Fritos Dessert Bars for Secret Recipe Club

It's Secret Recipe Club reveal day once again. Our group had the month of December off for the holidays but we are back in full force (albeit a little late...our apologies). This month we were assigned a blog filled with fun and creative ideas for families: Making Memories With Your Kids. The blog author is Erin, a single mom with two kids who loves to bake and craft with kids, and it shows. She has tons of wonderful recipes as well as craft and gift ideas, on this great blog.

But we went right for the desserts page and one of the first things we noticed was the Fritos Dessert Bars. Fritos are Amy's favorite snack chip, one of her guilty pleasures, and at first, we couldn't really imagine this recipe. It's a no-bake bar, so it's so easy to make. And when you bite into it, you get everything you could ever ask for in a dessert: crunchy, salty, sweet, and sticky plus a hint of chocolate and peanut butter. Good Lord! We've died and gone to dessert bar heaven.

Speaking of heaven, we brought these to our neighbor's baby's post-Baptism party and they were a huge hit! No one could believe they were made with Fritos or how easy they were, and everyone wanted the recipe. So we just said, "Check out the blog tomorrow morning!!!"

Thanks, Erin, for these magical dessert bars. Chris plans on cutting back the sugar and adding raisins or other dried fruits and making breakfast bars out of them. So good!!!

Fritos Dessert Bars

from Making Memories With Your Kids

Ingredients:

1 10.5-ounce bag Fritos corn chips

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup light corn syrup

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1 cup milk chocolate chips

Spray a 9X13 baking pan with cooking spray. Empty Fritos into a large bowl. In a medium sauce pan over medium heat, bring sugar and corn syrup to a boil. Remove from heat and add peanut butter; stir until smooth. Pour mixture over Fritos and gently stir to coat. Pour into prepared pan and using wax paper, press down to spread evenly into the pan. Put chocolate chips in a small zip-lock bag. Microwave for 30 second spurts to melt. Cut off a corner of the bag and drizzle over the Fritos bars. Allow to set, then cut into squares.

Update: Alas, whoever was assigned our blog wasn't able to complete their assignment, so we were "orphaned" this month. One of our recipes will show up next Monday during Group D's reveal day. We will update again then!

Here is a link to the blogger who was assigned to us:  http://rebekahrose.blogspot.ca/2014/01/secret-recipe-club-candy-popcorn.html

Christmas Countdown Wordless Version: Buckeyes

Christmas Candy #4 - Buckeyes

Buckeyes, aka Peanut Butter Balls are the fourth candy recipe from A Couple in the Christmas Candy Kitchen. They are known as "buckeyes" because when finished, they resemble the nut of a buckeye tree. We love this recipe because there isn't a lot of measuring involved. Also they're smooth and creamy, and, well...peanut butter and chocolate. Enough said.


Note: don't throw away that leftover melted chocolate! Dip something in it! Check later for one suggestion...

Ingredients:

1 28-ounce jar creamy peanut butter

1/2 stick salted butter, softened

1 16-ounce box powdered sugar

1 12-ounce package semisweet chocolate chips

2 tablespoons vegetable shortening

Line baking sheets with wax paper. In standing mixer, beat peanut butter and butter until creamy. Slowly add the powdered sugar and beat until mixture is moist and holds together. Using your hands, roll into 1-inch balls and place on baking sheets. Freeze for one hour until hardened. Place the chocolate chips and shortening in a heavy saucepan over low heat, stirring until melted. Using a toothpick, dip the peanut butter balls into the melted chocolate leaving the top center uncovered. Return to lined baking sheets and refrigerate until set. Store in an airtight container between sheets of waxed paper for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.