Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

I do believe that I'm on a bit of a cookie bar thing. No. Scratch that. I am on a bit of a cookie bar thing. But who can resist cookie bars? They're portable, cute, come in a billion different flavors, and most of all, they're DELICIOUS! Just take a look.

Okay, so maybe I'm a bit of a copycat, but these bars looked amazing when I viewed them on Pittsburgh Needs Eated. But who could resist their chocolatey-ness? Their cinnamon hints? Their crunch on the outside and chew on the inside? Wow. I'm really starting to repeat myself now. Maybe I should make pudding or something so I don't use that phrase again.

I made these for a camping trip to Nehalem Bay. My friend also made carrot cupcakes and chocolate cupcakes. I know what you're thinking, but remember, calories don't count when you're camping. ;) 

These guys really did have a unique flavor. They obviously had the chocolatey taste, but the teaspoon of cinnamon that caused people to have a thoughtful expression on their face after they took a bite.

"It's the cinnamon," I'd say. 

"Ahhh, I thought there was something different. It's good!"

The tower topples :(

Mmm. Crunchy and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

This is what happens when you are home in the kitchen and have a sudden craving for chocolate chip cookies. Search for a recipe ensues. First, it's to Taste Spotting. As much as I love that website, I mostly look at it for the beautiful pictures. I didn't find a recipe that was to my satisfaction, so it was to the cookbook collection. Betty Crocker, Joy of Cooking, and Ina Garten. Finally, I looked at the Magnolia Bakery Cookbook. There was a nice recipe that I decided to try out. I don't make chocolate chip cookies that often, so it was nice to try a new recipe.

I don't know what it was, but these cookies were really delicious. Maybe it was the extra amount of chocolate chips that I put in there to finish off the bag of chocolate chips. I think one of the reasons why they were so delicious is that they were crispy on the outside, but they still they were still chewy on the inside, the chocolate chips gooey and sweet.

These were really fun to make, and I think I'll try out some more chocolate chip cookie recipes.

Chocolate Chip and Peanut Blondies

Blondies are basically brown sugar brownies, which are actually pretty simple to make, and extra delicious. Watch out, because these will go fast. This is from the July 2009 Bon Appetit Magazine.

These blondies are almost more of little cake bars than cookies. Lots of reviews of this recipe that I have seen has said that they thought the blondies too salty. They were salty, but not overly salty, I thought. The chocolate chips balanced that out. The recipe made more than what is shown in the picture, these were for a family member to take for dessert at a friends house. According to them, the bars were gone very quickly. This is definitely a keeper.