Candy Bar Cookie Bars and a Creative Idea from My Kitchen Helper

I can hardly believe it is nearing the end of May already!  I barely remember April.  Where does the time go?  I am loving the warmer weather but I don't want to take these days for granted.

Today, after a trip to the store, Ben said he was hungry so I fixed him a plate with some fresh strawberries and blueberries.  Thankfully, he has always been a good fruit and (for the most part) veggie eater.  I had my back turned when I heard him say "Mom, look at my fruit cup!"

I looked a little closer.  Funny little guy - he bit the end off of a strawberry and stuck a blueberry inside.  He is always cracking me up with his ideas :)

Candy Bar Cookie Bars

Sometimes it's nice to bake or create something totally or even partially from scratch.  I always feel like I have really accomplished something big with those kinds of recipes. 

Then there are days when you are running later than you had hoped but you still need to whip up a treat for the meeting you are helping host in just a few hours - and you haven't stocked your pantry with baking ingredients recently.

That was my story this morning.  I came across this recipe in my Cake Mix Doctor cookbook.  5 ingredients.  Bake time of 45 minutes.  It was just what I was looking for.  It turned out great and everyone enjoyed it.  Yay!

1 box yellow cake mix

1/2 c. brown sugar

1 stick butter, melted

2 eggs

1/2-1 c. candy bar pieces

(I used toffee and mini chocolate chips - I think Reeses would be an awesome addition)

Mix together first four ingredients with mixer for 2 minutes, scraping batter down sides as needed.  Fold in candy pieces and mix well.  Place batter in ungreased 9x13 pan and bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes (Mine were done in 35)

*The batter was very sticky so I used the hint Ingrid of 3 B's has mentioned before - I dampened my hands first and patted the batter down very smoothly.  Worked like a charm - thanks Ingrid!