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Coffee Toffee Bars

Posted by in Baking, Step-by-Step Recipes

WINNERS – Here are the winners of the KitchenAid mixers:

Jamie M.“We made Cookie Salad last night with girl scout cookies, it was delish!”

Kimberly“We wanted something fruity and spring-like, even though it was February. I had 3 kinds of berries in the freezer, along with some rhubarb–and combined a few recipes to make a delicious rhuberry crisp!”

Congratulations, winners! Contact prizes@tastykitchen.com to claim your loot.

Thank you, everyone, for sharing your most recent desserts.

More fun giveaways next week – see you then!

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I have a problem. I’m addicted to coffee-flavored anything. Coffee caramels, coffee ice cream, tiramisu, coffee itself. So as I was browsing the Desserts category yesterday for a sweet recipe to prepare, I grabbed at the first coffee-flavored treat I could find.

They’re Coffee-Toffee Bars, submitted by nhsweetcherry back in October, and I just knew they’d be something that would satisfy my coffee urges, at least for the afternoon.

When I read the recipe, I noticed right away that they’re not unlike these Spreads that I’ve made since I was a little girl—except with those, you bake the cookie base first, then spread melted chocolate chips over the top. These Coffee Toffee Bars are more of a chunky, substantial bar. Yum!

Here’s how you make them! Verdict is down below…along with a special surprise at the end.

 
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The ingredients. Simple, pure, perfect…except I called the baking powder BAKING SODA. Why do I do this every time?

 
 
 

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The “coffee” in these Coffee Toffee Bars comes from this ingredient—instant coffee granules. Did you know you can add a couple of teaspoons of instant coffee to most chocolate chip cookie recipes? Just throw it into the dry ingredients and it’ll add a delightful depth of flavor.

 
 
 

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The recipe calls for 1 to 2 cups of chocolate chips. I decided to do 1 cup of semi-sweet and 1 cup of MILK CHOCOLATE chips. I’ll let you know how that turns out.

 
 
 

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Begin by creaming softened butter and brown sugar.

 
 
 

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Then you grab these four ingredients: instant coffee, salt, baking powder, and…almond extract! I wondered what that flavor would do the bars, since the standard choice would normally be vanilla.

Intellesting. Velly, velly intellesting.

 
 
 

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Then you dump all of that into the bowl…

 
 
 

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And mix it all together. You’ll want to scrape the sides of the bowl to make sure it all gets mixed together well.

 
 
 

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After that, you dump in the flour. The recipe calls for approximately 2 1/2 cups of flour, so I decided to add the full amount in order to get a point of reference.

 
 
 

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The result was a pretty crumbly dough; I had to really mix it in order for it to come together.

 
 
 

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However, it turned out fine! I dumped it into a greased 9 x 13-inch pan…

 
 
 

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And pressed it lightly into the pan.

Yes, I will be getting a new manicure, probably sometime in the year 2011.

 
 
 

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Then I sprinkled the chocolate chips all over the pressed dough.

 
 
 

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The recipe calls for 1 cup of chips…but UP TO 2 cups. I used about 1 3/4 cup of chips, just to see how far I could push it. ***More on this later***

 
 
 

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Then you just pop it in the oven for about 25 minutes.

 
 
 

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Mmmmm. It smells so, so good.

 
 
 

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The dough isn’t a hugely rising, overly poufy thing since it doesn’t contain eggs or baking soda like the average chocolate chip cookie. But it does rise and pouf just enough to anchor the chocolate chips without completely swallowing them up.

 
 
 

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Look at that yummy crust.

 
 
 

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Cut the bars into squares or rectangles, depending on how many servings you’d like to squeeze out of the recipe.

 
 
 

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Oh, yummy. How lovely!

 
 
 

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And I’m sorry…

 
 
 

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But I had to do this.

The devil made me do it.

 
 
 

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THE VERDICT: These were really delicious. I definitely used too many chocolate chips, though—the chocolate overpowered the flavor of the cookie/bar below. When I make them next time, and I will make them again, I’ll use 1 cup of chocolate chips, tops. Maybe even less. You really want that cookie to shine through.

The almond extract is very interesting! It definitely comes through in the flavor of the cookie. I thought it was delicious, but if you aren’t a fan of almond flavor, I think you could easily substitute vanilla extract.

