These rich cookie bars are so simple to make and you can vary the toppings to suit your family tastes.  Just add your own magic to this very old recipe for Magic Cookie Bars.  Instead of coconut flakes, add dried cranberries, chopped figs or dates.  Grated orange zest and a few grinds of black pepper are super delicious with chocolate chips and shaved almonds.  The sweetened condensed milk caramelizes in the baking and gives them a warm golden brown top.  Use pecans, walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts or try pistachio nuts with caramel chips or chocolate mint chips.  Add a pinch of cayenne pepper for a Mexican flare.  

Just start with graham cracker crumbs on the bottom and top everything with sweetened condensed milk before baking.  The ingredients in the middle are all your choice.  There won’t be one left to put in a cookie jar after the family starts into them.

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ cup graham cracker crumbs
• ½ cup melted butter
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup chopped hazelnuts (toasting and removing skins is optional)
• 1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Line a 9×13 inch baking pan with parchment paper.
3. Mix graham cracker crumbs with melted butter and pat into prepared baking pan.
4. In a bowl, mix chocolate chips, and hazelnuts.
5. Spread mixture over graham cracker crust evenly. With a piece of parchment paper or plastic wrap on top, press down on chocolate chip mixture. Remove paper.
6. Pour sweetened condensed milk over the entire surface to cover completely.
7. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown and set.
8. Remove from oven. Invert pan over a cake rack, remove parchment paper, invert again.
9. When completely cooled cut into 3×2 inch bars. Store in an air-tight container at room temperature.

You can double or triple the applesauce recipe and freeze or can the leftovers for other uses.  

Apple sauce cake can be made in a loaf pan, flat rectangle pan or muffin tins.  Adjust baking time accordingly.

More apple recipes tomorrow:  Crock Pot Apple Butter and Apple Muffins

Ingredients for Microwave Apple Sauce:

• 8 apples, Jonathan, Winesap or Granny Smith
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp Butter
• 3 Tbsp honey

Method:

1. Peel, core and chop apples.  Place in microwave safe dish with a cover.
2. Add lemon juice, butter and honey.  Toss. 
3. Cover with lid partially so steam can escape.  Cook on high for 8-10 minutes, stirring once.
4. Blend or mash and use in the following recipe for Hot Apple Sauce Cake.

Ingredients for Hot Apple Sauce Cake:

• 2-1/4 cup Hot applesauce
• 1 cup butter
• 2 cups sugar
• 3 cups flour
• 1 Tbsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp allspice
• 3/4 cup pecans
• 1 cup raisins

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.  Grease and flour a 9-inch bundt pan.
2. Mix all ingredients together.  Pour into prepared pan.
3. Bake 50-55 minutes or until tests done.
4. Cool 5 minutes and remove from pan.
5. Serve warm with topping of choice. 

 Note:  Nuts and raisins are optional.

Banana Cake was the second best selling dessert at Coco’s, my restaurant in Tonga, surpassed only by my Perfect Chocolate Cake. I made this cake in huge sheets for putu’s (funerals)and pola’s (feasts). Large round layered cakes decorated with fresh flowers and whipped cream were made for birthdays and other celebrations.

Polynesians celebrate the 1st birthday and 21st birthday with much fan fare, going to enormous expense to put on a feast for hundreds of people and there is always a representative of the royal family in attendance as well. Young girls dance the Tala’lunga (a traditional dance with hands and facial expressions) at these affairs. Their costumes are elaborate wrap-around sheets of hammered mulberry bark, called tapa cloth, decorated with seeds, leaves and feathers. Guests show their appreciation by slapping paper money onto the dancers’ arms which have been slathered with coconut oil. The money is then given to the royal family as tribute for them coming to the festivities. Odd, in our estimation, that the money is not given to the guest of honor or the hosts. At any rate, there is much ceremony and speeches during the eating of the meal, cutting the cake and distributing the largess.

Everyone will enjoy this cake, even without the fan fare.

