Peanut Butter Cookie Bars

These are so similar to the Girl Scout Peanut Butter Pattie Cookies…only gluten free! I halved the recipe and made my Homemade Twix Bars at the same time but the recipe below will make just a full batch of these. I like to call these a Re-twix, which is my term for a Reese’s/Twix mix and can you really go wrong with that?? I think not. Enjoy these in moderation as you could easily call these your “cheat” for the week as they are not that healthy (but oh so delicious!)

1 package of cookie mix (sugar or shortbread preferably – I used Bob’s Red Mill Shortbread)

¼ cup coconut oil
½ cup applesauce or yogurt
1 large egg
¼ cup water
1 cup peanut butter (or almond butter)
1/3 cup almond milk
½ cup chocolate chips
1 Tbsp almond milk

• Mix together cookie mix, oil, applesauce, egg and water until mix is well combined and crumbly. It will look very dry – this is fine.
• In a greased 9x13 baking pan, press cookie dough until it covers the bottom of the pan. Try to make the cookie dough as level as possible in the bottom of the pan.
• Bake the cookie dough at 350°F for about 10 minutes or until just slightly browned along edges.
• While your cookie is baking, make your peanut butter layer. Melt peanut butter and 1/3 cup almond milk together either in the microwave or over the stove.
• Once the cookie has finished baking, pour over peanut butter mixture. Let set for about 20 minutes.
• Melt chocolate chips and almond milk together either over the stove or in microwave according to your chocolate chip package instructions. Pour chocolate sauce over peanut cookie. Let this set for about 20 minutes.
• Cut into pieces and serve. Cover and refrigerate leftovers.
• NOTE: I froze my bars instead of letting them cool for 20 minutes. We also liked eating them cold. Also – you can bake your cookies according to package instructions if desired – I just lightened ours up a bit.

Hello Dolly Bars

Today I was missing my grandma. Grannie Grunt has been gone a long time but she helped start my baking addiction. I have dozens of her cookbooks that sometimes I just glance through to see her handwritten notes or find recipes she liked. I remember holiday dinners or birthdays or some other occasion and getting to eat her wonderful meals. My mom apparently inherited her cooking skills because she is a wonderful cook also. Anyway – I found this recipe going through one of her cookbooks. My mom and I made these little cookie bars all of the time. There are also called Magic Cookie Bars (I’m pretty sure a similar recipe is on the back of a sweetened condensed milk can). They are very simple to make but not gluten free. So I decided to accept the challenge of recreating one of my favorite desserts into something I could eat again. Result – success! These were so very similar to the real thing and I cut out the dairy, gluten and some extra sugar.

½ cup sorghum flour

¼ cup coconut flour
¼ cup teff flour
¼ cup coconut sugar
¼ cup coconut oil (or melted butter)
1/3 cup almond milk (I used unsweetened vanilla)
2 Tbsp brown coconut sugar
½ cup unsweetened coconut flakes
¼ cup chopped pecans
1/3 cup cocoa nibs (or chocolate chips – I used Enjoy Life! brand)

• In a mixing bowl, combine flours, ¼ cup coconut sugar and coconut oil and mix together until mixture is coarse crumbs.
• Press crust mixture into a 9x9 greased baking pan.
• In a small saucepan, combine almond milk and coconut sugar and bring to boil. Boil for about 2 minutes and then let cool.
• Pour cooled milk mixture over crust. Sprinkle pecans, coconut and chocolate on top of crust.
• Bake at 350°F for 20 minutes or until coconut starts to brown. Let cool 10 minutes before cutting and serving.