It's Finally Here! The Day We've Been Waiting for All Year!

Happy #NationalCookieDay!  It's Adventures in Cookie Baking Day 8!

Today's cookie isn't really a cookie, although you do bake it, so it's almost a cookie.  Cookie adjacent we can call it.  What is it?  A cookie bar that loads of people enjoy!

7 Layer Magic Cookie Bars!

Here is an up close picture of the 7-layer bars cooling.  You can't see it here, but several family members have already helped themselves to a piece.  A very gooey piece of the bars because the recipe hadn't cooled off and set yet.

If you like these you can make them as directed or swap out ingredients as you wish.

7 Layer Magic Cookie Bars (See cookies is in the title; ergo, these are a perfect fit for #NationalCookieDay)

Step 1: Preheat Oven to 350



2 1/2 cups of crushed graham crackers. (I couldn't find crushed graham crackers at the store and got tired of looking so I bought graham crackers and used a cheese grater to crush them.  It worked.

1 1/2 sticks melted butter

Mix above 2 ingredients and then press evenly in a 9x13 inch pan.

Pour 1 can of sweetened condensed milk over the cracker mix evenly-don't try to smooth out, just pour it over and leave it.

Next layer each of these in order:

1 1/2 cups of butterscotch morsels

1 1/2 cups of semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 1/2 cups of coconut flakes

1 cup of  walnuts

Place in a 350 degree oven for 23 minutes and then try to let cool completely before sampling.

You could swap the butterscotch for white chocolate chips  or peanut butter chips--you could add dried cherries or cranberries. You could use pecans or hazelnuts.  It's a very flexible recipe.

Happy #NationalCookieDay!

xoxo

Isn't it Swell? It's 2012!

Tomorrow begins a long awaited day.  The children finally return to school!  This has been the longest Christmas Break, or Winter Break if you prefer, ever. To be sure, we did do a ton during the break.  We drove down to North Carolina & Georgia to see my family. Then we caught a cold for the New Year, drove home and still had a few days left of break! The kids have spent the rest of their break, ahhh fighting.  Super glad they go back tomorrow.  Super. Glad.  Of course this is tempered by the fact that the kids have an early dismissal on Wed and are off of school on Friday --and Monday. 

What I don't think anyone can complain about is the amazing weather we've had up here.  It's a Christmas dream come true for me, one who doesn't care for winter.  I'm not going to focus on the inevitable below zero temps to come.  Is it too early to countdown to Spring? --the days are getting longer! Only a little over a month and it will stop being dark out at 5pm.  WooHoo!

While we were driving home from our trip, to pass the time I was thinking up a motto for me for 2012.  I don't know that much rhymes with twelve, so my rhymes are a bit off.  Here is what I came up with:

Things are gonna gell in 2012!
Don't Dwell in 2012!
Life is Swell in 2012!

or What the Hell, it's 2012!