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Butterscotch Meringue Bars

Posted by in Baking, Step-by-Step Recipes

Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

If there’s anything I love more than chocolate chip cookies, it’s meringue. And so when I saw The Church Cook’s recipe for Butterscotch Meringue Bars, I knew I had to give it a go!

I’m blessed to know Kay in real life and let me tell you, she has a knack for creating mouthwatering dishes! I knew her delectable-looking recipe wouldn’t fail and would be perfect road-trip food on our way to Lake Tahoe for the 4th of July!

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

The ingredients are pretty basic! Just flour, sugar, eggs, butter, baking soda and powder, and chocolate chips, of course! I had everything on hand the moment the craving struck, so I lucked out.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

To make these gooey delicious suckers, first line a 9 x 13” baking pan with tin foil.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

And then give it a good ol’ spray with cooking spray. I use a generic (and cheap!) kind from Trader Joe’s.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

Next, dump your flour and salt in a large bowl …

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

Followed by baking powder …

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

And baking soda! Basically, all your dry ingredients.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

Set that bowl aside now and get to work creaming your butter, a cup of brown sugar and granulated sugar.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

Then add your eggs—yolks only right now—and vanilla. I used a vanilla bean instead of extract. Don’t throw your whites though. We’re saving them to make the crunchy yummy meringue topping later.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

Keep beating until your mixture is light and fluffy…

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

Now, dump in your dry ingredients and beat until just combined.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

It should look something like this! Yum.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

Pat down your dough on your foil-lined pan, making sure everything is pretty even.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

And now sprinkle the chocolate chips on top!

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

Set the pan aside now while you get to work on your meringue topping! Clean out the same bowl you had been using to mix the dough (be sure to use soap and water; meringue won’t work if there’s fat (butter/egg yolks) left in the bowl) and add the two leftover egg whites. Beat ‘em till slightly frothy.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

Then add the remaining brown sugar …

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

And continue beating until stiff, glossy peaks form. Look how pretty this meringue is! It’s perfect.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

Grab your pan again and smooth the meringue out on top of the chocolate chip layer. Don’t worry if it’s not perfect! Just use your rubber spatula to smooth the edges as best you can.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

Then plop that bad boy into the oven to bake! Resist the urge to sit by the stove and wait. It’s tempting, I know!

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

Ta-dah! You’ll have a chewy, gooey butterscotch cookie covered with melted chocolate chips and crunchy, crackly meringue.

Resist the urge to slice them right this second though! The bars need about two hours to cool completely before slicing or else the meringue will crack all over the place. This is a good time to go exercise. I took the opportunity to go get a pedicure instead.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Butterscotch Meringue Bars. Guest post by Jenna Weber of Eat, Live, Run; recipe submitted by TK member Kay Heritage of The Church Cook.

Amazing! My other half claimed these were “the best dessert I’ve ever tasted” and gobbled up two on the spot. They were perfectly chocolatey and gooey, but still had that rich butterscotch flavor. I wouldn’t hesitate to make them again for a barbecue or pot-luck in the future!

A big thank you to Kay, who adapted this recipe from Cook’s Illustrated. They were a real winner!

 
 

Printable Recipe

Butterscotch Meringue Bar

See post on The Church Cook (Kay Heritage)’s site!
4.42 Mitt(s) 7 Rating(s)7 votes, average: 4.42 out of 57 votes, average: 4.42 out of 57 votes, average: 4.42 out of 57 votes, average: 4.42 out of 57 votes, average: 4.42 out of 5

Prep Time:

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Difficulty: Easy

Servings: 24

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Description

Gooey, rich, and yummy! Oh, and easy to make!

Ingredients

  • 2 cups All-purpose Flour
  • 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
  • ½ teaspoons Baking Soda
  • ½ teaspoons Salt
  • 2 sticks Softened, Unsalted Butter
  • 2 cups Light Brown Sugar, Divided
  • ½ cups Granulated Sugar
  • 2 whole Eggs, Separated
  • 1 Tablespoon Water
  • 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
  • 2 cups Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Line a 13 by 9 inch baking pan with aluminum foil, allowing excess foil to hang over the pan edges (this will help you to remove the bars from the pan later). Spray foil with cooking spray.

