2.03.2012

Snickery Squares


Eeek!  Super Bowl weekend has finally arrived and uh, I have quite a bit to get done!  Why do things always seem to creep up on me like this?

At the request of a couple of our friends [cough, Hollyann/Brandon, cough], Robbie and I will be hosting a small, small Super Bowl get-together this Sunday, filled with lotsa food and [hopefully] one dang good football game.  We had some people over last year as well and apparently they had an okay time, because they wanted to do it again.  Honestly, I think Robbie and I are quite boring but I'm glad our friends don't think so :)


But now that I think about it, maybe it has nothing to do with Robbie and I?  Maybe it has to do with the fact that Hollyann and I [try to] pull out all of the stops for our friendly gatherings, conjuring up a spread for two weeks 24/7 of delicious foods that we don't normally get and making sure we tell each and every one of our potential guests what we'll be having.  Ha, talk about bribing our way into friendships.

We decided that we're going all out Mexi-themed this year.  Yes, Mexi.  Hollyann was all about it because she has some great homemade recipes from her mom that she's eager to share and I would never turn down an opporunity to gorge munch on anything related to Mexican cuisine.  I've been told by my parents more than once in my life that I'm a Mexican at heart.  So here's our spread:

Nacho Bar
Homemade Tamales
Homemade Refried Beans
Homemade Guacamole
Pina Colada Dip
Pie [TBD, any suggestions?!]
    Oh yeah, did I mention we're having a max of seven people over?  Looks like we're going to have some leftovers.  But can you blame us, Hollyann and I rarely have the opportunity to plan 'events' like this, so like I said, we go all out.  We love doing it and we just want to make sure the boys don't go hungry.  Yeah, that's our excuse.  The boys.


    But anywho, I realize many of you haven't been obsessing over a Super Bowl spread the last few weeks, so I thought this would be a great opportunity to share an All-American goodie for one of America's greatest past times: Snickey Squares!

    I made these little candy bar-esque goodie for Robbie to take into work last Saturday.  Uh huh, Saturday.  I think I mentioned this before, but Robbie is officially in 'busy' season and Saturday's are not off limits for work.  So ever since he started his job, I brought it upon myself to start a little tradition to make something for him to bring into the office every weekend.  Just a little sugary snack to brighten up those accountants' days.


    Now I must warn you, these are not straight up Snickers Bars as they do not contain any nougat (boo hoo).  Rather, the shortbread crust is topped with a filling of gooey dulce de leche and candied peanuts, and finished with a generous layer of chocolate and more candied peanuts.  I think a more accurate title would be 'The Cousin of Snickers' Squares.

    So for those of you still lacking a sweet in your Super Bowl Sunday meal, why not take a chance with these babies?  I mean, whoever went wrong with a Snickers? 

    Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend, Robbie and I have much to do in preparation for the big game, so I'll see you all next week!  .

    My Notes:
    • I personally thought these are the absolute best straight out of the refrigerator.  Otherwise when they're room temperature, they had a tendency to kind of fall apart.


    Ingredients:
    Crust:
    1 c. all purpose flour
    3/4 c. sugar
    2 tbsp. powdered sugar
    1/4 tsp. salt
    1/2 c. unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
    1 large egg yolk, lightly beaten

    Filling:
    1/3 c. sugar
    3 tbsp. water
    1 c. salted peanuts
    1 can dulce de leche

    Topping:
    7 oz. semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
    4 tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into pieces

    Directions:
    1. Heat oven to 350°F.  Spray 8-inch square pan with non-stick cooking spray.  Set aside.
    2. For crust, put the flour, sugar, powdered sugar, and salt into food processor and pulse a few times to combine.  Add cold butter pieces and pulse until mixture looks like coarse meal.  Pour the yolk over the mixture and pulse until dough forms clumps and curds (stop before the dough comes together in a ball).
    3. Turn out the dough to the prepared pan and gently press evenly across the bottom.  Prick the dough all over with a fork.  Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until the crust takes on just a little color around the edges.  Transfer pan to rack and cool to room temperature before filling.
    4. For filling, set aside a parchment-lined baking sheet.  Put the sugar and water in a saucepan and cook over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves.  Keeping the heat fairly high, continue to cook, without stirring, until it just starts to color.  Toss in the peanuts and immediately start stirring to coat the peanuts.  The sugar-covered peanuts will turn white and keep stirring until the sugar turns back to caramel.  Remove the pan from the heat and turn out the peanuts onto the prepared baking sheet and spread in a even layer.  Cool peanuts to room temperature.
    5. When cool, separate the peanuts into smaller pieces.  Divide the peanuts in half and finely chop one half of the peanuts for the topping.  Spread the dulce de leche over the crust and sprinkle with whole candied peanuts.  Gently press the peanuts into the filling.
    6. For topping, melt together the chocolate and butter in microwave.  Pour the chocolate over the filling, smoothing evenly with a spatula.  Sprinkle over finely chopped candied peanuts. Refrigerate the pan for 20 minutes to let topping set before cutting.
    Yield: 16 bars

    41 comments:

    1. Wow, Jess, these looks awesome! I am betting on those to go fast! :) Have fun on Sunday!

      ReplyDelete
    2. Yum! Talk about a gourmet candy bar, these are beautiful!!

