Chocolate Chip Caramel Cookie Bars

Anyone who knows me knows I have a terrible sweet tooth.  That, combined with my love of baking and my genetic predisposition towards chubbiness means I am in a constant battle against those malevolent little creatures who sew your clothes tighter at night - calories.  I have lost, and gained back, the same 30 pounds four times in the last 15 years, and since I am currently on the wrong side of that cycle, I'm trying very hard to resist making all the delectable dessert recipes I've been accumulating on Pinterest for the last several years.  All that self control came to a screeching halt a few days ago, though, when someone posted one of those video recipes on Facebook and I was subjected to a vision of molten caramel flowing over chocolate chip cookie dough while I was innocently browsing my newsfeed looking at cat pictures.  My resistance instantly crumbled and I soon found myself in the kitchen making these bars.  OMG, they were SO worth it!  I didn't look at the calorie count on these until just now (it's even worse than I imagined) because I agree with the adage that if you know how many calories are in your dessert you're eating it wrong.  These are definitely not diet-friendly in any way, but they were so amazing I don't regret making them one bit.  I did, however, send 3/4 of them with my husband and daughter to share with their classmates and coworkers, and although I wish I still had some left, it's probably for the best that I don't because I would be eating every last one of them myself!

Chocolate Chip Caramel Cookie Bars

Prep time: 10 min Bake time: 30 min
serves 24

2 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips (I normally prefer milk chocolate, but these bars are so rich that I think semi-sweet or a combination is best)

5 oz evaporated milk
1 bag (14 oz) caramels
1/2 c. peanut butter

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9 x 13 inch pan.

Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, sugar, brown sugar and vanilla in a large mixing bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually mix in flour mixture. Stir in chocolate chips.

Spread half of cookie dough into the prepared pan. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Remove from oven.

While the cookie dough is baking, melt caramels and evaporated milk in a double boiler. Add peanut butter after caramels are melted. Melt thoroughly. Spread over baked cookie dough base.
With the remaining cookie dough, drop by spoonfuls on top of the caramel mixture.
Bake for 15-20 minutes or until light golden brown.

340 calories per serving.  Click here for more nutritional info and shopping list!

French Onion Cheese Toast

I've had this recipe saved for more than a year but I never got around to making it because the prep time is so long! If you haven't figured it out yet, I'm into instant gratification. I don't want to slave over the stove for hours. Very few foods are worth all that! But my husband LOVES sautéed onions and I love cheesy bread, so I finally decided to break down and make this.

I AM SO GLAD!!!! This was so freakin' delicious. The onions were AMAZING. I lost count of the number of times my husband said something along the lines of "this is so good." And making it really wasn't that bad--most of the prep time was hands-off.  You could probably even make the onions ahead of time and then bake this when you're ready. This would be great as a party appetizer, but we had it as a side dish with steak and it was perfect. I couldn't find Gruyere or Fontina cheese at Wally World today, so I just used some mozzarella and parmesan, but the fancy cheese might've been better. Hard to imagine it could get much better, though!

French Onion Cheese Toast

Prep time: 90 min Bake time:15 min
Serves 16

3 Tbs butter
3 onions, peeled and thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
3 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves only
1 Tbs sugar
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper
1/2 Tbs balsamic vinegar
1 loaf french bread, sliced 1 inch thick
2 cups Gruyère or Fontina cheese, shredded

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions, garlic and thyme leaves and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Lower heat to medium low, cover and cook for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Add sugar, kosher salt and pepper and cook for 10 minutes.

Add balsamic vinegar and cook for another 10 minutes or until onions are caramelized.

Preheat oven to 400°F.
Place bread slices on a baking sheet. Sprinkle evenly with shredded cheese then spoon caramelized onion on top.  Bake for 10-15 minutes or until cheese has melted and bread turns golden brown.

Garnish with extra thyme leaves if desired.  Serve immediately.

100 calories per serving.  Click here for more nutritional info and shopping list!