Ingredients for 2 layers, 9-inch round:

• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 eggs, separated
• 2 medium bananas mashed
• 1 tsp vanilla, or 1/2 tsp vanilla and 1/2 tsp banana essence
• 2 cups flour
• 1 tsp soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 plain yogurt or sour milk
• 1 recipe banana pudding filling (recipe given below)
• 2 cups whipped cream with 1 tsp vanilla and 2 Tbsp powdered sugar

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Line 2 baking pans with parchment paper, butter and dust evenly with flour.
2. Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
3. Add egg yolks, bananas, and vanilla. Mix until well combined.
4. Beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Set aside.
5. Sift flour, soda and salt together. Add to creamed mixture alternately with the yogurt. Note: if weather is very dry, additional yogurt may be needed.
6. Immediately fold egg whites into batter. Pour batter into prepared pans.
7. Bake for 45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Transfer cakes to cooling rack for 5 minutes. Remove cakes from pans and cool completely.
8. Fill with banana pudding between layers. (recipe given below)
9. Cover top and sides with whipped cream. Use a star tip and piping bag to decorate top and bottom edges if desired.
10. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Ingredients for Banana Pudding:

• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3 Tbsp cornstarch
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 2 egg yolks, beaten slightly
• 1 tsp vanilla, or banana essence or banana liqueur
• 1 large ripe banana, mashed smooth
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice

Method:

1. In a heavy bottom sauce pan over medium high heat, place sugar, cornstarch and salt.
2. Slowly add milk whisking constantly until smooth.
3. Temper the eggs with 1/2 cup of hot milk mixture and return to sauce pan. Cook a few minutes more until custard thickens and coats the back of a wooden spoon.
4. Remove from heat. Cool to room temperature. Add banana and lemon juice.
5. Cover top of pudding with plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator.
6. Use to fill between layers of cake.

The original recipe for chocolate globs appeared in Maida Heatter’s   book of Great Chocolate Desserts, published in 1980.  Maida Heatter is a three time winner of the James Beard Award and was inducted into the Chocolateria Magazine’s Hall of Fame.  She is known as “The Queen of Desserts” and her specialty is chocolate.   Maida’s cream filled chocolate cookies (chocolate globs) was the inspiration for the Chocolate Glob cookies published in the SoHo Charcuterie Cookbook.  Sally Schneider, author of The Improvisational Cook, created her recipe for an elegant Essential Chocolate Cake from the chocolate glob recipe in the SoHo Charcuterie Cookbook.  Several TV personalities such as Ina Garten and Paula Deen have also developed decadent brownies and yummy chocolate globs based on the recipe from the SoHo Charcuterie Cookbook.

The impetus for creating amazing recipes is virtual necessity.  The cook starts with an idea, takes stock of the ingredients on-hand and improvises.  In baking, this could be substituting almond extract for vanilla extract, using yogurt instead of cream, or adding dried herbs and spices to a chocolate batter.   Experimentation or accident can result in dynamic combinations of flavors and textures that awaken taste buds and turn ordinary into extraordinary fare. 

The recipe given here is based on Ina Garten’s Outrageous Chocolate Brownies, Barefoot Contessa Cookbook, Copyright 1999.  Everyone loves rich moist chocolate gooey brownies.  The addition of Kahlua and cayenne pepper give these brownies a little kick.  They’re perfect for a piñata party or a coffee break with your favorite espresso or French press brew.

Ingredients

• 1 lb unsalted butter
• 1 lb plus 12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips, divided
• 6 ounces unsweetened chocolate
• 6 extra-large eggs
• 3 Tbsp Kahlua (or coffee liqueur of your choice)
• ½ tsp almond extract
• 2 1/4 cups sugar
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp sea salt
• Pinch of cayenne powder
• 3 cups chopped walnuts (or nuts of your choice)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 13 x 18 x 1-1/2 inch sheet pan.
2. Melt together the butter, 1 lb. chocolate chips, and unsweetened chocolate on top of a double boiler. Cool slightly.
3. Stir together the eggs, Kahlua, almond and sugar. Stir in the warm chocolate mixture and cool to room temperature.
4. Stir together 1 cup of the flour, baking powder, salt and cayenne. Add to cooled chocolate mixture.
5. Toss the walnuts and 12 ounces of chocolate chips with 1/4 cup flour to coat. Fold into the chocolate batter. Pour batter into prepared pan.
6. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until tester just comes out clean. Do not over-bake!
7. Cool thoroughly and chill in refrigerate before cutting into squares.

Ingredients:

• 2 1/3 cups Bisquick
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 egg
• 2/3 cup plain yogurt
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1/2 cup raspberry jam

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 400° F.  Grease a 9-inch square baking tin.
2. Mix together Bisquick, sugar, and cinnamon.  Reserve 1/2 cup.
3. Mix together egg, yogurt, and milk.
4. Stir wet mix into dry mix just until dry mix is moistened.
5. Pour half the batter into prepared baking tin.
6. Sprinkle half the reserved dry mix over top.  This will prevent jam from sinking to bottom of cake.
7. Stir the jam and spoon over top.
8. Top with remaining batter, sprinkle with remaining dry mix, top with almonds or nuts of your choice.
9. Bake for 25 minutes or until tester comes out dry.