Ooey Goey Chocolate-Chip Cookie Bars
Simply, these cookie bars were very "ooey," and "goey," hence my name for them. Last Thursday, I had the biggest craving for a warm chocolate-chip cookie hit me. Immediately, I checked my long list of "favorites" I have stored on my browser, and chose this recipe.
I cut this slab of chewy cookie into about 22 individual squares. After my roommates and friends came over, there were only five left-over for the next day. They loved them. All four of them being cookie-dough lovers, were "mm-ing" there way through these bars.
That being said, I want to be honest, I was not 100% happy with these bars. They are good if you are a fan of raw cookie-dough. These bars give you an excuse to practically eat simply that: raw cookie-dough.
I baked these cookies in an 8x8 dish for thirty-five minutes. After letting the container cool for fifteen minutes, I started cutting the slab. I was so apprehensive by these bars appearance, that I stuck all of them back in the oven, at 350 degrees for an additional five minutes. After scrutinizing both my own baking abilities, and the photos displayed on the original blogger's site, I was convinced that these bars are supposed to look like what you see in my photographs.
To conclude, if you like cookie-dough, and you enjoy soft and chewy cookies, you are going to love these bars. If you are like me, and prefer your cookies with a tad more crunch and structure to them, then these may not be your favorite. But, if this recipe catches your eye, it would be a perfect addition to your heart-full holiday tomorrow (Valentine's day)!
Ooey Goey Chocolate-Chip Cookie Bars
Recipe Courtesy of Smells Like Home
Yields:20-25 Cut Cookie-Bars
Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon table salt
12 tabelspoons of unsalted butter, melted and cooled until warm
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, plus 1 egg yolk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups milk or semi-sweet chocolate chips
Steps:
1. Adjust oven rack to the middle. Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Line an 8x8 pan with aluminum foil. Make sure the edges of the foil overhang an all of the sides. Grease the pan with butter, or cooking spray.
3. Whisk, flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl, then set aside.
4. In a bowl of a stand up mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a large bowl and using a hand mixer, thoroughly combine butter and sugars together.
5. Add in the dry ingredients, until well combined. Do not overbeat!
6. Stir in chocolate chips by hand.
7. Spread the dough in the prepared baking pan, even the dough out with a spatula or utensil.
8. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick is inserted in the middle of the cookie and comes out clean.
9. Allow pan to cool for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, take the foil out of the container, and allow the cookie-bar to cool completely before slicing.
What I did differently:
1. I used dark-brown sugar, since that was all I had and they turned out fine.
2. I only have a hand-mixer, and it works just as well as a stand up one!
3. I definitely did not let my bars cool enough, however, that wouldn't have erased my apprehension of them being a tad under-baked. The next day when they were officially cool, they were still a bit chewy for my taste.
4. The originally recipe calls for Toffee bits to be put in the bar. I am sure these are delicious. Cookie-bars are versatile, so feel free to add any sweet condiment you want!
Source: Original recipe created by: Smells Like Home who was inspired by: Not Without Salt and The New Best Recipe by the editor's of Cook's Illustrated
