Take 5 Cookie Bars

I really love Take 5 candy bars, but I will admit that I almost never purchase them at the store. Sometimes, I will come across a little bar around Halloween, but that’s about it. My father would always make Take 5 bars in a fudge version, and honestly those were probably better than the actual candy bars. I don’t see that I have made and posted that recipe, so that will certainly need to be on my list for holiday baking.

Most of the ingredients used in these bars are things I have on hand. The different chips I usually have on hand, usually have pretzels, and sometimes have peanuts. My mom had a big container of peanuts, and she said I could take some, so that’s where my peanuts came from. Thanks Mom! Pretzels I had fancy seasoned ones (not good here) but also little packs of traditional twist pretzels. The small packs keep us from using/eating some of the pretzels and then letting the rest of the bag go stale.

These came together quickly, even though there are lots of ingredients. It makes sense as Take 5 bars combines all sorts of flavors! For the pretzels, I opened up a little bag at a time and stopped when it seemed like the cookie base was covered. (I think I used 2 little bags?) I used just 2 cups of chocolate chips for the topping, and I could have used a little more, but I didn’t want the chocolate to be too thick. These cut wonderfully, even in my kitchen which is on the warm side. Some others noted that the bar cookie separated from the chocolate/pretzel layer, but I didn’t have any issue. These are so good. Do I like the cookies bars or the fudge more? Hmm, I’m not sure…

Take 5 Cookie Bars
½ cup butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla 
½ cup peanut butter
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 ½ cups flour
1 cup chopped peanuts
½ cup peanut butter chips
¾ cup caramel baking bits
2 cups broken pretzels
2-3 cups chocolate chips
1 Tablespoon shortening 

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9”x13” pan with foil and spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray.

In a large mixer bowl, cream the butter and brown sugar on medium until fluffy. Add the eggs, vanilla, and peanut butter and beat again on medium. With the mixer running on low, gradually add the dry ingredients until a soft dough forms. Stir in the peanuts, peanut butter chips, and caramel bits by hand. Spread the dough in the prepared pan. 

Bake for about 25 minutes, until browned along the edges. Cool completely.

When the bars are cool, melt the chocolate chips and shortening in a microwave-safe bowl, stirring every 30 seconds to prevent burning. Lay the broken pretzels on top of the cooled bars and spread the melted chocolate on top. Let it set at room temperature before cutting into bars with a hot knife.

Recipe from Inside BruCrew Life

Mediterranean Cookies

I came across this recipe and I was very interested. I don’t find too many recipes with dates, and this recipe combined dates, coconut, and nuts, which sounded amazing. I cut this recipe in half, since the quantities listed here made a lot of cookies. Even a half recipe made about 3 dozen cookies.

This recipe called for walnuts, which makes sense as that is what you’d find in the Mediterranean, but I prefer pecans. Just use what you have! Coconut also varies a lot, as there is sweetened and unsweetened, larger and smaller shreds. I use unsweetened coconut, that is shredded very small. This is what is found in the UK, and I find that since it is dry to start with, it lasts longer.

These came together easily and I was really happy with how they looked when they came out of the oven. I let them cool and ate one, and something was…off. Something tasted stale. The oats? The nuts? The dates? I am quite sure the dates were too old. I remade them with newer dates and that made all the difference! With the proper ingredients, these cookies were lovely, and I even forgot to top them with a dusting of powdered sugar!

Mediterranean Cookies
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 eggs
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup chopped nuts (walnuts/pecans)
1 cup flaked coconut
8 ounces chopped dates
Powdered sugar

In a large mixer bowl, combine the butter, sugar, and brown sugar. Mix on medium until smooth. Add the vanilla, olive oil, and eggs and mix to combine. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and oats. With the mixer running on low, gradually add the flout/oat mixture and stir until combined.

Switch to a spatula and fold in the chopped nuts, coconut, and chopped dates, stirring until the ingredients are incorporated evenly throughout the dough. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 15 minutes.

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

Shape the dough into 1-1/2” balls and place on the prepared baking sheets. 

Bake for 10-12 minutes, until browned along the edges. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.

Recipe from South Your Mouth

Aggression Cookies

I came across these cookies, and I had a good laugh. Aggression cookies? How interesting. With a little research, I discovered that the idea of aggression cookies came from humorist Erma Bombeck, and this and similar recipes have been circulating for quite some time. The idea is that you simply add all the ingredients in a bowl, and then mash them together with your hands, thus getting out all of your aggression. 

This cookie is an oat cookie flavored with cinnamon and nutmeg. I have seen variations with added chocolate chips or dried fruit, but the base recipe is the same. I looked through the possible add-ins that I had in my kitchen, and I decided I would use crystallized ginger. Adding raisins or dried fruit can be troubling to some, and chocolate chips didn’t catch my fancy. Oats and ginger are a great combination anyway!