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl, set it aside.

With a hand mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter, 1 cup of brown sugar, and granulated sugar until well blended. Add egg yolks, water, and vanilla and mix until well incorporated. Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture until just combined. Spread batter evenly into the prepared pan. Press the chocolate chips gently into the dough.

In a clean bowl, whip egg whites to stiff peaks, then reduce speed to medium and add the remaining 1 cup of brown sugar. Mix until uniform in color and shiny. Spread meringue over chocolate chip layer and bake until golden brown, about 35-40 minutes. Cool completely (2-3 hours) before lifting out of the pan using the aluminum foil overhang. Cut into squares.

 
 
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Jenna is a food writer who has worked as a pastry chef and bread baker. Her blog Eat, Live, Run has great recipes, travel stories, and the perfect slogan: “Celebrating life, one crumb at a time.”

 

41 Comments

Comments are closed for this recipe.

Lacey on 7.28.2011

Not a big fan of meringue in this house so I believe I”ll slightly modify the recipe and make chocolate chip butterscotch cookies!!!!

Erin Louise on 7.26.2011

I just took mine out of the oven. They rose a LOT more than in the pictures, the cookie dough puffed right up. Nevermind, they do smell insanely good.

Liza on 7.25.2011

these are so yummy :) I used my hand mixer for the cookie part and for the meringue I used my stand mixer with the whisk attachment. Since I’ve been cutting back on sugar, my first bite was very sweet but after that it was YUM!!!! All my kids loved them too.

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aday on 7.23.2011

The printable said a handmixer….does it make a big difference if I use my Kitchen-aid stand mixer? The paddle for batter and whisk for meringue maybe?

Nancy on 7.23.2011

Just made these bars last night for company, and they were so sweet we couldn’t eat them, and I love sweet. Not sure how one would decrease the sugar…in the meringue perhaps, but not sure how that would affect texture, etc. Oh, well, the recipe sure sounded good.

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clarency on 7.22.2011

They look absolutly delicious and mine are standing in the oven as I write. I look forward to taste them and share them with the family.

Renee W. on 7.21.2011

Got ‘em baking in the oven right now!! Can Not Wait!!!! So simple to make!!

thisismarylynn on 7.21.2011

It’s just not fair that she gives us all these yummy recipes and she’s thin!!!

Shelli on 7.21.2011

I just made these! OH MY….they are wonderful, thank goodness 2 of the kids are home with me. I could have eaten the whole pan myself.
I followed the directions perfectly until I got to this part “Cool completely (2-3 hours)”
LOL LOL LOL. Who can wait that long, I know I didnt!

If anyone has any large clothes they want to get rid of, keep me in mind, I think Im gonna need them! :)

Drina on 7.21.2011

I saw this recipe and had to make these yesterday. I was not disappointed! I’ll be making them again when I need to contribute a dish to a party.

Mellie on 7.21.2011

Oh my this looks amazing! And my dad might double my allowance if I made these. And I would definitely choose a pedicure over exercising, if I could. :)

Maria on 7.21.2011

The Cooks Illustrated version of these were the best part of my Christmas Cookie boxes last year… so delicious! http://www.flickr.com/photos/anthimeria/5274689634/in/set-72157615950127505

Bakergirl on 7.21.2011

Jenna, could you make these with no mixer? I.e., just mixing by hand?

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    EatLiveRun on 7.21.2011

    it would take a lot of muscle….you have to make meringue, which involves beating egg whites until stiff. By hand, it will take about 15 minutes of solid whisking. It CAN be done but is pretty difficult!

paul li on 7.21.2011

Yummm!It looks so delicious!

Taylor on 7.21.2011

Oooh yummy! I can’t wait to make these!!

