Bready or Not Original: Mocha Almond Bars
If you enjoy soft, chewy, crunchy blondies, this Mocha Almond Bars recipe is for you! It looks pretty, too, thanks to glaze on top.
I hate coffee as a drink, but I love the flavor in baked goods. That’s very true here. There is something magical about the combination of vanilla, sugar, and almond with espresso powder.
This recipe makes a 9×13 pan, so perfect to feed a small crowd!
Bready or Not Original: Mocha Almond Bars
Equipment
- 9×13 pan
- aluminum foil
- nonstick spray
Ingredients
Bars
- 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks) softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 teaspoon espresso powder
- 1 cup sliced almonds divided
Glaze
- 3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
- 1-2 Tablespoons half & half
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 350 degrees. Line a 9×13 pan with aluminum foil. Spray nonstick spray or coat with butter.
- Beat butter in a large bowl. Add vanilla and egg. Add flour, sugar, and espresso powder. Scrape bottom to make sure dough incorporates everything. Fold in 3/4 cup sliced almonds.
- Press dough evenly into the pan. Sprinkle remaining almonds over the top. Gently press in.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the edges are lightly browned and the middle passes the toothpick test. Cool completely, speeding the process in the fridge, if desired.
- Combine the glaze ingredients, adding more confectioners’ sugar or half & half to reach a thick consistency. Drizzle glaze over the pan. Cool completely, until glaze solidifies.
- Use foil to lift onto a cutting board to slice into bars. Store in a sealed container, using waxed paper between stacked layers.
OM NOM NOM!
Bready or Not: Bacon, Pecan, and Cheddar Crackers
These chewy, utterly snackable crackers are loaded with cheddar, smoky bacon, and crunchy pecans, making them a perfect snack for holiday events or game days. Plus, the dough for these Bacon, Pecan, and Cheddar Crackers can be made in advance, making them fast to prepare fresh.
You ever make a recipe and the output is drastically different from what the original said? I first made these crackers following a recipe in the Star Tribune last holiday season. It said it’d make 36. I got 90!
I’m giving the recipe a full rewrite, for that reason and others. It really needed more clarity… and less spice. The 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne in the original was way too much for me!
Bready or Not: Bacon, Pecan, and Cheddar Crackers
Equipment
- large food processor
- food scale
- plastic wrap
- parchment paper
Ingredients
- 16 ounces extra sharp cheddar cheese
- 4 slices bacon cooked to be crispy
- 1 cup toasted pecans
- 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks) diced and chilled
- 2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper or more to increase the kick
- pretzel salt or flaky sea salt
Instructions
- Use the shredding attachment on the food processor to freshly grate the cheddar cheese. (Note that pre-grated cheese from the store may not incorporate well.) Temporarily move cheese to a large bowl.
- Use a knife or kitchen shears to reduce the bacon to small pieces. Set aside.
- Switch to the s-blade on the food processor. Add the pecans and process until finely chopped, but don’t make a paste. Add the diced bacon, cold butter, cheese (don’t wash the bowl), flour, and cayenne. Process until mixture begins to form a dough.
- Place empty former cheese bowl on food scale. Level out the tare for the bowl (or note number to subtract).
- Remove the s-blade and transfer the dough to the big bowl that previously held the cheese. Use hands to make sure everything is incorporated to make dough. Observe the weight of the dough; divide in half.
- Place each half of dough on a long piece of plastic wrap. Shape dough into long logs about an inch in diameter. Dough may be quite crumbly; use the coating of plastic and hand pressure to bring it together.
- Completely wrap dough to stash in fridge. Chill in fridge for anywhere from 8 hours to a couple days, or stash in freezer for up to a month. If frozen, thaw in fridge overnight before baking.
- To begin baking, preheat oven at 350 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Pull out a log. Slice into coins about 1/4-inch thick; if they crumble a bit, reform with fingers. Place slightly spaced out on parchment. Sprinkle pretzel or flaked salt on top of each cracker.
- Bake for 14 to 16 minutes. Crackers should look pale golden and set. Leave them on the sheet to cool for about 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Repeat to bake the rest.