You could also sprinkle finely chopped pecans on top, before you sprinkle on the chocolate chips.

And vanilla ice cream, of course, would be a divine accompaniment!

Thank you, nhsweetcherry, for sharing such a delightful treat!

Here’s the recipe:

Coffee-Toffee Bars

 
THE FUN PART

And now for the fun part.

Not that Coffee Toffee Bars aren’t fun!

 

Today, Tasty Kitchen is giving away two (2) KitchenAid artisan stand mixers in the classic White color above. There are so many yummy dessert recipes on Tasty Kitchen, and you need one of these babies to facilitate all the baking.

 
TO ENTER

To enter this giveaway, just answer the following question in the Comments section of this post:

“What’s the last dessert recipe you prepared?”

Did you make a chocolate cake last night?

Red velvet cupcakes last week?

Or was it that yellow Easy Bake Oven cake you made in 1974?

Just shout out the last dessert you prepared with your hot little hands (and feel free to include a link to the recipe if it’s online!) and you’re automatically entered to win a mixer.

 
THE RULES

One entry per person, please.

No entries after 11:00 pm Pacific Time Tuesday.

Winners will be selected at random and announced Wednesday morning.

Good luck!

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Contest sponsored by Tasty Kitchen, with cooperation from CHEFS Catalog.

26,637 Comments

Comments are closed for this recipe.

snobound on 3.3.2010

The last dessert I made was a coconut creme cake that was out of this world delicious, moist, and coco-nutty! Yum.

These toffee-coffee bars are just evil though. They look sinfully delicious, and I’ve currently sworn off of sweets….not for Lent, but for my pants sake. I don’t believe I could actually ask them to stretch any further than they are and maintain integrity (or bottom coverage)!

Lori Hubbell on 3.3.2010

BROWNIES!!!!!!!!

erina on 3.3.2010

Mango pudding!

kelly on 3.3.2010

I made banana bread – does that count? No? Ok….let me think….(lowfat!) blueberry bundt cake.

Nicole on 3.3.2010

brownies

susan in cary on 3.3.2010

My kids and I made a Valentine’s Day bundt cake with a boxed cake mix. Complete with fluffy pink canned frosting, and pink/red/white sprinkles…which I’m still finding scattered about the house :-)

Kathleen Carscadden on 3.3.2010

Ohh, the last desert was a divine peach cobler from The Lady & Sons – very yummy.

Lisa on 3.3.2010

Good ‘ole chocolate chip cookies.

Kim Taylor on 3.3.2010

i know it’s pretty sad but i made walmart brand chocolate chip cookies and i have to say they hit the spot !!!

Evelyn St. Marie on 3.3.2010

The last thing I baked was brownies.

Christina on 3.3.2010

I made my all-time favorite dessert, Tapioca Pudding. If I were stranded on a desert island and could only eat one thing for the rest of my life, that would be it.

Jami L on 3.3.2010

Brownies!!

Elisabeth McCoy on 3.3.2010

Brownies from a box, last night! Yum yum, easy peasy.

CathyG on 3.3.2010

I made brownies from a mix 2 days ago. But I made a 13×9 box and only baked it in an 8×8 pan. What about the rest of the batter? I put about a cup of it in a tupperware in the freezer. I LOVE frozen brownie batter eaten on a spoon. And since they’re not real brownies, no calories, right?

Rebecca W on 3.3.2010

Hmm…the last dessert I made would have to be a peach dump cake that turned out to be a complete disaster! Although the hubby ate a small piece without complaint, I could barely eat 2 bites it was so sweet. I think I’ll stick to the exact recipes next time!

Janet on 3.3.2010

Brownies, sadly a mix…but I will definitely be making a chocolate cake soon for my hubby’s birthday!

Jamie on 3.3.2010

I made our family’s multi-generation Banana Cake recipe . Soooo yummy!

Ann M. on 3.3.2010

I made your Pumpkin-Caramel-Pecan-Gingersnap Cheesecake at Christmas (and Thanksgiving) and my family is still talking about it!

tastykitchen.com/tasty-kitchen/recipes/desserts/pwe28099s-caramel-pumpkin-pecan-gingersnap-cheesecake/

mary g stock on 3.3.2010

I made a batch of chocolate frozen yogurt, finally solving the crystalization problem with the addition of guar gum.

