Burnt Almond Bars St. Paul Pioneer Press
To make baking process go smoother, gather all ingredients before you start. (The French call this mise en place, everything in its place). Make sure all the ingredients are at room temperature. For instance, adding eggs straight from the refrigerator to the creamed butter and sugar will cause the mixture to curdle. To bring an egg to room temperature quickly, set it in a cup of warm water for a minute or two. A word of caution: Use the correct size pan. If the pan is too small, you can end up with a mess in your oven. With tons of personality - not to mention butter - these simple bars satisfy all the taste buds, making it hard to eat just one. The recipe is from cooking great Marion Cunningham. Not only is she the author of numerous cookbooks, including the revised "The Fanny Farmer Cookbooks," but she also was assistant to James Beard for many years. When I set these bars down on an empty desk at work, they were gone in a flash. Makes 3 dozen 2-inch bars. CRUST . 1 cup butter . 1/2 cup sugar . 1 egg . 1/2 teaspoon salt . 2 teaspoons vanilla . 3 cups flour TOPPING . 2 cups sugar . 2 teaspoons lemon juice . 1/2 cup heavy cream . 1 cup butter . 3 cups sliced almonds To make crust: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In mixing bowl, combine butter and sugar. Beat until light and creamy, stopping often to scrape down bowl. Add egg, salt and vanilla. Beat until mixed. Add flour. Continue mixing until completely blended. Pat dough into 10-by-15-inch jellyroll pan, spreading it as evenly over the bottom as possible. Bake for 20 minutes or until set. Remove from oven. Set aside to cool slightly while preparing topping. To make topping: Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees. In heavy saucepan or skillet, combine sugar and lemon juice, stirring constantly over low heat until sugar is completely melted and golden brown. Add cream and butter. Bring to a boil. (Note: At first, mixture will harden, but it will soon melt and blend with liquid.) Stir until smooth. Remove from heat. Set aside to cool slightly. To finish bars: Pour and spread topping over crust. Sprinkle with almonds. Bake for 15 minutes or until almonds are golden. Cut into squares to serve. Store in refrigerator. _______________________________________________ Cookinginthedark mailing list [email protected] http://acbradio.org/mailman/listinfo/cookinginthedark
