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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.

ellen on 3.2.2010

just simple toll house chocolate chip cookies, but there’s a reason the classics have stuck around so long. mmm.

Tiffany D. on 3.2.2010

I made eggless chocolate muffins last month.

Debbie on 3.2.2010

I made a chcolate cake over the weekend.

Diane{createdbydiane.blogspot.com} on 3.2.2010

chocolate cupcake cookies last week

kory on 3.2.2010

i made sugar cookies for my daughters preschool last week.

Angela Lemmons on 3.2.2010

I made Paula Deen’s Symphony Brownies which are the easiest and most delicious brownies ever!! Mix up box brownie batter, pour half in your 9×13 pan, layer on three Symphony Candy Bars (the YUMMY ones with almonds & toffee!) and then pour on the rest of the batter. Bake as directed and try not to eat the whole pan!!

mary c. keenan on 3.2.2010

I made chocolate pudding–Trader Joe’s pudding mix –
does that count as a recipe? — I stirred in the milk for
2 mins…. and had to measure –and time “slow” stir.

Annette on 3.2.2010

Raspberry-cream cheese muffins… I guess that’s a dessert? ;)

Michael on 3.2.2010

The last thing I made was chocolate coconut oreo sandwiches. My own personal creation.

Rachel on 3.2.2010

I made a lemon pie this past weekend. It was very good.

Reagan on 3.2.2010

Brownies from scratch for my coworkers.

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carrot on 3.2.2010

I made peanut butter fudge. It was fabulous!

Andrea K on 3.2.2010

Peanut butter mousse topped brownie bars….so perfect!

Jennifer on 3.2.2010

Apple dumplings! Who knew canned crescent rolls could taste so divine?

Lindsay on 3.2.2010

i made guinness brownies for my cooking club meeting this month – i put the eggs in at the wrong time (d’oh!), but it gave the brownies a very light yet fudgy consistency… perhaps something to try again!

Brian Heyer on 3.2.2010

caramel chocolate chip cookies for Sunday School

sara on 3.2.2010

The last dessert I made was peach cobbler 2 weeks ago. Unless you count unwrapping a candy bar, in which case I did that yesterday.
As for these bars, YUM. I think they’d be great with pieces of Skor bar. Ooh, maybe caramel and marshmallow too. Too much?

Karen Knapper on 3.2.2010

Pumpkin Pie for Thanksgiving. Eek! I need to get in the baking swing of things again!

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DipDiva on 3.2.2010

I made a pan of scotcharoos–not exactly a difficult dessert, but yummy nonetheless!

Jill B on 3.2.2010

I made two batches of Snickerdoodle cookies for my daughter’s Student Government bake sale. Two batches because the first didn’t turn out so well and our family had to make the supreme sacrifice and eat them.

Christine Edwards on 3.2.2010

Does brownies from a mix last week count? If not, then Oreo Cheesecake at Thanksgiving would be the last dessert recipe I made. I will be making these Coffee Toffee bars, definitely served with Coffee ice cream…maybe even this afternoon.

Candice J on 3.2.2010

A 12-layer with 6 different flavors jello – so pretty and I always make it around the holidays :)

Chris on 3.2.2010

Smores

Sara C. on 3.2.2010

Tiramisu! Yes yes, it was a daring bakers challenge, but nonetheless, it was divine. I’ve been eating it all week, and it keeps getting better.

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prairiemomma on 3.2.2010

I made Transformer cupcakes to take to preschool for my son’s 4th birthday. They were from the Cake Mix Doctor’s recipe for Buttermilk Devil’s Food Cake – delish!

Meg Gillispie on 3.2.2010

Chocolate birthday cake for my grandson’s 2nd birthday!

Melissa on 3.2.2010

I made 2 amazing king cakes with cream cheese filling…delicious!

Ann on 3.2.2010

Vanilla roasted pears from Smitten Kitchen. Mmm.

Carolyn Brandt on 3.2.2010

Banana Cake with Toasted Coconut frosting!

C.C. on 3.2.2010

Not surprisingly it was your Apple Turnovers that I last made. At superbowl. Sounds like it’s time to make a dessert, doesn’t it? :-)

C.C.
My Card Making site!
Latest Tutorial: Beautiful, Easy, Lined Envelopes

G on 3.2.2010

Banana bread a couple of nights ago. We returned home after a couple months away from home and found an empty fridge.

Popped a couple frozen bananas out of the freezer and whipped up a batch. Spread some honey/cinnamon butter on top of a toasted piece…

Dig it.

Cindy Bayer on 3.2.2010

Apple blueberry pie-lasted about 12 seconds in my house!

Jessica Parker on 3.2.2010

The favorite at our house is Chocolate Chip and Pecan Pie. I made it last week.

Molly on 3.2.2010

I made a Tollhouse Pie three days ago for my sister-in-law. It’s pretty much a chocolate chip cookie in a pie crust. MMMM

breabella on 3.2.2010

A yellow cake with chocolate icing…made in a stoneware bundt pan in the microwave. Embarrassingly easy, but incredibly good.

Sarah Pizzichemi on 3.2.2010

I made fudge brownies with chocolate chips on Friday night for my Saturday afternoon rehearsal with my string quartet. :-)

Erin on 3.2.2010

Chocolate babka over the weekend! I say it counts as both dessert AND breakfast.

WendyEden on 3.2.2010

peach cobbler

Rachel on 3.2.2010

A red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting!

Janet on 3.2.2010

I made sugar cookies and cut them out in the shapes of Lincoln and Washington for a belated Presidents’ Day celebration with my students! Much fun.

Sharon H. on 3.2.2010

I made a Vanilla Sour Cream Pound cake! YUM!

Pattie on 3.2.2010

Rice Krispie treats–all gone in less than 24 hours! What is it about a homemade RK treat?

Joy on 3.2.2010

Peach-Berry cobbler for guests on Sunday.

Aggie on 3.2.2010

Old-fashioned cherry cobbler with vanilla ice cream!

Liz on 3.2.2010

Technically I helped my daughter make cup cakes in her little cup cake maker on sunday. Last week I made peanut butter blossoms and ate half of them myself.

Pete on 3.2.2010

We tried healthy little cakes, they were dry.

Patti Reid on 3.2.2010

I made my husband homemade chocolate chip cookies (the Tollhouse recipe) the other day since he was sick. Today is my birthday, and we are still enjoying them!! :)

Brandy on 3.2.2010

I made carrot cake on Valentine’s Day (for the husband) and brownies for me. YUM!

Tara on 3.2.2010

Chocolate chip cookies with nuts and coconut. Yum….I can’t stay away from the cookie jar.

Alison K. on 3.2.2010

Ice Cream and Hot Fudge…so simple and sooo good.