Karen M on 3.3.2010

My husbands favorite –Key Lime Pie– Made by using 2 key lime low-fat yogurts, 1 sugar-free jello, water & coolwhip. Mix and pour into a graham cracker crust. Serve with some coolwhip on top. He is allergic to eggs & dairy, but can eat this. Great refreshing pie!

Leslie Camp on 3.3.2010

I made brownies from scratch and then everybody ate them so I had to amke another pan!

Jenny on 3.3.2010

Yummy banana split cupcakes….strawberry cake mix with banana pudding mixed in…chocolate ganache on top. YUM!

Hope on 3.3.2010

Chocolate Chip Sweet Bread Muffins…Yummy :)

arnie wolfabrese on 3.3.2010

I made “pie in a jar” to give out to some of my friends. i used the “pppurfect ppie crust” features on pw cooks

Donna P on 3.3.2010

Snicker surprise Cookies, they are yummo!!

Kristina on 3.3.2010

Do smoothies count as dessert? I’ve been on a diet for weeks so I can’t remember the last time I ate anything good!

Rachael on 3.3.2010

Mocha Brownies (the pampared chef recipe)
YUMMY! I would have loved a chocolate cake last night but no, I didn’t make one. :)

kqadams on 3.3.2010

Congo Bars from a recipe at Cooks.com — don’t have the link at hand but it was the first recipe that came up when searching for congo bars.

Carla on 3.3.2010

The last dessert I prepared was a heart shaped cake with pink icing and sprinkles for my hubby for Valentine’s Day. Oh, I forgot about the snickerdoodles I made last Sunday. Hubby gobbled those up!

Gina E on 3.3.2010

Brownies in “The Perfect Brownie” pan last week. My 6 yr old son loves this pan!

Emily Rose Pearman on 3.3.2010

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies! And I didn’t have a mixer, so I have to hand beat the eggs and sugar into fluffiness, I still haven’t recovered…I need that dang mixer like nobodies business!

:)

Brittany on 3.3.2010

I made chocolate chip peanut butter bars for my husband… that combo is a great love in his life =)

Kaitlin on 3.3.2010

Peanut butter chocolate oatmeal no bakes from brown eyed baker! Yum!

Jennie on 3.3.2010

I made a scor cake trifle and it was delicious. in fact i wish i had some right now!! drool.

Matykol on 3.3.2010

I made a chocolate amaretto cake last weekend using biscotti cookies and ground almonds instead of flour and the orange jest made it oooh so good.

julie on 3.3.2010

I made Bakerella’s Homemade Red Velvet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting. It was devine, and it lasted in our house a little less than 24 hours!!!
grace and peace,
julie

Jess on 3.3.2010

Ummmm….I think that the last dessert I made was oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. And they were VERY tasty!

Beth on 3.3.2010

I made chocolate chip cookies with my 2 year old a couple of weeks ago. Yummy!

Susan on 3.3.2010

Caramel cream cheese brownies……scrump…tious…..

DonnaC on 3.3.2010

Chocolate cake! Having company this weekend, so I think I’ll whip up some chocolate chip cookies and another cake!

Brett on 3.3.2010

I made PWs tres leche cake.

Cheryl Wangsgard on 3.3.2010

It’s not very fancy, but my little girls love no bakes!!! Chocolate and Peanut Butter, is there anything better??

JennK on 3.3.2010

I made the Life by Chocolate cupcakes. Twice. In the same week.

Meghan Teeter on 3.3.2010

Peanut butter pie. Does it count if you ate most of the filling before putting it in the pie crust?! hope so…

Debbie W on 3.3.2010

Banana Nut Cake with Banana icing. It was my Mom’s recipe from years ago.

Julia on 3.3.2010

My last dessert was a strawberry cake for my niece’s birthday party!

Profile photo of jessiestreet

jessiestreet on 3.3.2010

I made Peanut Butter Scotch-a-roos for a bake sale. We’ll just say only half of them made it to the bake sale!

Anna on 3.3.2010

The last recipe I made was a (Bakers) German Chocolate Cake with Coconut Frosting. I brought it into the office and everyone loved it!! (I ate 3 pieces).

Vi on 3.3.2010

Bakerella’s cake balls with strawberry cake and cream cheese icing!

Jane M on 3.3.2010

Carrot Cake Cupcakes with CREAM CHEESE FROSTING – aaah I just love that frosting! They were dreamy *swoon*.