Hello Dolly Bars

My sister TMP made these for our little graduation shindig at home last Saturday. My in-laws loved these and as my husband is, you know, an in-law he loved them too and insisted that we get the recipe. So here it is, dear Robber, for you.

From somewhere, didn't ask TMP where she got them.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 C. (1 stick) salted butter, melted

1/2 C. graham cracker crumbs (ca. 1 1/2 packages)

1 tsp. cinnamon

2 C. chocolate chips (replace 1 c. with butterscotch or other chips, if desired)

1 1/2 C. chopped pecans, lightly toasted

1 1/2 C. sweetened shredded coconut

1 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk

Directions:

1. Mix the graham cracker crumbs and cinnamon with the butter and press into the bottom of the pan. 

2. Layer the chips, nuts, and coconut on top of the crust. Pour the sweetened condensed milk evenly over the lot. 

3. Bake at 350 for approx. 30 minutes, until nicely browned and a bit bubbly. Cool completely before cutting.

Yield: This quantity will make an 8"x8" pan of thick bars or a 9"x13" pan of thinner bars.

Butterscotch Drop Scones

Turns out that I really do delight in a scone for breakfast. Upon returning home to the Cubby I found nothing suitable for breakfast but some old bagels in the fridge which is definitely Robber-only fare. So, tired as I was, I scrounged these together with my butterscotch chips I brought with me from Rochester. (Yes, I brought them across country from Rochester.) I had low expectations, but these were surprisingly delicious and the butterscotch flavor came across with much greater clarity and satisfaction than when embedded in the pumpkin. The scones were crisp on the outside and deliciously soft in the inside. I used some vanilla Greek yogurt instead of whipping cream and that perhaps made the scones a bit sweeter than they ought to have been so in the future I will use a plain, unsweetened liquid (see note below).

From Epicurious:

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Butterscotch-Drop-Scones-230911

Note: The Epicurious reviewers all reduced the salt, so I have written the recipe here with reduced salt.

Note October 2013: The original recipe calls for heavy whipping cream. I initially made it with vanilla yogurt, which didn't work for me. I made them again in October 2013 with buttermilk, and this produced the best product with a flaky texture and a satisfying taste that is likely less fatty than the heavy whipping cream. I've updated the recipe below to reflect this so when I make it again in the future I will know to use buttermilk.

Ingredients:

2 C. all-purpose flour

1/3 C. packed golden brown sugar

1 T. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 C. chilled unsalted butter, diced

1 C. butterscotch chips

1/2 C. chilled heavy whipping cream buttermilk

1 large egg

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.

2. Sift all purpose flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt into medium bowl. Add chilled butter; using fingertips, rub in until coarse meal forms. Mix in chips. '

3. Whisk buttermilk and egg in small bowl to blend. Gradually add cream mixture to dry ingredients, tossing with fork until dough comes together in moist clumps. Add more cream by teaspoonfuls if dough is dry.

4. Drop dough by 1/4 cupfuls onto large rimmed baking sheet, spacing apart. Bake scones until golden brown and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Yield: 7-8 scones

Pumpkin Scones

I previously posted a pumpkin scone recipe on this blog from the NYTimes, but didn't do it justice as I lacked some key ingredients. Annie had her own recipe for pumpkin scones, and it has been waiting in my lineup of recipes to try now since April. Now that the raisin scones are gone, I needed a new breakfast meal which for me means another new batch of scones. After this one, only one more new recipe to go! (Ok two. I just found another one.)

These scones were good but not as good as I think they could have been, perhaps the glaze ups the oomph a bit? I think they were better than my other pumpkin scone recipe. Perhaps they are competing for my attention with the pumpkin cornbread, which just keep getting better, and my sudden urges for dark dark chocolate every evening which I think it just a manifestation of my missing of the Robber. The butterscotch and pumpkin combo is interesting, but not life changing. At any rate, I think I might make this pumpkin base again, but put in toasted pecans or walnuts or chocolate chips instead.

Adapted from the Joy of Baking by Annie:
http://annies-eats.com/2009/12/07/pumpkin-scones/

Notes: I never make the glazes/washes/toppings but I did sprinkle some Demarara sugar on the top of the scones right before baking. I doubled the cinnamon as I do in any cinnamon recipe and doubled the butterscotch chips as I double every scone add-in. And I sliced up the scones before baking. Whatever.

Ingredients:

For the scones:
2 C. all-purpose flour
1/3 C. packed brown sugar
½ tsp. ground ginger
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
8 T. cold, unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/3-½ C. butterscotch chips
½ cup buttermilk
½ cup pumpkin puree
1 tsp. vanilla extract

For the glaze:
1 C. powdered sugar
¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
Dash of ground nutmeg
Dash of ground ginger
Dash of ground cloves
2 T. milk

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

2. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, spices, baking powder, baking soda and salt; whisk just to combine. Add the cold butter chunks to the bowl and stir with a fork to combine. Cut the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs and the largest butter pieces are no bigger than peas. Mix in the butterscotch chips.

3. In a small bowl or measuring cup, combine the buttermilk, pumpkin puree and vanilla extract. Add the wet ingredients to the bowl with the dry ingredients and stir together gently just until the dough comes together. If necessary, knead a bit with your hands, but be careful not to overwork the dough or you will end up with a tough scone.

4. Transfer the sticky mass of dough to the prepared baking sheet. Pat the dough into a 8 or 9-inch round. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 22-25 minutes. Allow to cool to room temperature. Slice the dough round into 7 or 8 wedges.

5. To make the glaze, combine the powdered sugar and spices in a small bowl. Add the milk and whisk to combine, until a thick glaze is formed. (If necessary, add a bit more milk to achieve a consistency good for drizzling the glaze.) Use a whisk to drizzle the glaze over the finished scones (I use a plastic baggie with a tip cut off). Allow the glaze to set before serving.