Tag: cookie bars

Categories
Cookies Dessert

‘Guava’ your friends a tropical dessert to try

Guava bars combine the sweetness of guava with the nuttiness of oats and the buttery goodness of a shortbread crust to create a delicious combination of flavors for your dessert table.
Guava bars combine the sweetness of guava with the nuttiness of oats and the buttery goodness of a shortbread crust to create a delicious combination of flavors for your dessert table.

Several months ago, I decided, for some reason, I needed to get ahold of a can of guava paste to bake with.

I didn’t have a recipe picked out yet, but I’m sure I found some video about guava that convinced me I needed it in my life. I found a can while traveling and promptly stored it in my pantry, where I completely forgot about it.

That is until this past week, when I needed a new dessert to bring to a cookout.

I knew it needed to be something interesting—this particular crew appreciates creativity—but it also had to stand up to being out in the heat of July in Kansas for several hours. Enter the guava paste and a recipe for some bar cookies that looked too good to pass up.

The recipe I tried comes from the blog “Mission Food Adventure.” You can find the original post at https://mission-food.com/guava-bars/. I added extra guava paste in my version.

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Guava Bars

Guava bars combine the sweetness of guava with the nuttiness of oats and the buttery goodness of a shortbread crust to create a delicious combination of flavors for your dessert table.
Course Dessert
Keyword brown sugar, butter, cookie bars, cookie exchange, guava, guava paste, oatmeal, shortbread, tropical dessert

Ingredients

Crust Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter room temperature
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups flour

Topping Ingredients

  • 21 ounces guava paste cut into 1/4-inch thick slices
  • 1 cup old-fashioned or quick oats
  • 1/2 cup butter cold and diced
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1 cup flour

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  • Prepare a nine-by-13-inch baking pan by lining the bottom and up and over all four sides with parchment paper to help remove the bars after they’re done. Set it aside.
  • For the crust, beat the butter and sugar together for several minutes until it is light and fluffy. Beat in the salt and flour until the mixture is smooth, and then press it evenly into the bottom of the prepared baking pan.
  • Cover the entire surface of the crust layer with slices of guava paste. You can cut it into smaller pieces to fill gaps, too. (You may have just a bit left over for you to snack on.)
  • Add the oats, butter, salt, sugar and flour to a food processor and pulse until the mixture kind of looks like wet sand and everything is well combined.
  • Sprinkle the topping evenly over the guava and bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until the topping is golden brown.
  • Let the bars cool completely before using the parchment paper to remove them from the pan. Slice them and store in an airtight container.

I came home with one guava bar leftover from the cookout, so I guess you could say they were a success. They were absolutely delicious. If you’ve never worked with guava paste before, it’s jelly-like, but it’s also super sticky.

The flavor is fruity but not overly sweet, so it is an especially good filling for people who aren’t into sugary treats. That, combined with the buttery shortcake crust and the nuttiness of the oatmeal topping, makes for a great dessert.

It turns out I was right about my guava obsession. The next time I manage to spot a big tin of it at the grocery store, it will probably land in my pantry again. This time, though, it probably won’t last nearly as long.

This piece first appeared in print on July 11, 2024.

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.

Categories
Dessert

Sorry, everyone: I must ‘confetti’ that I’ve done it again

Confetti blondies take a confetti cake mix, combined with sprinkles and a few other ingredients to make chewy, tasty bars.
Confetti blondies take a confetti cake mix, combined with sprinkles and a few other ingredients to make chewy, tasty bars.

Holiday-themed recipes are sometimes hard for me—specifically when it comes to this column.

As I see recipes start to pop up online for fun holiday treats, the responsible thing would be to make them weeks in advance to give everyone reading this the time to get the ingredients and make it for their holiday get-togethers.

But, of course, I rarely think about it in time, and I normally end up publishing a great holiday dish after the fact. For Easter this year, I decided I wasn’t going to make anything themed. My family get-together isn’t until next weekend, and I already have the ingredients for some pies that look fantastic. (Coming soon!)

Then we were graciously invited to spend Easter with some good friends’ family, so I quickly looked for a dessert to take.

The one I landed on ended up looking very Easter-y, with pastel sprinkles shaped like eggs strewn through it, but the good news is you can make these bars for any holiday theme—just customize your sprinkles (and maybe even your cake mix) to match. And if you have nothing in particular to celebrate, you can make these anyway with your favorite colors. Plus, they’re easy and quick, too.

This recipe comes from the blog “Crayons and Cravings” by Jaclyn Anne Shimmel. You can find the original post at https://crayonsandcravings.com/cake-batter-blondies/. I left this recipe alone, since it was so simple.

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Confetti Blondies

Confetti blondies take a confetti cake mix, combined with sprinkles and a few other ingredients to make chewy, tasty bars.
Course Dessert
Keyword blondies, cake mix, confetti cake, cookie bars, sprinkles, sweetened condensed milk, white chocolate chips

Ingredients

  • 2 15.25- ounce boxes confetti style cake mix
  • 2 sticks (16 tablespoons) butter or margarine softened
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 1/2 cups white chocolate chips
  • 1 to 1 1/4 cups sprinkles divided
  • 1 cup sweetened condensed milk

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a nine-by-13-inch baking pan by lining it with parchment paper, and set it aside.
  • In a large mixing bowl, beat the cake mix, butter and eggs until the mixture is smooth. Stir in about half of the sprinkles.
  • Spread about two-thirds of the batter into your prepared cake pan. It will be thick, so it may be easiest to spread it out with your hands.
  • Sprinkle in the chocolate chips and the rest of the sprinkles.
  • Pour the sweetened condensed milk over top of the batter in the pan, leaving about an inch uncovered around the edges.
  • Drop the remaining batter evenly over the top by the spoonful, and gently press it down to kind of make a top crust (it doesn’t need to be perfect).
  • Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the top is lightly browned. Let the blondies cool completely, and then use the parchment to remove them from the pan for slicing. Store in an airtight container.

These were chewy and flavorful, and I came home with less than half of a pan, so I guess you could say they were a hit. Also, if you’re looking for a smaller dessert, you’ll notice this is super easy to cut in half.

And, truth be told, these blondies were a cute addition to the Easter dessert table, so I guess I have to admit that I once again gave you a great holiday recipe a bit too late.

Maybe someday I’ll finally get my calendar synced to my kitchen exploits—but I wouldn’t hold your breath.

This piece first appeared in print on April 21, 2022.

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.

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