Yummies

Gooey Butter Bars

These bars are always a great hit, and I am pretty sure there is not one single bit of nutrition in them. This is not my recipe,it is from the cookbook by Paula Deen, The Lady and Sons. 

Preheat oven to 350
Cake Pan
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Crust
One 18 1/4 package yellow cake mix 
1 large egg
8 tablespoons butter, melted. (1 stick)

Combine these ingredients well, and pat into the bottom of a 13 x 9 inch baking pan. Set aside.

Filling
1 package cream cheese, softened
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
8 tablespoons butter, melted. (1 stick)
One 16 ounce box powdered sugar

Beat the first 4 ingredients well, slowly add the powdered sugar, beating well, then pour into the crust, smooth out evenly. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes until the center is set, but not over baked. Cool completely, and cut into squares. 

How to tell if this is done is a bit tricky, because it depends on your pan, and the usual toothpick test won't work. However, it is delicious no matter what, and if you realize it is not firm enough in the middle to cut into squares, you can preheat the oven again, and put it back in for a bit. If the people you are serving this to are friends, they won't care, they will just scoop it out onto a plate, and lap it up. 

Chocolate Revel Bars

I think the original recipe for this was in the Pillsbury Bake Off, but it has been around longer than Jed Clampet, so who knows. There many variations all over the internet, but this is the one I use all the time. This has a bit of nutrition, if you count quick oats, otherwise, not a scrap. 

Preheat oven to 350
Cookie sheet with rim (jelly roll pan)

Cookie Layer
1 cup butter, softened. (two sticks)
1 cup white sugar 
1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups all purpose white flour, lightly spooned into the cup, leveled
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups quick cooking oatmeal
Stir all the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl, until well mixed. 

Beat the butter and sugar until well mixed and a bit fluffy. Beat in the eggs and vanilla well, Stir in the dry ingredients a little at a time until it is cookie dough. 

Fudge Layer
1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick)
14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk  (Eagle Brand)
12 ounce package real chocolate chips
1 teaspoon vanilla

Melt the ingredients for the fudge layer in the top of a double boiler. (see notes). Stir together until butter is completely melted, and glossy. 

Assembling

With damp fingers press 2/3 of the cookie dough into the bottom of a 10 x 15 x 1 inch cookie sheet. Spread the fudge mixture over the top to the very edge, and with damp fingers make "islands" and place randomly all over the top. 

Bake for 20 minutes until the cookie layer is a very light brown, and the fudge layer is slightly wrinkled in the center. DO NOT OVER-BAKE BY ONE MINUTE.  Watch this like a hawk those last few minutes. It is better to have this under baked by one minute, than over baked by one minute. Cool and cut into squares. 

Notes for those who never bake, but want to try now. 

If perchance something in the directions doesn't make sense, there is a wealth of info on the internet. These recipes are simple, and don't require baking experience, beating stuff together is easier if it is all room temperature, especially if you don't have a fancy heavy duty mixer. But, if all you have is a bowl, a wooden spoon, and determination, you can make both these recipes. 

The fudge layer says to use a double boiler, if you don't have one, you can improvise. You can't really make this over direct heat, because the chance to burn is too ready and waiting to ruin you. 
Just put a few cups of water in a large sauce pan and heat to boiling. In another pan that will fit into that one put the ingredients. Then, take off the heat. The chocolate and butter will melt together sooner or later, and just give it a stir once in a while as you prepare the cookie dough. If it is not melting well, just re-heat the water, and continue.