Unlike the advertised recipe, I didn’t use my hands to mix the dough as I made it in my mixer. I did find, however, that as I was shaping the cookies, I needed to knead the dough with my hands to keep it together, so the aggression idea works! These baked up well, spread just a little, which meant I shaped them as they came out of the oven. I baked the batches for slightly different times, and with these cookies it didn’t seem to make much of a difference. I loved the ease of these cookies and will have them in mind when I have a particularly bad day.

Aggression Cookies
1 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla 
2 cups rolled oats
½ cup diced crystallized ginger

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

Place all of the ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Using a mixer or clean hands, mix/knead the dough until the dough comes together and no loose oats or flour remains.

Shape the dough into 1-1/2” balls and place on the prepared baking sheets. Flatten the cookies slightly. Allow room between the cookies for the cookies to spread. 

Bake for about 10 minutes, until they are golden along the edges. The cookies will likely be misshapen; place a round cookie cutter around each cookie and swirl the cookie cutter around to shape the cookie. Allow the cookies to set on the baking sheet for at least 10 minutes to allow them to set fully.

Recipe from Southern Recipes

Crystallized Ginger Lemon Cookies

Summer is a challenge for baking, as not only is my kitchen awfully warm, but I also don’t have as many options to share my baking with others. Refrigerator cookies are very appropriate, since I can take a few minutes to make the dough, stick it in the refrigerator, and then bake them up when I have time. Having to simply slice the cookies and bake them up saves me from having to be in the kitchen too long.

This recipe started as one of the possibilities to use up a large batch of basic cookie dough. The original recipe makes enough dough to create four different cookies. Thankfully, I was able to pare down to one fourth of the dough. Some recipes make it nearly impossible to divide! I made the abbreviated amount of dough and then added the crystallized ginger and lemon zest, and you are done.

When I buy crystallized ginger, it is already chopped quite small (it’s called mini) but I still find it a bit tricky to evenly slice the cookies. A couple of the cookies were crumbly, and I had to piece them together, but that isn’t an issue with this type of cookie. Some cookies are a little thicker, some thinner, but I found that baking them around 12 minutes worked. Some are just slightly softer! These cookies have a lovely ginger flavor, perfect with a cup of tea.

Crystallized Ginger Lemon Cookies
½ cup butter, room temperature
75 grams sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla
150 grams flour
85 grams finely diced crystallized ginger 
Zest of 1 lemon
Additional sugar

In a large mixer bowl, combine the butter, sugar, and salt. Mix on medium until well combined, about 3 minutes. Add the egg yolk and vanilla and mix again on medium to combine. With the mixer running on low, add the flour. Once the flour has almost disappeared into the dough, add the crystallized ginger and lemon zest. 

Remove the dough from the mixing bowl and shape into a log about 2” in diameter. Roll in sugar and then wrap the dough log in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for several hours.

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet (or two) with a silicone baking mat. 

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and discard the plastic wrap. Slice the dough into 3/8” rounds and place on the prepared baking sheet(s).

Bake for 10-12 minutes, until the cookies are golden and the edges are set. Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe from A Spiced Life

Blueberry Muffin-Top Cookies

I got this cookbook a while ago, and as soon as I got it, I looked through and marked recipes that I was interested in making. There are lots and lots of recipes that I marked! The author of this book is Australian, which I know means that there will be a few differences in the recipes, but they aren’t too difficult to navigate. All of the recipes list weight measurements, and I tend to use those already. The book calls for vanilla paste and hazelnuts, so I stocked up on those.

I decided to make these Blueberry Muffin-Top cookies first. I made only one small change. The recipe called for fresh blueberries, but I know that the blueberries I get at the store are giant, and I knew that wouldn’t work for this recipe. I suppose I could find huckleberries (although not easily) but the easiest substitute was wild blueberries, which are small, but also frozen. Thankfully, since so many people make fruit smoothies nowadays, frozen wild blueberries are easy to find. 

I made up the dough, and the first batch, with very frozen berries, turned out great. As the berries warmed, the dough became increasing blue. It didn’t impact the taste at all, but they did get messy! I also used too many frozen berries, but that’s ok. You bake these cookies for a few minutes then add the crumb topping and finish baking. These came out great, although they looked different depending on the batch. No matter, the taste is excellent and they do taste a lot like a (skinny) blueberry muffin. I can’t wait to make more recipes from this book!

Blueberry Muffin-Top Cookies
210 grams flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
160 grams butter, room temperature
125 grams brown sugar
100 grams sugar
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla paste
Zest of 1 lemon
170 grams wild blueberries

110 grams flour
50 grams sugar
45 grams brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
70 grams butter, very soft

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In a large mixer bowl, combine the 160 grams of butter, brown sugar, sugar, egg, vanilla paste, and lemon zest. Beat on medium until combined. With the mixer running on low, gradually add the flour mixture, stirring until just combined. Fold in the blueberries with a spatula.

