A "Magical" Cookie Bar

Randy is the magician at our house.  He was bitten by the magic bug after we saw a Siegfried and Roy magic show in Las Vegas on a trip to celebrate our 10th anniversary more than 20 years ago. After tigers appeared in boxes about 6 feet from us during that show, he was intrigued enough to come home and check out books from the library. He uses magic for children's sermons at church and has taught a generation of 4-Hers the "tricks" of the trade. (And, honestly, golf is now the hobby of choice these days - when he doesn't have a broken wrist, that is.)

But when I saw this recipe for Butterscotch Bars with Chocolate and Disappearing Marshmallows on the blog, A Farm Girl's Dabbles, I thought it was the perfect treat for my amateur magician. Randy shouldn't be the only one in the family who can make things disappear. As long as the marshmallows were melting into some butterscotch and chocolate cookie dough, I knew that I could make these disappear quickly by packing them in lunches to the field.

With too many tasks on the to-do list, a bar cookie is a quick and easy way to get a sweet treat done with just a small investment of time. And even though they take only a little time, these Butterscotch Bars with Chocolate and Disappearing Marshmallows have great big taste appeal. 

I'll bet they disappear at your house, too, whether you're making them for another football weekend, packaging them up for homemade Halloween treats or taking them to a fundraiser bake sale.

Butterscotch Bars 

with Chocolate and Disappearing Marshmallows

From A Farm Girl's Dabbles blog

1 cup butterscotch chips
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 1/2 cups mini marshmallows
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray the bottom and sides of a 9- by 13-inch pan with cooking spray; set aside. Note: Even with spraying with cooking spray, the bars had a tendency to stick. You may want to use parchment paper on the bottom of your pan to avoid sticking. 

In a large saucepan over medium low heat, melt the butterscotch chips and butter, stirring constantly. Remove from heat to cool. (I did this step in the microwave, using it at 1-minute intervals at 50 percent power until melted, taking care not to burn.)

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, baking powder and salt.

Add vanilla and eggs to the cooled butterscotch mixture and stir well. Add the flour mixture and stir to combine. Fold in marshmallows and chocolate chips. Spread into prepared pan and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, taking care not to overbake. The edges should be browned nicely but the center not quite set. The bars will firm upon cooling.