How To: Prepare a Brownie Pan

I included this tutorial for preparing an 8X8 brownie pan in my Mini Cadbury Egg Blondies post, but this tip is so useful I think it deserves its own post. You can use this method for blondies, brownies, and bar cookies. It adds a little more time to your recipe preparation, but I promise it's worth the extra step. No more slicing through brownies while holding your knife at an awkward angle. No wasted, crumbled pieces because the first few brownies are impossible to get out of the pan in one piece! Simply line, lift, slice, and serve.

**You may read this and think, "What a waste of tin foil!" Feel free to reuse the foil more than once. I would not, however reuse the parchment paper. This tip works best on 8X8 pans, but will work well for a 9X9 as well. Any larger and you risk crumbling when lifting out of the pan.** 

Cut an 8x8 square of parchment paper. You can measure using a ruler or simply trace the bottom of your baking dish.

Spray the dish with cooking spray. Lay two long strips of aluminum foil in the pan, forming an X. I tear a long sheet of aluminum foil, cut it in half, then fold each half into thirds. This forms two reinforced strips. Leave a few inches of foil hanging off the sides to create "handles."

Lay the 8x8 parchment paper square over the foil. Spray the parchment with cooking spray. This parchment/foil apparatus will allow you to lift the entire batch of blondies, brownies, or bar cookies out of the pan (after they are baked and cooled), making it very easy to cut them into neat, even squares.

When cool, use the aluminum foil "handles" to lift blondies, bar cookies, or brownies out of the pan.

Transfer to a cutting board to slice...and sample:)

White Chocolate Cranberry Bars

During this holiday season, I needed a high yield dessert recipe for a Christmas potluck. I'd had my fill of pumpkin pie and all things chocolate, so I choose to bake my take on Starbuck's seasonal Cranberry Bliss Bars. These fly off the shelves at the coffee shop each year and mine were a huge hit at my potluck. The distinct flavors and textures of the sweet, crunchy, red cranberries, tangy orange zest, and fragrant yellow crystallized ginger are all tied together by the creamy white chocolate in this fall brownie-like dessert.

Note: buy your crystallized, or candied ginger at an Asian market. At Smith's 2 ounces costs $10.99. I got mine for $3.99 for 10 oz at my nearby Asian market. Do not panic if you can't use it immediately. When stored in an air tight container, crystallized ginger has a 2 year shelf life.

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and spray a 9x13" baking pan with cooking spray. I like Baker's Joy because it takes care of the buttering AND the flouring of your dish for you!

 

Cream your butter and brown sugar together until light and fluffy 2-3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, scraping the sides of the bowl after each addition.

 

Add vanilla and minced crystallized ginger. Mix to combine. Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl.

 

Slowly add in increments the dry ingredients to butter and sugar mixture with the mixer on low speed. Scrape the bowl. Add white chocolate chips and chopped craisins and mix by hand until just combined.

 

Evenly spread batter into prepared baking dish. Bake 20-25 minutes until the edges look like.....

This! Golden brown. Let cool completely before frosting.

 

While the bars cool, prepare the frosting. Beat cream cheese and powdered sugar while gradually adding lemon juice, 1 tsp. at a time. Add vanilla extract and orange zest and beat until combined.

The frosting should be thick like this. Set frosting aside while you prepare the white chocolate drizzle.

Place shortening and white chocolate chips in a heat proof bowl over a saucepan filled with 1 inch of simmering water.

This is called a double boiler. (It's a good technique to be familiar with, but if you're short on time, melt the chocolate and shortening in the microwave)

Allow to melt slightly on the double boiler, then whisk until smooth. Pour into a Ziploc bag and set aside.

Time to build! Spread frosting evenly on cooled bars.

Sprinkle with chopped craisins.

Snip one corner of the Ziploc bag with the white chocolate drizzle in it and drizzle over bars in a criss cross pattern. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour. I like to cut mine into triangles. Make 5 vertical slices and 3 horizontal slices. This gives you 24 bars. You can stop here, or do what I do and make a diagonal slice through each bar creating 2 triangles. This gives you 48, three-bite triangle portions.

Aren't the triangles cute? I think so. I also think if you are able to wait a full calendar year between gnoshing on these fall treats you are a superstar. I'll be making these in the spring, summer, and winter as well!

I had to post this. I let my dog sample the batter while I was cleaning up. She approves!

White Chocolate Cranberry Bars 

Recipe adapted from Starbucks Cranberry Bliss Bars by Todd Wilbur

Ingredients:

Bars:
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups packed brown sugar
3 eggs
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 T crystallized ginger, minced
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. fine salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/4 cups craisins, chopped
3/4 cups white chocolate chips

Frosting:
4 oz. cream cheese at room temperature
3 cups powdered sugar
4 tsp. lemon juice
3 tsp. orange zest
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cups craisins, chopped

White Chocolate Drizzle:
3/4 cups white chocolate chips
2 tsp. shortening

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray a 9x13" baking dish with cooking spray. In a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar until light 2-3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, scraping the bowl between each addition with a rubber spatula. Add vanilla extract and crystallized ginger and mix to combine.

