Somebody had better come over here and eat these bars before I finish the whole pan. I cannot behave with these lying around.
I saw these on Pinterest and began salivating immediately. You know how there are some recipes you pin for later, and some that just prompt you to run into the kitchen, forage through your pantry and see if you can make them right now? That's what happened here. And I'm not sorry.
But these are dangerous. A buttery shortbread crust is topped with a layer of dark chocolate, dotted with jam and strawberries (I'll use more next time), sprinkled with sugar, baked and then garnished with sea salt. (I just had to add the sea salt.) What's not to love?
These are totally customizable, too. I didn't have strawberry jam, so I used blackberry fruit spread. (I told you I had to have these, pronto.) I can see varying the flavors of jam and the fruit itself. Raspberries, peaches, blackberries, oh my!
Just be sure to let the pan cool completely before cutting and serving these bars. That chocolate layer was hot! Now that it's the following day, everything has set nicely, and the flavors are out of this world. I am officially addicted to these Chocolate-Strawberry Cookie Bars.
Recipe Source: Adapted from Roxana's Home Baking
P.S. You may also enjoy these raspberry brownies!
Chocolate-Strawberry Cookie Bars
Ingredients
- 1 cup 16 tablespoons salted butter (at room temperature)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup sugar
- ¾ cup bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 1 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
- ½ cup strawberry, blackberry or raspberry jam (or fruit spread)
- 16 ounces strawberries (halved)
- 1 tablespoon sugar (to sprinkle on top)
- sea salt (to sprinkle on top)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large or medium mixing bowl, beat butter until creamy. Add the sugar and flour. Mix until blended and the dough is crumbly.
- With floured hands, press the dough into a 9x13 pan. Bake crust for 15 minutes, or until the edges are just starting to become golden. (Don't overbake.)
- When the crust has a few minutes left to bake, heat the condensed milk in a small sauce pan on medium. Add the chocolate chips and cocoa and stir until melted.
- Spread the chocolate filling evenly over the hot crust. Use a teaspoon to dot the jam or fruit spread over the chocolate. Top with the strawberries and sprinkle with sugar.
- Bake for another 27-30 minutes. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt. Let cool completely before cutting into bars. The bars taste best when cooled and the jam is set.
Nutrition
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