Winter Wonder Cookie Bars

I found the Razzle Dazzle recipes website last Christmas season and printed out a ton of recipes from it! (Be warned - if you go here, you may need over an hour to spare!) This recipe has been at the back of my dessert file for the whole year and I finally decided to try it.

Oh my, I am glad I did. My mom said they "taste like they belong in a bakery" and my sister asked me where the "little bites of heaven came from". They are GOOD! But you must like white chocolate, because between the melted chocolate and butter and the chips swirled through these bars, it is the prominent taste.

The final result is a dense yet cakey bar FULL of goodies. The original recipe called for macadamia nuts but I opted for dried cranberries. You could certainly do both, either, or something different! Oh, and you can certainly buy equivalent amounts of chips as opposed to the baking chocolate. Seriously, make these soon - you won't regret it!

White Wonder Cookie Bars
from Razzle Dazzle Recipes
Makes 16 bars
12 ounces white chocolate
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate (or semi-sweet)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
10 tablespoons unsalted butter
3/4 cupwhite sugar
3 eggs
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 cup chopped macadamia nuts, toasted (or 1 cup dried cranberries)

Preheat the oven to 325° F. Grease one 9-inch square baking pan. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper and set aside.

Chop 1/2 of the white chocolate into very small pieces. Chop the remaining white chocolate and the bittersweet chocolate into large chunks, set aside. (If you are using chips there is no need to chop anything.)

Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Do not allow the butter to bubble or to color. Remove from the heat and add the finely chopped white chocolate. Do not stir the chocolate in, set aside.

Beat the sugar, eggs and vanilla together until thick and lemon colored, about 5 minutes. Lower the mixer speed and add the butter mixture. Mix just to blend. Add the flour mixture and mix just until the flour is mixed in. Use a rubber spatula to fold in the two chocolates and the nuts. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake until the brownies are just set, about 30 minutes (mine took 38 minutes). A toothpick inserted in the center should come out with moist crumbs still attached. As with all brownies it is better to underbake than to overbake. Allow to cool about 1 hour then cut into squares.