I’m always on the hunt for easy recipes to feed a crowd, and as I mentioned a couple weeks ago, I found a great cookie bar recipe that fit the bill.
And then I forgot to take a photo before my crowd inhaled every last one.
So, with the Super Bowl in my sights, I whipped up this recipe once again and made sure that I snapped a photo long before they hit the snack table.
With the added experience of baking these a second time, I can say with absolute confidence that not only are these incredibly easy to make, but they’re definitely a crowd pleaser, as well.
I suppose you could say the outcome of the game and the full bellies leaving our house afterwards were a win-win.
This awesome recipe comes from the blog “Six Sisters Stuff.” If you haven’t heard of their site, I highly recommend it. It’s written by six sisters who now live in various parts of the country. They co-write the site as a way to keep in touch, which I think is a fantastic idea. You can find the original post at https://www.sixsistersstuff.com/recipe/congo-bars-recipe/. I doubled the vanilla in my version.
Congo Bars
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup butter softened
- 2 cups packed brown sugar
- 3 eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 2 3/4 cups flour
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 12 ounces semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips
- 1 cup chopped pecans
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Prepare a 9×13-inch baking pan by spraying it with cooking spray and set it aside.
- In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and brown sugar until it’s light and fluffy.
- Beat in the eggs and vanilla, and then beat in the flour, baking powder and salt.
- Once everything is well incorporated, mix in the chocolate chips and pecans.
- Spread the mixture evenly into the prepared pan and bake for 30 minutes or until the top is nicely browned. (You don’t need to do the toothpick test on this one. The bars will finish setting up as they cool.)
- Let the bars cool completely and slice for serving. Store leftovers in an airtight container.
I told Joey that I don’t remember making cookie bars that used 100-percent brown sugar and no granulated sugar before this recipe. I think that addition is what made these really soft and chewy.
This particular recipe is getting its own card in my recipe box, which is my way of giving a gold star to a dish.
This time, after our friends exited and we started cleaning up, I actually had a few bars left over, but those were easily taken care of the next morning for breakfast along with a nice cup of coffee.
And really, I don’t think it would have mattered what dessert landed on our table for the Super Bowl last weekend. The victory was already sweet enough.
This piece first appeared in print on Feb. 6, 2020.
Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.