Make the crumb topping: combine the flour, sugar, brown sugar, and salt. Add the butter and mix with your fingertips until the mixture resembles crumbs. Set aside.

Shape the cookies into 30-gram portions and place on the prepared baking sheet. I placed 8 cookies per baking sheet, in case they spread. Bake for 5 minutes.
 
Remove the cookies after 5 minutes and sprinkle the cookies with the crumb topping. Bake for 10 additional minutes, until browned along the edges. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before removing them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe from Some of My Best Friends are Cookies by Emelia Jackson

Sopapilla Cheesecake Bars

I have had a streak lately of a few recipes that simply didn’t turn out the way that I had hoped. I was chatting with friends about this and one of them mentioned that it was encouraging that even someone with lots of experience even has days when things don’t work. That is absolutely true! I try my best to read through the recipe in advance and sometimes I pick up on potential issues, but it’s not a perfect process.

When the cookies I was making didn’t turn out, I had already planned these as a backup. (Yes, I did have some concerns about the first recipe.) They use mainly prepared ingredients, which isn’t my first choice, but comes in handy occasionally. This uses refrigerated crescent rolls, which are widely available in the states but not really anywhere else in the world. Perhaps pastry crust would work, but I haven’t tried that. 

I was able to get the crescent rolls to cover the pan with little problem, and while I could have sealed the seams better, it wasn’t an issue. I added the filling and then spread the remaining crescent rolls on a piece of parchment, otherwise getting the top on would be challenging. Topping with cinnamon sugar covers all potential issues! These were quick to make. My only issue was I only let the bars cool about an hour before cutting, which wasn’t nearly long enough. Make these, but make sure that you have plenty of time to cool the bars before serving. 

Sopapilla Cheesecake Bars
Two packages refrigerated crescent rolls
16 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla 
½ cup butter, melted
3/4 cup cinnamon sugar

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9” x 13” pan and set aside.

Roll the dough from one can of crescent rolls in a single layer in the bottom of the pan. Pinch together any seams to seal them shut. 

In a large mixer bowl, beat the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla on medium until combined. Spread the mixture over the bottom layer of dough.

Unroll the second roll of crescent dough onto a sheet of parchment paper and shape into a rectangle, pinching the seams to seal. Carefully transfer the top sheet of dough to the pan, covering the filling completely.

Pour/brush the melted butter over the top of the bars and then sprinkle evenly with cinnamon sugar. 

Bake for about 30 minutes, until golden. The filling will be somewhat jiggly, but that is expected. Allow to cool for several hours in the refrigerator before cutting into bars.

Recipe from The Domestic Rebel

Coffee Thumbprint Cookies

I had a work function and wanted to bring a cookie that highlighted a different flavor. I wasn’t too sure what that would actually be, but I was hopeful! I looked through recipes that I had already saved and came across these coffee cookies. That seemed interesting and didn’t call for anything too unusual. Coffee is very popular at work, although we also drink a lot of tea. 

These cookies are coffee-flavored and then are filled with caramel. The original recipe called for instant coffee, and I had instant espresso powder, which was stronger. After some searching, I decided that I would use two tablespoons of espresso powder instead of four tablespoons of instant coffee, and that was good. You can use any type of soft caramel, and I had some caramel bits on hand that I figured would work. It was nice to not have to unwrap a bunch of caramels!

These cookies came together will little issue, but I did add about 2 extra tablespoons of flour as the dough seemed soft. My kitchen is also warm, so I refrigerated the dough while the oven heated. I had no issues baking the cookies, and the caramel bits melted smoothly. The only issue I had, and this was minimal, is that you have to move quickly when filling the cookies with caramel. The caramel sets so fast, and by the time I filled the last couple of cookies, the caramel was very thick. These cookies have a strong coffee flavor, with just a hint of sweetness from the caramel.

Coffee Thumbprint Cookies
½ cup butter, room temperature
¼ cup sugar
½ cup packed brown sugar
1 large egg 
1 teaspoon vanilla 
2 tablespoons instant espresso powder
2 cups flour
¼ teaspoon salt
Additional sugar
5 ounces chewy caramels
2 tablespoons evaporated milk

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats. 

In a large mixer bowl, beat the butter, sugar, and brown sugar on medium until combined. Stir in the egg yolk and vanilla. Dissolve the espresso powder in 2 tablespoons of hot water, then add the coffee to the butter mixture. With the mixer running on low, gradually add the flour and salt.

Shape the dough into balls (about 20 grams each) and roll in sugar. Place on the prepared baking sheets and make a thumbprint/indentation in each cookie. 

Bake for 10-12 minutes, until set and then reshape the thumbprints/indentations in each cookie. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. 

Once the cookies are cool, make the filling: in a microwave-safe bowl, combine the caramels and evaporated milk. Heat in 30-second implements, stirring frequently, until the mixture is smooth. Fill the thumbprints/indentations with the caramel. Allow the caramel to set before serving.

Recipe from Simply Bake