Quadruple chocolate toffee oat bars - a blast from the past

This takes me waaaay back to earlier baking days before pastry school had even become a glimmer in my mind. Perhaps a number of you remember the “365 Ways” cookbook series from the early 90s - many different topics on cooking, baking, soups, pasta, salads, chicken, Chinese, Italian and so much more. It turns out they’re still available through various online sources. Steve and I used to have a number of them but over the years as we moved, downsized etc. we either gave away, sold at garage sales or donated them to libraries. But not this one . . . . .

My baking bug had only been strengthening and no way was I going to part with this baby. It was published in the fall of 1993, and, although I don’t recall exactly when I purchased it, over the years I made many of the recipes, making notations on when I made them, how they baked (too flat, too gooey), whether I would bake them again (sometimes a big NO), possible additions or substitutions or adjustments for different pan sizes. NOTE: the book is still available on Amazon for $22.99 hardback.

Most of the dates I logged were from 2001 to 2005, the years of our Rutland, Vermont life during which I was moving away from medicine and definitely toward pastry. It made me so happy to bring baked goods in for monthly staff meetings or into the ER when I had to work the night shift (not my fave), just to see the smiles appear. Now that I think about it, that practice went way back to med school days when I’d bake chocolate chip cookies for my roommates and banana bread to take in to the hospital during clinical rotations. My oh my.

As I now page through the book it’s clear that certain sections caught my eye back then: “In the Chips”, a whole chapter devoted to chocolate chip cookies; “Chocolatey Brownies”; “Golden Brownies”; “Other Squares and Bars”. Below are a couple of well marked pages - note especially the “Unbelievably Almondy Almond Bars” notations - yes indeed!

My how my repertoire has changed.

I also found a couple of recipes in the “In Great Shape” section that gave me pause and took me back. These are the kinds of cookies that, once the dough is made, are rolled into ball/crescent/pretzel or what-have-you shapes, sometimes flattened/sometimes not and baked. Both “Almond Chews” and “Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies” were two goodies that I made a number of times and noted on both recipes that the last date I baked them was 9/29/05 with “last shift!” written in. Oh the memories.

As I think of those ER days and my desire (and need) to leave the medical arena, I want to and must offer a HUGE thanks to all those on the front lines right now - my heart goes out to all of you, your patients, your families and friends.

Whew! Enough reminiscing. This quadruple chocolate bar is actually one of the recipes from “In the Chips” entitled “Chocolate Chip Dreams”.

When I was pastry chef at Gracie’s in Providence RI from late 2007 to spring 2010 I used to make a chocolate chip cookie that had ground oats in it. So good. Wouldn’t you know it? For the life of me, I could not find said recipe! But wait - this one seemed like it might be close. I thought I’d share the recipe with you this way - much easier than writing it out step by step. Note the date and my scribbles.

As you’ll see, I baked some cookies first (too flat) but then moved on to the bar form - hence the title of this post.

My recipe changes include subbing in whole wheat pastry flour for some of the all purpose; toasting 85 g / 1 cup rolled oats, cooling and grinding them before mixing in with the flour, baking powder and baking soda; adding a heaping tablespoon of malted milk powder to the dry ingredients; using all butter (227 g/ 8 oz); for the granulated sugar I used Morena cane sugar which is slightly coarser and more golden than basic white granulated sugar; and last but not least adding 4 different chocolates at the end. This is just one of the ways I’m clearing out my pantry cupboard - yay!

Hmmmm - how’s this for a future project - milk chocolate malted ice cream? Bring it on.

For the chocolate portion of the program I coarsely chopped 113 g / 4 ounces each of Guittard’s lever du soleil wafers (my go to chocolate staple), Valrhona’s Jivara milk chocolate (on hand after buying it on sale at Sur La Table some months ago -it was time), Callebaut white chocolate (purchased over the holidays at the grocery store for what reason?) and then finely grated 28 g / 1 ounce of Montezuma’s 100% chocolate with cocoa nibs that I bought at Trader Joe’s for some cookies before Christmas.

Once the dough was put together, my first step was scooping cookie dough balls with my 3/4 ounce (~1.5 tablespoons) cookie scoop and spacing them on a parchment lined sheet pan. Since I wanted a trial first, I did one batch on a 1/4 sheet pan and popped the tray into the freezer while heating the oven to 350ºF.

The remainder of the dough balls went onto a 1/2 sheet pan for the freezer and baking at a later date.

Bake 11-13 minutes until golden. I tend to take these kinds of cookies out a little sooner than later so as to preserve some softness and chew to complement a bit of crispy edge.

While the cookies were tasty and full of chocolate-y, toffee-caramel-y flavors, I was disappointed in the spread and flatness. Probably due to using all butter rather than butter/shortening combo. But I’m an all butter kinda gal, so there. They simply weren’t like those Gracie’s cookies of yore. Rats Charley Brown - I wish I still had that recipe.

So now what? The following day I took the tray of dough balls out of the freezer and let them thaw. I prepped a 1/4 sheet pan (buttered/parchment-lined/buttered and floured the parchment) and pressed all the dough into it in an even layer. Feeling good.

Bake at 350ºF for 20-30 minutes depending on your oven. The edges will rise and set nicely, the top lovely and golden and be sure when you jiggle the pan a bit that the dough doesn’t still have a bit of subtle slosh to it. Once set, cool on a wire rack then cut and enjoy.

This recipe is oh so much better as a bar than a cookie: chewy edges to die for; dense texture, chock full of chocolate that seems to have become one with the dough; just the right hint of coarse oat-y bits; dark brown and Moreno sugars along with the malted milk powder lend that lovely toffee caramel essence.

So here’s the deal. If making the full recipe, press it into a prepped 9x13 pan which should accommodate things very nicely (remember I had baked some cookies first and then put the rest of the dough into a 1/4 sheet pan which is about 9”x12”).

These store well covered in the fridge for some days. Steve and I continue to enjoy them when a mini sweet attack hits us.

Stay home, stay safe and happy baking!