- Store in a sealed container at room temperature. Crackers are best within two days but are still edible after that, albeit chewier.
OM NOM NOM!
Bready or Not: Ricotta Cookies
This recipe for Ricotta Cookies makes a LOT, and they are soft, tender, and delicious.
I did some experimentation with this recipe. I divided the dough in half, freezing a portion for weeks. I made the first batch into big cookies, the next small. I learned that the glaze set VERY fast, so the sprinkles needed to go on the cookies right away.
The result I present to you, therefore, is a recipe with tested options. You can make the dough well in advance of baking and save yourself a lot of time. Or bake half now, half later. Or do the whole batch at once, feed a crowd the next day. Plus, you can use different sprinkles depending on the occasion.
Greatly modified from Allrecipes.
Bready or Not: Ricotta Cookies
Equipment
- parchment paper
- cookie scoop or spoon
Ingredients
Dough
- 15 ounces ricotta cheese
- 1 3/4 cups white sugar
- 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks) room temperature
- 2 large eggs
- 2 Tablespoons vanilla extract
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
Glaze for full batch
- 2 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 2 to 3 tablespoons half & half
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1/4 cup colored candy sprinkles
Instructions
Make the dough
- In a large mixing bowl, combine ricotta, sugar, butter, eggs, and vanilla until smooth and creamy.
- In another bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Gradually combine with the wet mixture, scraping the bottom to incorporate everything.
- At this point, the dough can be divided, if desired, to freeze half or all. If baking soon, wrap and chill the dough for about two hours or overnight.
- To begin baking, preheat oven at 350 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Use a large or small scoop or spoon to dole out dough balls spaced out on cookie sheet. Large cookies will bake in about 15 to 18 minutes; small cookies will need 11 to 13 minutes. The edges should be golden brown. Let cookies sit for about 3 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack. Cool completely.
Make the glaze
- Mix confectioners’ sugar, milk, and almond extract until thick and smooth. Use the back of a spoon to spread atop a cookie. Immediately add a pinch of sprinkles. Continue with the rest of the batch.
- Let cookies rest until glaze is set, then transfer to a sealed container. Store at room temperature.
OM NOM NOM!
Giftmas 2025! Help out the Edmonton Food Bank (and get a special recipe from me)
Giftmas is an annual tradition here on my site. Rhonda Parrish organizes the event to benefit the Edmonton Food Bank. Our goal this year is $1,500 Canadian which, because the Food Bank harnesses the power of connections and bulk buying will equal 4,500 meals. $1 = 3 meals. If you’re donating in American dollars, your donation will go even further!
Giftmas runs from December 1st through December 8th. So don’t wait to donate! Help out if you can.
Am I Canadian? Nope. Have I even been to Edmonton? Nope. Do I strive to care for my fellow human beings, even as they sadden and confound me? Yep. Times are hard. We need to extend kindness wherever and however we can.
As a THANK YOU to everyone who has visited this post, I’m sharing a Bready or Not post from years ago that makes a big platter of homemade candy/cookies using a number of ingredients you might donate or get from a food bank. This is a recipe that makes a lot to share, and that’s what Giftmas is really about: sharing.
Bready or Not: Oat and Toffee Grahams
Ingredients
- 12 graham crackers whole rectangles
- 1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 3/4 cup brown sugar packed
- 3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2/3 cup butter melted
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 sliced almonds or chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Line a 15x10x1-inch baking pan with foil and apply nonstick spray. Arrange graham crackers in a single layer side by side. They will not cover the entire surface of the pan.
- In a large bowl, stir together the oats, white sugar, brown sugar, and flour. Stir in the melted butter, egg, and vanilla until just mixed. Spoon the oat mixture atop the graham crackers, covering them completely.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until top is bubbly. Sprinkle all of the chocolate on top. Bake for another minute. Use an uneven spatula to smooth the softened chocolate to cover the graham crackers. Sprinkle on the almonds.
- Cool in pan. If slow to set, place in fridge until firm. Use a knife or–recommended–both hands to break the bars into pieces. Store in a sealed container with parchment or waxed paper between the layers.
- OM NOM NOM!