DessertForTwo on 7.21.2011

These look like Alabama mud hen bars! Thanks for reminding me I need to scale this down to serve two–I could eat the whole pan myself!

Averie @ Love Veggies and Yoga on 7.21.2011

Jenna…these look simply gorgeous!

I LOVE butterscotch….so much. PERFECTION!

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The Church Cook (Kay Heritage) on 7.21.2011

Jenna, you make it look so, so simply beautiful!! THANK YOU! *Hugs*

Paula B. on 7.21.2011

Oh my, I’m a baker from way back and chocolate chip anything is on the top of my faves list but this is a new twist on c.c. cookie bars for moi! I want to dive into that meringue topping it looks so lucious. One question, while the bars are cooling do you remove them via the foil lining, from the pan? Yum, will be making these soon, and I like the idea of eating a warm slice of goodness and “smushing” everything together!!!

Kelley on 7.21.2011

Mud Hen Bars!!!!!

Michelle S. on 7.20.2011

Oh dear I wanna make those right this very second!

misskoren on 7.20.2011

I die for those! I love you watch you cook and I love all your cute utensils! You take great pics!

D'Ann on 7.20.2011

add me to those whom this recipe took on a stroll down memory lane…these bars were one of the special recipes my mother made from the time I was a little girl (about a gazillion years ago), and it’s remained a family favourite ever since…

heading to kitchen to make some right this minute…

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Katrina on 7.20.2011

These sound perfect! Yummy recipe!

Cupcake Activist on 7.20.2011

I failed on my dessert bars this past weekend. I want to redeem with these.

Mama on 7.20.2011

I really want to enjoy your cake as. But I will do it.

Laurie on 7.20.2011

In my family, we called these “Toll House Squares” and made them often! They are without a doubt, the most decadent tasting dessert ever :) Not sure where our recipe came from, but I grew up not far from the original Toll House Restaurant in Massachusetts…and I have had my copy for over 35 years! Guessing it was probably published locally at some point :) Thanks for the memories…

JFS in IL on 7.20.2011

We made this all the time growing up in the ’60’s but called it Rose Mazzone bars after the neighbor who gave us the recipe. They are STILL “rosemazzone bars” in our extended family. I like to take a large hunk and mush it up a bit when still hot from the oven and then use a fork to nibble away at the sweet, gooey result.

Renee.S on 7.20.2011

Made the Cook’s Illustrated Version for a church potluck. They were amazing. It’s a wonder any made it out of the house.

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pauladavis on 7.20.2011

Lisa B: butterscotch = brown sugar + butter! Thanks wikipedia!

Lisa B on 7.20.2011

where does the butterscotch come in, i only see chocolate chips?? looks good though

Michelle on 7.20.2011

My mother in law is a freak for butterscotch. She is going to love this!

Mrs C on 7.20.2011

Oh my goodness! What a treat!!! I’ve been a little skeptical with getting too crazy baking but these are something I think are simple and I would love to try! Can’t wait to check out her site!

http://www.MrsCapretta.com

Allyn on 7.20.2011

Holy moly, these look amazing! I’ve never thought of combining a meringue with anything like this. Now that I have my very own pretty little Kitchen Aid, I will so be trying this out!

Amy | She Wears Many Hats on 7.20.2011

I don’t know how I missed out on this one, but glad you chose to feature it! YUM!

Cheryl on 7.20.2011

Perfect for the upcoming family reunion!

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seafieldfarm on 7.20.2011

Oh my! You have no idea what this post means to me. My grandmother use to make the exact same thing. We called them honeymoon squares. My entire family love them but, when my grandmother died she unfortunately took the recipe with her. I’ve try to replicate it but to no avail. This looks just about right! Thanks guys!

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kptmoon on 7.20.2011

Looks divine. Can’t wait to make it!

christine on 7.20.2011

want these for breakfast!

Heather (Heather's Dish) on 7.20.2011

holy heaven, this reminds me of a dessert my grandmother used to make! i love the meringue on top – making meringue is so fulfilling :)