Raising the bar

It's been way too long since I've written a blog post. Nothing more obvious than the fact that I could not even remember the password to my account. Yes, I've been away for far too long.

So much has changed since my last post in August. I opened a store that features locally handmade items; I came down with the Swine flu; Husband and I bought and moved into our first home; I was in a car accident and sported a stylish neck brace for a few weeks; I now type my blog with a kitten sitting on my lap. So, a mix of good and bad and a little good old-fashioned stress to keep me up at night. Needless to say, I haven't had the time or energy to cook or bake, much less write about it.

Lucky for me, it's the New Year. Time to do better this time and put aside any guilt for not keeping up with things in 2009. It's a clean slate. I need that shiny new slate. Like a joyous schoolgirl who can't wait for the first day of school armed with freshly sharpened pencils and a glossy new Trapper Keeper, I'm ready to start anew on this adventure all over again armed with loads of new recipes to try and a great new kitchen to experiment in. It's a hopeful 2010 with anticipation of flying flour, giddy first tastes, many caked-on dishes to wash, failed experiments, and hopes of all hopes, a few successes. In the end, I want to enjoy the journey of creating. Whether or not what I create is successful, I want to enjoy the process of cooking, baking and writing and allowing my mind to think wildly and without bounds. I'm so glad to be back in the blogosphere.

After all my waxing about a new year, I'm actually going to lead 2010 with a recipe that I created in 2009. It was a recipe I adapted back in September with the best of all intentions to post. Life happened and then I lost the recipe amidst the move. While unpacking, I found this tasty dessert bar recipe and just couldn't let it get dusty any longer.

Twisted Bars
(inspired by Food & Wine Magazine, August 2009)

1 cup whole wheat flour (you can do all-purpose white flour if you prefer)
1 cup old-fashioned oats
1/2 tsp. coarse salt
1.5 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 cup dark brown sugar (you can do light brown sugar instead)
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
2 large eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1.5 cups bittersweet chocolate chips
1.5 cups mini pretzels, coarsely chopped

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9-by-13-inch metal baking pan with parchment paper and allow for overhang on the 2 ends.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, baking soda, and salt. In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter with both sugars at medium speed for about a minute. Beat in the eggs and vanilla. At a low speed and working in two batches, beat in the dry ingredients. Add dried cranberries and walnuts while at low speed. Stir in the chocolate chips and pretzels.
3. Spread the batter evenly in the pan. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden. The center will still be a little gooey. Transfer to a rack and let cool completely.
4. Loosen the sides of the bar from the pan with a knife and lift out with the parchment paper. Cut as desired. Makes up to 24 squares.