In a separate bowl whisk flour, baking powder, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture to the butter and sugar mixture gradually until just combined. Scrape the bowl, incorporating any remaining flour into the batter. Mix white chocolate chips and craisins into batter by hand.

Evenly spread batter into prepared dish. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the edges are lightly golden brown. Let cool completely before frosting.

While bars are cooling, prepare the frosting. In a standing mixer with a paddle attachment, beat cream cheese and powdered sugar, adding lemon juice 1 tsp. at a time to reach thick frosting consistency. Add orange zest and vanilla extract and beat. Set aside.

In a double boiler, prepare the white chocolate drizzle. Melt white chocolate chips and shortening, whisking to combine thoroughly. Pour into Ziploc bag and set aside.

Time to build! Spread on top of cooled bars. Sprinkle the 1/4 cups chopped craisins evenly on top of the frosted bars. Make a small snip in one corner of the ziploc bag with the white chocolate drizzle in it. Drizzle over the bars in a criss cross pattern. Refrigerate bars for at least 1 hour before slicing. (or if you're impatient, pop them into the freezer for 30 minutes to let the frosting set.) Makes 24 bars or 48 triangle slices.

Mini Cadbury Egg Blondies

My birthday is in December. I have heard lots of December babies lament the fact that their special day is overshadowed by Christmas, but I think it's awesome. Any present on my wishlist I do not receive for my birthday inevitably ends up beneath my tree come Christmas morning. It's instant gratification and I love it. And because my birthday and Christmas fall in the same month, I go crazy with decorating. Everything inside and outside of my house must scream "THIS MONTH IS SPECIAL!" So, this year just before my birthday I wandered into Tai Pan to find something festive and not too expensive when I saw an eyesore of a Valentine's Day display. It was mid-December and we were already being sold to for February. This impatient marketing scheme happens all the time! You know, the August Halloween displays, the plastic Christmas tree aisles in October (How does that make Thanksgiving feel??), and happening in a supermarket near you, Easter Candy in February.

That is the long explanation as to why I have mini Cadbury eggs in my post. I don't particularly enjoy them right out of the bag, but baked in a blondie, now that's a different story! For those of you who don't know, blondies are brownies without the chocolate. They have the same chewy, dense texture, and like brownies, they are amazing with any mix-in imaginable. Dark chocolate peppermint blondies, coconut butterscotch, peanut butter white chocolate, the flavor possibilities are endless!

Today, I choose these. I love the color they give the blondies. You have a light caramel colored square with little pops of soft pastel peeking out at you. Very cute. Very irresistible.

This recipe can be made in one saucepan, yes saucepan, and does not require a stand mixer. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Cut an 8x8 square of parchment paper. You can measure using a ruler or just trace the bottom of your baking dish.

Spray the 8x8 baking dish with cooking spray. Lay two long strips of aluminum foil in the pan, forming an X. I tear a long sheet of aluminum foil, cut it in half, then fold each half into thirds. This forms two reinforced strips. Leave a few inches of foil hanging off the sides to create "handles."

Lay the 8x8 parchment paper square over the foil. Spray the parchment with cooking spray. This parchment/foil apparatus will allow you to lift the entire batch of blondies out of the pan after they are baked and cooled, making it very easy to cut them into neat, even squares.

Now, on to the blondies! In a medium saucepan over low heat, gently heat the butter until it is almost completely melted. Remove from heat and whisk until the butter is completely melted. Let cool slightly.

While you wait for the butter to cool, spread your cup of Cadbury eggs onto a cutting board and chop!

They should look like this. Uneven, crushed chocolate candies. Sample a few if you wish. I did...

 

Now that the butter has cooled down, add brown sugar and whisk until smooth. Whisk in vanilla and egg until batter is smooth and glossy.

Using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, stir in flour and salt until just combined. DO NOT overmix.

Fold in the Cadbury egg pieces. The batter will be thick, almost like cookie dough.

Press the blondie batter into the prepared pan and bake for 22-25 minutes.

The edges of the blondies will be golden brown and the center should be set. Let cool completely.

When cool, use the aluminum foil "handles" to lift blondies out of the pan. Cool right? No digging blondies out of the pan for you!

What's that? A corner of my blondies is missing? That's strange....Anyway, I like to cut my blondies into strips, then into small squares.

These are chewy bites of crunchy, chocolatey perfection! 

Mini Cadbury Egg Blondies 

recipe adapted from Smitten Kitchen 

Ingredients:

1 stick unsalted butter, melted
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup mini Cadbury eggs, roughly chopped 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray an 8x8 baking dish with cooking spray, line with aluminum foil and parchment paper (see above). Spray parchment paper with cooking spray.

In a medium saucepan over low heat, gently heat the butter until almost melted. Remove pan from heat and whisk butter to melt completely. Let cool slightly. Meanwhile, roughly chop the Cadbury eggs.

Whisk the brown sugar into the cooled, melted butter until smooth. Whisk in vanilla and egg. Using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, stir in flour and salt until just combined. Fold in the Cadbury egg pieces. Press blondie batter into prepared baking dish.

Bake for 22-25 minutes or until golden brown around the edges and set in the middle. Let cool completely, then use aluminum foil "handles" to lift blondies completely out of pan. Cut into small squares and serve.