Ok, this is the second “cookie bar” I have posted for VeganMofo III… but it is because I hold the utmost respect for these things. They never cease to amaze me in their bake-ability. And, if you are anything like me when I make cookies (lazy), you can appreciate why I love them. With drop cookies, I bake half of the batch, and then the rest of the cookie dough goes unbaked, and ultimately wasted. Meanwhile, as the dough is rejected, I sit around immobilized from the 12 freshly baked cookies I just devoured.
The cookie bar creates equality for all cookie dough… and it saves lots of time too.
This particular recipe is adapted from the book “Great Cookies” by Carole Walter. It is made with soft brown sugar, giving it a nice rich toffee flavor, which just happens to compliment those pecans perfectly. I admit, the first time I tasted these I was not that impressed…because they just tasted un-done. However, to obtain the toffee-ness, part of the trick is to bake them just enough so that the inside is slightly underdone. The mistake was, I had eaten them too soon after coming out of the oven. The second time I tasted them (a couple of hours later) I was eating them faster than I was thinking… which led to a tiny belly ache and a renewed sense of satisfaction. I recommend cooling the bars for an hour or so before cutting into them. This will ease any after baking anxiety. They WILL firm up, trust me.
Toffee Nut Bars
- 2 cups flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2/3 cup Earth Balance margarine
- 2 cups very very fresh light brown sugar
- 3 tsp EnerG egg replacer frothed with 4 tbsp hot water
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup plus two tbsp medium fine chopped pecans
- 1 cup semi-sweet- vegan- friendly chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9″ x 13″ pan.
Cream together the Earth Balance and brown sugar until well blended. Add salt and baking soda and mix well. Add in egg replacer and vanilla.
Being careful not to overmix, add in flour until just combined. Fold in 1 cup of pecans and chocolate chips.
Spread ( I had to use my hand and actually “pat”) the dough into the prepared baking pan. Sprinkle the remaining chopped nuts over the top of the dough.
On middle rack of oven, bake about 20-25 minutes. They will look uncooked if you try to cut into them. Resist the urge and let them cool on wire rack for about 1 hour. Cut into bar shapes and enjoy with some yummy Almond Breeze, or your favorite non-dairy milk.