      ReplyDelete
    3. WOW....I'd love for you to share this @CountryMommaCooks Link & Greet party going on now-Sunday midnight…

      ReplyDelete
    4. wow! Those sound awesome!! I love bars, and peanuts.... and dulce de leche!!!!

      ReplyDelete
    5. Brilliant! Look like brownies but better than brownies ;-)

      ReplyDelete
    6. okay so I am making these NOW! Seriously, for the superbowl. why not? They look delicious and sinful and just perfect! Great recipe to chose for the blog hop!

      ReplyDelete
    7. Lovely recipe,super delicious and perfect for Super Bowl!Absolutely Drool-worthy :)

      ReplyDelete
    8. well I am making these for tomorrows party. Everyone will be in a state of shock..I know they are expecting my same old dip...
      I am your newest follower..pls follow back if you can.
      Have fun!

      ReplyDelete
    9. Serious Yum! Love snickers bars and so these would be gone as fast as they were made. The photos make me drool :)sending #chocolatelove

      ReplyDelete
    10. Wow.. I can see why everyone wants to come watch the game at your house!! These are over the top gorgeous, sinful and delicious!!

      ReplyDelete
    11. These look incredible!! They'll have to wait until I have company over since we have a peanut allergy at work, but I'm seriously drooling!!

      ReplyDelete
    12. Those are gorgeous snicker bars, really! I hope your team one ;). I look forward to trying these out.

      ReplyDelete
    13. These look wonderful Jess! Lovely clicks too! :)

      ReplyDelete
    14. Jess, your Snickey Squares look awesome!

      Hope your Super Bowl Party went great. Mexican themes are fun and easy!

      The Rancher and I are having some college friends come next weekend. The menu planning has begun. It’s not finalized; we might have to add Snickey Squares.

      ReplyDelete
    15. Wow... looks soo yummy! I really wanna have a bite! AWESOME!! :)

      ReplyDelete
    16. I seriously want one of these now! And how fun that you send a treat with your husband every weekend. I bet his co-workers love you!

      ReplyDelete
    17. What a fun dessert for super bowl! Your hubby is a lucky guy to have you bake up some yummy treats! Stopping by and sending you some #chocolatelove!

      ReplyDelete
    18. Oh all those layers and textures, bet they tasted fantastic!

      ReplyDelete
    19. I hope you will join my Famous Linkz Party tomorrow. I so loved what you shared last week!!
      -Heather
      @ www.made-famous-by.com

      ReplyDelete
    20. Oops! Come share your stuff at my link party Friday! www.dwellonjoy.com. Have a great day!

      ReplyDelete
    21. @Crunchy Creamy Sweet Thank you! Hope you had a wonderful Super Bowl Sunday as well!

      ReplyDelete
    22. @Valerie Yes, they definitely are induglent! But very worth it :)

      ReplyDelete
    23. @macus! Oh I know, you can't really go wrong with that combination!

      ReplyDelete
    24. @Helena / Rico sin Az�car Haha much better than brownies ;) You get chocolate, caramel, and peanuts all in one!

      ReplyDelete
    25. @Soni Why thank you! I think they would make a great sports snack at any gathering :)

      ReplyDelete
    26. @momto8 Oh wow, thanks so much for stopping by and the add! I truly appreciate it. I'd love to hear if you made these!

      ReplyDelete
    27. My all-time favorite candy bar are snickers - you are making me drool! :)

      ReplyDelete
    28. Those bars look soooo yummy! I'd love for you to share them at my very first link party.
      Rachel
      http://adventuresofadiymom.blogspot.com/2012/02/terrific-tuesdays-link-party.html

      ReplyDelete
    29. these choco bars looks so chewy and delish! laveet!

      ReplyDelete
    30. Ohhhh dulce de leche...it's like you read my mind! I was looking for a dulce de leche recipe this evening to use as a filling for a cake I'm baking - have you made it home made before? Nice recipe!

      ReplyDelete
    31. i literally starting salivating as i started to read your post. now i'm craving a snickers bar! awesome touch with the dulce de leche! :) sending some #chocolatelove to you!

      ReplyDelete
    32. These look so delicious!! Thanks so much for joining us on "Strut Your Stuff Saturday." We loved having you and hope to see you back next Saturday with more great recipes! -The Sisters

      ReplyDelete
    33. Wow, these look just amazing! I love anything with peanuts, especially snickers. These look like extra chunky snickers, which would just be heavenly!

      ReplyDelete
    34. wow they look just like the ones in the book :) Would love to try some myself. sending you some #chocolatelove

      ReplyDelete
    35. Wow! snickers chocolatelove! These look fabulous!

      ReplyDelete
    36. these looks AMAZING...I have to try this!

      #chocolatelove

      Jen

      ReplyDelete
    37. Hi Jess! I've said it before but what are you doing to me? You always come up with the most gorgeous treats! It's a wonder you and your husband are the size of a house! You must work out, ALOT! LOL Thanks for linking up again last week at Thriving on Thursdays. I appreciate it so much and can't wait to see what you've been up to this week.

      Anne @ Domesblissity xx

      ReplyDelete
    38. Oh yum. So making these. Thanks for posting this!

      ReplyDelete