I have been looking at a recipe from how sweet it is for almost a month.  So I decided make them today while my friend Al came over to have some tea.  But of course, I could leave it alone, I hadn't even tried it but since I didn't have any regular chocolate chips so I made some modifications

Here is Al showing off our bars.

I decided to add some candied pecans to the mix, ahh one problem I had to make some candied, off I went to make some lovely cinnamon salty and sweet pecans

Cinnamon Salty and Sweet Candied Pecans
1 cup pecan
1 cup freshly boiled water
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt

*Soak pecans for 2 minutes in the boiled water
*Drain and toss pecans with sugar, cinnamon and salt
*Bake in very low oven until dry

I know that walnuts are more traditional for candied nuts but I don't actually like walnuts, I find them too bitter.

Sugar, cinnamon, and salt, just waiting to touch those moist plump nuts :)

I decided to not to bake them all the way through but they were still nice a juicy.  I wish that I had let them harden up a bit more.  But still tasty since we ate all the remaining nuts up.

Cookie Bars

adapted from how sweet it is

1 1/4 Flour

3/4 + 1/8 cup Whole Wheat Flour

1/2 tsp salt (I think I would increase it to 1 tsp next time since I think it needed more salt)

1/2 tsp baking soda

3/4 cup butter, melted

1 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup white sugar

2 eggs

1 tbsp vanilla

3/4 cup mini chocolate chips

1/2 cup shredded coconut

1/2 cup candied pecan, chopped

*Preheat oven to 350*

*Line a 9"x13" pan with parchment.

*In a large bowl mix melted butter, and sugar.  Add eggs one at a time.  

*Add all the goodies into the butter and sugar mixture.

*In a small bowl add all remaining ingredients and mix.  Then add to butter mixture

*Plop the batter in to the prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean but still seems moist.

Flour mixture, terribly exciting but still a necessary part of baking.  I do wish that baking used fewer dishes, but I think I might be figuring out how to keep those under control.  Although, I still think J thinks I make too much of mess; that from a man who doesn't know how to wipe a counter down.

Mmm, sugar the best way to start a recipe.

And then you add the butter, hard to find fault in butter and sugar

 

Eggs are great at binding everything together, kind of like glue but with glue, I have to think hard before I eat it.

Here I am skipping steps but I was chatting with Al, so I have a great excuse.  Here is the finished pan of cookie bars going into the oven.  (Really I put them in the oven, remembered that I needed to take a picture and pulled them back out, but they still look good)

The finished bars.  I didn't realize that I had forgotten to eat lunch and instead I at a whole row of these beauties.  It took me a while to figure out why I had a headache.  Sometimes I am not the brightest.

The lovely care packages of cookies to deliver to Al (since she forgot to take some) and to Erin (who is always appreciative of my baking especially when I randomly show up at her door bearing food)

It is always nice to see someone appreciate my baking.  

It has been a great day but since it is not 12:45am I think it is time to go to bed and post about the incredible dinner I made tonight, tomorrow.