Black and White Toffee Bars

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened (or use 1/4 cup butter and 1/4 cup vegetable shortening
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
1cup (6-ounce package) Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels
1 cup (6-ounce package) White chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped toffee candy such as Almond Rocca

PREHEAT oven to 375° F. Grease 9-inch-square baking pan. COMBINE flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat sugar, butter and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Beat in egg; gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels and chopped toffee. Spread into prepared baking pan.BAKE for 20 to 23 minutes. Remove pan to wire rack. Cool completely in pan on wire rack; refrigerate for 5 to 10 minutes or until chocolate is set. Cut into bars.

White Chocolate and Walnut Blondie

Blondie

4 egg whites

½ cup butter, softened (1 stick)

½ cup light brown sugar, packed

 ¼ cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1¼ cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

½ cup milk

8 ounces white chocolate (cut into chunks)

½ cup chopped walnuts

Sauce

½ cup butter, softened (1 stick)

½ cup powdered sugar

¼ cup cream cheese, softened

2 tablespoons maple syrup

¼ teaspoon salt

8 scoops vanilla ice cream

½ cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

To make the blondie cake whip the egg whites until they are stiff and form peaks. Add softened butter, ½ cup packed brown sugar, ¼ cup granulated sugar, and vanilla and mix with an electric mixer until smooth.

In a separate bowl sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and ¼ teaspoon salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix well until smooth. Mix in milk, white chocolate chunks, and walnuts. Pour ingredients into a greased 9-by-13-inch baking pan and bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until cake is golden brown on top. Slice cake into 8 equal slices when cool.

While cake bakes, combine all ingredients for the sauce in a medium bowl with an electric mixer.

To prepare dessert, heat a small skillet on your stove over high heat for about 5 minutes. A cast-iron skillet is best. (You can also serve the dessert on a plate, but you’ll miss out on the showy sizzle.) Arrange the cake in the center of the skillet or plate. Heat up the sauce for 30 to 60 seconds in the microwave until hot. Place a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the cake, then drizzle some of the sauce over the top, followed by a tablespoon of chopped walnuts. Serve immediately.

Triple-Chocolate Fudge Brownies

 6 ounces fine-quality bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips In a metal bowl, set over a pan of barely simmering water melt the bittersweet chocolate and the unsweetened chocolate with the butter, stirring until the mixture is smooth, remove the bowl from the heat, and let the mixture cool until it is lukewarm. Stir in the sugar and the vanilla and add the eggs, 1 at a time, stirring well after each addition. Stir in the salt and the flour, stirring until the mixture is just combined, and stir in the chocolate chips.Pour the batter into a well-buttered and floured 13 by 9-inch baking pan, smooth the top, and bake the mixture in the middle of a preheated 350 degrees F. oven for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a tester comes out with crumbs adhering to it. Let the mixture cool completely in the pan on a rack and cut it into 24 bars.