I had a bad case of last-minute munchies this evening (actually, I am still dealing with that, since my satisfaction is still in the oven). I had made some grain-filled chocolate cookies the other day for a party we were going to, and we came home with quite a few left over. The rest of my family have been eating them, and I wanted a cookie, but didn’t want to subject myself (or my family) to me, post-grain consumption. It’s not pretty.
(I have been cheating a bit lately, having grain here, sugar there. This is probably the reason for the bad cravings I have been dealing with. I need to be better and stick with my grain-free and low-sugar stuff.)
So I wanted a cookie. An easy cookie, that I could throw together in a few minutes and eat a few minutes later. I pulled up this recipe that I had seen a few days ago, and decided to give it a spin. I used butter instead of macadamia nut oil, and honey. We’ll see how they turn out. They have been baking for at least 10 minutes (quite a bit longer than the recipe directs).
I know I said I would post about the Milky Way Bars, but due to some unforeseen circumstances, I was unable to start the bars until almost dinner time on Thursday, so I didn’t post, since they were only 2/3rds of the way done.
Here’s the run down of what I did:
I found this recipe for “Silky Way Bars,” just a homemade version of Milky Ways. I used it as my basis for creating the bars. I then found this recipe for marshmallows and marshmallow cream. I made it according to the directions, except that I used coconut sugar instead of stevia, and I didn’t use marshmallow flavoring oil. (I also forgot to add the vanilla, but I would definitely add that next time. This is a common occurrence with me.) Once it was whipped, I added the 12 oz. of melted chocolate chips. I then poured this mixture into a well-greased 8×8 pan (next time I will just line the pan with parchment paper – this will make the removal of the bars just that much easier). Then I put it into the fridge until it was solid.
All hardened, and ready for the next layer
They are quite firm, and very fun to poke
It seemed to pull away from the sides quite easily
Meanwhile, I whipped up a half-batch of the same caramel that I used for the Twix bars (leave a comment if you need the recipe). Actually, I whipped up two half-batches because I burned the first batch. I only cooked it until it registered 238*F, instead of 248*F, because it heat up too fast after that. This resulted in runnier caramel, but not that bad. Again, add this to your pan of marshmallow/chocolate mixture, and put back into the fridge until hardened (for me, this was overnight).
With the hardened caramel
The next day I sliced the bars, then stuck them back into the fridge to harden for awhile.
All sliced
Later in the day, I melted and tempered some chocolate. (Tempering is awesome, as it makes the finished product not as prone to melt. Usually home-dipped chocolate things melt as soon as you touch them. If you temper the chocolate, they don’t melt as easily. It isn’t that difficult to do, but does require patience and a good food thermometer.) The next step was eating all the melted chocolate with a spoon dipping the bars and sticking them in the freezer to cool. Ta da!
(Again, I didn’t take a picture of the finished product. They looked basically the same as the Twix bars, and you can see a picture of them here.)
My review: I thought they were pretty good, but the marshmallow part was way too rubbery for my taste. If I make them again, I will only use 2 packages of plain gelatin in the marshmallow cream instead of 3. I took them to church, and a whole bunch of people tried them, and they all liked them. So whatever you want – just the way they are, they are about the consistency of a regular marshmallow, maybe a bit firmer. If you want them a bit softer, try only 2 packages of gelatin – and let me know how it turns out!
As for the chocolate chip cookies that I just made – I am not impressed. I baked them for about 13 minutes or so, but they were still raw in the center. They have an almond-flour flavor, which may not bother everyone, but it does bother me. I’ll have to figure out a good chocolate chip cookie recipe. (We have an AMAZING regular chocolate chip cookie recipe, if I do say so myself, which we got from ATK, which I should be able to make to being grain-free.)
I need to take a break from making desserts – I have been getting a bit crazy with them lately. I am going to try to make more savory dishes (basically, anything that isn’t dessert). Mom picked up a few paleo cookbooks for me at the library, and I am looking forward to trying some of the recipes. Wow, some of the recipes are SO creative!
On a completely different note: I am so happy – our Cowgirl Dirt order came today (well, most of it did – one thing was backordered). I chose a few new eye shadow samples, and I am enjoying one right now, and looking forward to the others. I also just tried their mascara, and I LOVE IT.
Have a lovely evening!
~Allison
A Window Into My World 
