillsbury has recently come out with a line of gluten free doughs? I recently came across their new line of doughs in the supermarket. I’m so glad that companies like Pillsbury have expanded to the gluten free market and their products are widely available.

Thanks to Pillsbury, I have just had the opportunity to try some of their Chocolate Chip Gluten Free Cookie Dough. I was so excited to try it! I knew that I couldn’t just roll them in to balls and pop them in to the oven. I had to do something fun with this new product.

My favorite kind of cookie is a cookie bar. Something about them just allows for more amazing things to happen. You can layer them. You can stuff them. You can add all sorts of yummy stuff to them. A cookie bar is always the way to go. My favorite cookie is typically an oatmeal chocolate chip cookie. I knew I had to do some sort of mash-up. That lightbulb moment happened where I decided to make a layered oatmeal chocolate chip cookie bar. Right away, I knew what would go in the middle of the two gluten free cookie doughs. The only option in my mind was caramel. Gooey and creamy caramel. My mouth is watering thinking about it!

I first mixed up my favorite oatmeal chocolate chip cookie dough. I used gluten free oats along with a gluten free flour blend. I slightly adapted the recipe that is on the Quaker Oats canister.

mixing-the-dough

I pressed the mixture in to a sprayed 9×13 baking pan.

oatmeal-layer

Next, I melted caramel bits along with a few tablespoons of heavy cream. I love the caramel bits because they melt faster than the squares and there is no unwrapping to do.

caramel

I poured the caramel over the oatmeal chocolate chip cookie dough mixture.

pouring-caramel

Next, I used my cookie dough scoop to spoon out even balls of the Pillsbury chocolate chip cookie dough. I placed them over the caramel.

cookie-balls-pre-baked

I then baked everything at 350 for around 26-27 minutes. I kept my eye on the cookie bars for even browning. The cookie bars couldn’t cool fast enough. I let them cool completely before cutting.

cookie-bars-out-of-the-oven

Holy moly. These cookies bars are amazing. They are the perfect indulgent dessert for a crowd. I hope you enjoy!

**This article is sponsored by Pillsbury. The recipe and content is my own. To check out some other gluten free recipes featuring the line of Pillsbury doughs, go here!


Gluten Free Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Caramel Cookie Bars
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Drinks
Cuisine: gluten free
Ingredients
Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Layer - slightly adapted from Quaker Oats
  • 1 stick plus 6 Tbsp. softened butter
  • ¾ cup brown sugar, packed
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tsp. vanilla
  • 1.5 cups Gluten Free Flour Blend (use one that includes xanthan gum in the ingredients)
  • 1 tsp. gluten free Baking Soda
  • 2 tsp. Cinnamon
  • ½ tsp. salt
  • 3 cups Gluten Free oats
  • 1 cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
Caramel Layer
  • 1.5 cups Caramel Bits
  • 3 Tbsp. Heavy Cream
  • 1 tsp. sea salt
Chocolate Chip Cookie Layer
  • 1 tub of Pillsbury Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 350.
Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Layer
  1. In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugars together. Bean in the eggs and vanilla.
  2. In a smaller bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt together.
  3. Add the dry ingredients to the creamed butter.
  4. Stir in the chocolate chips and the oats until well incorporated.
  5. Spray a 9x13 pan and press the oatmeal chocolate chip mixture in to the pan.
Caramel and Cookie Layers
  1. Place the caramel bits and the heavy cream in a small sauce pan. Heat the pan to medium-high and stir frequently until well melted.
  2. Once everything is melted and mix well, remove from heat.
  3. Pour the caramel over the oatmeal chocolate chip mixture.
  4. Using a cookie scoop, spoon the chocolate chip cookie dough over the caramel layer.
  5. Bake in oven for around 27 minutes, until the top has an even brown tone.
  6. Cool completely before cutting. The bars will be gooey from the caramel.
  7. Enjoy!

cookie-bars

Filed Under: baked, bars, caramel, Dessert, Gluten Free, recipes, Vegetarian · Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars

May 24, 2012 · by ·

Let me start out by saying that I’m not a huge fan of cheesecake. When Shavuot rolls around, I start to get anxious. Cheesecake is expected and I just don’t wanna.

I thought about what I had on hand and what I liked in a dessert treat. Why not combine the cheesecake with something that I actually like? Turn it in to something good. I thought about the basic elements. Traditionally, cheesecake has a buttery graham cracker crust. What if I turn this cheesecake in to a cookie bar? My favorite cookie is oatmeal chocolate chip (OCC). I could get in to a bar that is cheesecake and OCC combined. I kind of like the way this turned out.


Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars
Ingredients:

Cookie Crust and Topping:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup and 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups oats
1/2 cup coconut flakes
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Cheesecake Layer:
2 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
zest of 1/2 lemon

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray bottom of 13×9-inch pan with cooking spray.

In a small bowl, mix together the dry ingredients.

In a medium bowl, cream the butter, sugar and egg. Mix in the vanilla extract.

Mix the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients. Stir in the coconut and the chocolate chips.

Press 3/4 of the dough in to a 9×13 pan. Bake for 15 minutes.

While the crust is baking, prepare the cheesecake layer.

Beat the cheesecake ingredients together in a small bowl.

Pour the cheesecake batter over the cookie crust.

Sprinkle the rest of the oatmeal cookie mixture over the cheesecake.

Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until the edges of the cheesecake start to become golden brown.

Cool on counter for 30 minutes.

Chill and slice up. Enjoy!

IMG_1305

Filed Under: baked, dairy, Dessert, sweet · Tagged: , , ,

Double Chocolate Cranberry Almond Biscotti

March 7, 2010 · by ·

I know, I know. I have been neglecting this blog. It’s been over 6 months! Crazy! My apologies for not sharing any cooking nuggets here. I have been on a blog hiatus. Haven’t been reading too many blogs either.
If you didn’t already know, Passover is coming in a few weeks. For various reasons, I have chosen to stay home for Passover, for the first time ever. I don’t know what I will miss more; my mother’s brisket, the fun sing-songy seder, or the fact that someone else is taking care of the whole Passover process for me.
With Passover forcing itself into my life, I am trying to make sense of my house, especially the kitchen. Trying to use things up. It’s embarassing what you find, when you actually take a look at the pantry and the various cupboards. Won’t spare you all the details, but the 3 half bags of flour, 2 unopened containers of baking powder (to add to the 2 opened containers), and countless half-used bags of chocolate chips. These items call out to me to somehow get used.
While browsing the aisles at Trader Joe’s this morning, I decided that I should try to make biscotti. The various dried fruit and the various half-used baking supplies at home spoke to me. More specifically, the orange flavored dried cranberries at TJ’s. They made me curious. Without a real plan, I tossed them in to the cart, paid, and hurried home to try and hash out a recipe.

Filed Under: baked, bars · Tagged: , , , , ,
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