This weekend was one of the best.

I was trapped in our apartment by a snow storm, forcing me to bake and cook for hours.

These absolutely amazing salty and sweet bars are one of the things I made this weekend.

They are soooo easy to make and so NOT easy to stop eating…

If you remember back to my post about butterscotch banana bread, you will remember my thoughts on how butterscotch is an underrated flavor.

I still feel this way.

And I still love butterscotch, especially in these bars.

This recipe is Mikey approved, which is my hope in all the things I make….although not always the case…

This recipe is also Monster approved, as pictured below.

Trying to take pictures while steadily holding back the beast is not an easy feat…therefore, Norm was escorted to the dungeon immediately after this picture was taken.

The hardest part of this recipe is unwrapping the caramels/not eating every other one you open.

This is your crust.

(that’s a bag of butterscotch pudding mix)

Mix up those 4 ingredients to form your crust.

Throw that baby in the oven for 25ish minutes/until golden brown around the edges.

Add 1/2 a cup of this to those caramels and melt over medium heat.

So here is where things get tricky…

Mixed nuts.

Mixed nuts are a controversial subject for a lot of people when it comes to dessert.

I know they are for me!

However, please trust me and just go with it for this recipe!

If you can’t, you could absolutely use just peanuts/whatever nuts you like best…Haha.

I love nut references. My humor is not lady like at all. Sorry.

Since we are talking about nuts and humor…

This one time in high school I had some guy friends over and we were making brownies in my parents kitchen.

My mother, being the helpful sweetie that she is thought we needed a careful reminder, “not to forget our nut bags”…

We were opting out of using the “nut bags” in our brownies…but thank you Mom for the embarrassing reminder!

Seriously though, who doesn’t love Donna?

So while we still can, lets talk about these nuts.

I didn’t use those super huge creepy nuts (HA).

I think they are called Brazil nuts…

I also know my Grandma called them some derogatory name that my Mom quietly told my brother and me not to repeat when we were little…

So aside from not using those, I also cut the bigger nuts into smaller pieces just because I was afraid they would be too large.

This is not necessary. They are easy to cut and bite through once they are covered in caramel and you can skip that step!

 

 

 

I hope I haven’t offended you with my nut innuendos.

I am finished.

We can get back to butterscotch and caramel now!

 

 

Here is the super tasty and slightly butterscotch-flavored crust (thanks to the butterscotch pudding packet. Read that over again, this time like Bill Cosby. That’s much better).

 

 

Once your crust is baked, mix the nuts into the caramel and pour over the crust.

 

 

Then sprinkle the butterscotch chips over the caramel and let cool completely!

Otherwise you’ll have a mess of runny caramel and butterscotch.

 

 

When you were in Kindergarten, did you ever have to collect and count out 100 items?

I know I did.

And I used butterscotch chips.

I carefully counted them out with my mom and used Elmer’s glue to stick them onto a poster board.

I remember waiting for the glue to dry so I could write a title on it and sign my name.

I also remember staring at it during class, licking my lips, hoping a little chip would fall off so I could eat it…

About a month went by before we were able to take our posters home with us.

I was ecstatic.

You see, I wasn’t afraid of germs, or glue, or even those stubborn bits of poster board…

I maxed those things as fast as I could the second I got on the bus.

I don’t remember, but I am willing to bet I ended up biting them right off the poster board until it was soggy and filled with holes.

Totally worth it.

 

 

Mikey and I have been eating these bars in a similar fashion.

It’s hard not to.

 

I think I’m back.

I have a lot of recipes to share with you and I’m excited about it.

I have missed my kitchen and this silly little blog.

Make these bars.

And don’t forget your nut bags 😉

 

Recipe: Gooey Butterscotch Bars

1 Package (17 1/2 ounces) Sugar Cookie Mix

1 Package (3.4 oz) Instant Butterscotch Pudding Mix

1/2 Cup Butter, Softened

1 Egg

1 Package (14 oz) Caramels

1/2 Cup Evaporated Milk

2 Cups Mixed Nuts

1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

1 Cup Butterscotch Chips

Directions:

In a large bowl, combine sugar cookie mix, butterscotch pudding mix, butter and egg. Press into an ungreased 9 x 13 pan and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until set

In a large saucepan, combine caramels and evaporated milk. Cook over medium heat, continuously stirring until caramels are melted. Remove from heat and stir in nuts and vanilla extract.

Pour caramel over cookie crust and top with butterscotch chips.

Cool completely, cut into small squares and serve with a giant glass of milk.

 

I found this recipe on Pinterest, my newest obsession.