Brown Bag or After School Treat

Since these are simply spread in a pan, baked, and cut into serving pieces, bars cookies are the quickest and most easily produced cookies. Bake them in greased pans at least 1 ½ inches deep. Pay close attention to the size of the pan called for in each recipe—variations will throw off the baking time and the thickness of the batter in the pan affects texture. A too-large pan will give a dry, brittle result. A pan smaller than indicated in the recipes will give a cakey result—not a chewy one. Bars can be left plain, or topped with nuts, powdered sugar, or icing; and cut into squares, from very small to very large, or sliced into narrow strips.

For easy removal after baking, line the pan with greased foil, leaving enough overhang on two opposite sides or ends to use as handles. The cooled slab can be lifted from the pan to a board for cutting, making cleanup easy as well. Cool bars completely before cutting with a knife into bars, squares, or triangles. To prepare filled bars, line a 13 x 9-inch pan with two-thirds of the dough, spread the filling over it and cover the filling with the remaining dough. We suggest using muffin tins for individual servings or pie pans to make larger, festive rounds to be the base for ice cream.
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