Everything Bars

Name: Everything Bars
Total time: PT-496085H26M26S
Ingredients: 8 tablespoons (1 stick) softened butter, plus about 1 tablespoon for greasing the pan; 1 cup sugar; 2 eggs; 1 teaspoon vanilla extract; 1 cup Bob’s Red Mill whole wheat flour; 1/2 cups Bob’s Red Mill unsweetened shredded coconut; 1/2 cup chocolate chips or chopped chocolate (any kind; about 3 ounces); 1/2 cup Rancho Meladuco dates, chopped (6 to 8 dates); 1/4 cup chopped nuts (like pistachios, peanuts, or cashews); 1/2 teaspoon baking soda; 1/4 teaspoon salt

Prevent your screen from going dark

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Makes 16 to 25 bars, depending on how big you want them 1x

Time 1 hour, with softened butter

Units Scale

Ingredients

8 tablespoons (1 stick) softened butter, plus about 1 tablespoon for greasing the pan
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup Bob’s Red Mill whole wheat flour
1/2 cups Bob’s Red Mill unsweetened shredded coconut
1/2 cup chocolate chips or chopped chocolate (any kind; about 3 ounces)
1/2 cup Rancho Meladuco dates, chopped (6 to 8 dates)
1/4 cup chopped nuts (like pistachios, peanuts, or cashews)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt

Instructions

Before you’re ready to bake, take the butter out of the fridge and let it soften for about an hour. Make sure all the other ingredients are ready to go. Heat the oven to 350°F. Grease an 8- or 9-inch square baking pan or dish with the tablespoon of extra butter.
Put the stick of softened butter in a large bowl with the sugar and eggs. Use an electric mixer or whisk to beat the ingredients into a creamy, smooth mixture. (If the butter or eggs are cold you might have some tiny lumps, but that’s fine.) This will take 1 or 2 minutes with the mixer or about 3 minutes by hand. Stop once or twice and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a soft spatula as you work.
To the same bowl, add the vanilla, flour, coconut, chocolate chips, dates, nuts, baking soda, and salt. Stir with the soft spatula until there are no more streaks and everything comes together in a stiff batter.
Spread the batter into the prepared baking pan or dish. Use the soft spatula to push the batter into the corners and scrape every last bit from the bowl. Bake until the edges turn golden and the center is no longer jiggly when you shake the pan, 35 to 40 minutes. Let the bars cool completely in the pan or dish before cutting into squares or rectangles. Store in an airtight container for a couple days or refrigerate for up to a week.

— Recipe developed by The Bittman Project for Bob’s Red Mill to celebrate the publication of How to Cook Everything Kids

Recipe variations

Nothing Bars
If you do this, you’ll have “blondies,” which are like brownies without chocolate. Use only 1 egg, not 2, and forget the coconut, chocolate chips, dates, nuts in Step 3 but add the vanilla, flour, soda, and salt. These will only take 25 to 30 minutes to finish baking.

Something Bars
Prepare the variation for Nothing Bars. Then pick one thing to stir in before baking – either the coconut, chocolate chips, dates, or nuts.