11 thoughts on “BCM P & Q: Crispy-Topped Brown Sugar Bars”
I made these already. The baking time of the crust is 22 minutes. I baked mine 20 minutes and I think it should have been less. I would decrease your baking time.
Yeah I agree with Diane – the crust was REALLY crunchy and hard to cut – mine were a mess but tasted great!
Mine turned out perfectly! I went with the lowest baking time, dark chocolate, and caramelized rice crispies … The neighbors, my college boy, and I all agree that they are keepers! Like Dorie says in the macarons recipe, “you have to learn your oven”.
Tammy I can imagine this would have gone over very well with your college boy :) My colleagues thought it was “bake sale” material too! I liked it – just not what I was expecting. I know my oven pretty well (all those batches of macarons!) – this was very crisp though – perhaps how it’s meant to be. I was thinking it would be like shortbread, sort of melt in your mouth but it was more crunchy than that. Ah well, rustic works too!
Maybe mine didn’t turn out as crispy as yours, Mardi. I cut some in one-inch squares and really loved how those turned out … just perfect for a finger-food party, I think.
I only baked mine 16 minutes and my family said (I didn’t eat any) it was pretty crispy all the way through, I could tell when I pulled them from the oven after only 16 minutes, but I knew it might be that way with my oven. The crispy topping was super crunchy, too. It sure looks good to me. I was thinking/expecting shortbread-like, too.
I started with the 8 x 8 pan but felt the base was going to be way too thin. Ended up using an 8 x 4″ loaf pan and thought they came out perfect, with a nice semi-soft cookie base. I chopped my bittersweet chocolate bar coarsely and didn’t let it melt all the way, and topped with the caramelized Rice Krispies (with a little flavor enhancer I’ll tell you about later)! Now I need to get them out of the house so I don’t eat them all
Made these today. Super easy. Super sweet. I got 18 bars as Dorie did, but went back and cut the bars in half being they are so sweet – but good! Also, when Dorie says “show it (the dough) who’s boss,” you know you may have a struggle ahead. I found wetting my hands with water helped the dough not to stick to my fingers as I pressed it into the pan. Alternately, you could use a piece of buttered parchment, I’m sure. Oh, yeah, I cooked the crust for about thirteen minutes – perfect for my oven. My bars have a soft, chewy crust.
My first attempt was a big fail, but all due to my own fault. I will try again tonight.
Thanks to all your lovely comments, I knew to under-bake the crust (as I’m not a huge fan of ‘the French bake’), so thank you! And I used caramel corn. *crossing my fingers it takes as good as caramelized Rice Krispies!*
Tuesdays with Dorie 
I made these already. The baking time of the crust is 22 minutes. I baked mine 20 minutes and I think it should have been less. I would decrease your baking time.
Yeah I agree with Diane – the crust was REALLY crunchy and hard to cut – mine were a mess but tasted great!
Mine turned out perfectly! I went with the lowest baking time, dark chocolate, and caramelized rice crispies … The neighbors, my college boy, and I all agree that they are keepers! Like Dorie says in the macarons recipe, “you have to learn your oven”.
Tammy I can imagine this would have gone over very well with your college boy :) My colleagues thought it was “bake sale” material too! I liked it – just not what I was expecting. I know my oven pretty well (all those batches of macarons!) – this was very crisp though – perhaps how it’s meant to be. I was thinking it would be like shortbread, sort of melt in your mouth but it was more crunchy than that. Ah well, rustic works too!
Maybe mine didn’t turn out as crispy as yours, Mardi. I cut some in one-inch squares and really loved how those turned out … just perfect for a finger-food party, I think.
I only baked mine 16 minutes and my family said (I didn’t eat any) it was pretty crispy all the way through, I could tell when I pulled them from the oven after only 16 minutes, but I knew it might be that way with my oven. The crispy topping was super crunchy, too. It sure looks good to me. I was thinking/expecting shortbread-like, too.
I started with the 8 x 8 pan but felt the base was going to be way too thin. Ended up using an 8 x 4″ loaf pan and thought they came out perfect, with a nice semi-soft cookie base. I chopped my bittersweet chocolate bar coarsely and didn’t let it melt all the way, and topped with the caramelized Rice Krispies (with a little flavor enhancer I’ll tell you about later)! Now I need to get them out of the house so I don’t eat them all
Made these today. Super easy. Super sweet. I got 18 bars as Dorie did, but went back and cut the bars in half being they are so sweet – but good! Also, when Dorie says “show it (the dough) who’s boss,” you know you may have a struggle ahead. I found wetting my hands with water helped the dough not to stick to my fingers as I pressed it into the pan. Alternately, you could use a piece of buttered parchment, I’m sure. Oh, yeah, I cooked the crust for about thirteen minutes – perfect for my oven. My bars have a soft, chewy crust.
My first attempt was a big fail, but all due to my own fault. I will try again tonight.
Thanks to all your lovely comments, I knew to under-bake the crust (as I’m not a huge fan of ‘the French bake’), so thank you! And I used caramel corn. *crossing my fingers it takes as good as caramelized Rice Krispies!*
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