Chocolate Euphoria Cookie Bars
from a cozy mystery novel by Joanne Fluke
Ingredients
- ΒΌ cup butter (one stick, 4 ounces, 1/4 pound)
- 2 cups chocolate wafer crumbs (or Oreo cookie crumbs) [Recipe calls for 1 1/2 cups, but that was not enough to make a layer in the 9x13 pan so I just crushed up some more Oreos]
- 1 cup (6 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 2 cups miniature marshmallows
- 1 can (14 ounces) condensed milk (NOT evaporated milk!) sweetened
- 1 cup (6 ounces) white chocolate chips (or vanilla chips)
- 2 cups Cocoa Puffs cereal (or any other chocolate crunchy cereal) I used chocolate Rice Crispies
- 1 cup (6 ounces) milk chocolate chips
Instructions
- Spray a 9-inch by 13-inch cake pan with Pam (or line it with heavy-duty foil and then spray it) and set it aside to wait for its yummy contents.
- Melt the butter in a small microwave-safe bowl on HIGH for 50 seconds.
- If you bought chocolate wafers, break them down into crumbs with your food processor or put them in a large, sealable plastic bag and crush them with a rolling pin. Measure out the chocolate wafer crumbs (or the Oreo cookie crumbs) and add them to the bowl with the melted butter.
- Stir the cookie crumbs and the butter until everything is moistened. (The resulting mixture will resemble wet, dark sand.)
- Spread the butter and cookie crumb mixture in the bottom of your cake pan and spread it out as evenly as you can.
- Pat it smooth with the palms of your impeccably clean hands or with the blade of a metal spatula.
- Sprinkle on the semi-sweet chocolate chips. Try to distribute them as evenly as possible.
- Arrange the miniature marshmallows on top of the chips as evenly as you can.
- Open the can of sweetened condensed milk and pour it over the top of the marshmallows as evenly as you can.
- Sprinkle the white chocolate chips on top, trying for an even distribution.
- Your goal is to get something of every ingredient in each cookie bar when you cut them.
- Measure out the Cocoa Puffs (or whatever chocolate cereal you used) and spread it out on top of the white chocolate chips. Again, try for an even distribution.
- Sprinkle the milk chocolate chips over the chocolate cereal as evenly as you can.
- Press everything in the pan down with the flat blade of a metal spatula or the bottom of a measuring cup. (If the cereal crunches a bit, that's okay.)
- Bake the Chocolate Euphoria Cookie Bars at 350 degrees F. for 20 to 25 minutes.
- Remove the cookie bars from the oven and cool them in the pan on a cold stovetop burner or on a wire rack.
- When the Chocolate Euphoria Cookie Bars reach room temperature, cut them into brownie-sized pieces right in the pan. Don't take them out unless you're going to eat them immediately.
- You can now refrigerate the cookie bars in their pan to set up firmly.
- If you don't cut the bars before you put them in the refrigerator, you may have a problem. They're very firm when they're chilled.When you're ready to serve, use a metal spatula to remove the cookie bars from the pan. No one will be able to resist.