Confetti Caramel Bars

When I was a kid, I loved nothing better than my Betty Crocker cookie book. One of my favourite recipe of all time in it is these Confetti Caramel Bars. I making them with a variety of different candy and nut combinations depending on the season and upcoming holidays.

Makes about 32 Bars

Bars

1 cup	225 g	Butter or Margerine
1 cup	145 g	Packed Brown Sugar
1 1/2 tsp	8 mL	Vanilla Extract
1	1	Large Egg
2 cups	250 g	All Purpose Flour

Caramel Topping

1/2 cup	240 mL	Light Corn Syrup
2 Tbsp	30 g	Butter or Margerine
1 cup	170 g	Butterscotch Chips
		Assorted Candy and/or Nuts

1. Preheart oven to 350 degrees F (150 degrees Celsius)
2. In a large bowl, mix together butter or margarine, sugar, vanilla extract and eggs until light and fluffy. Stir in flour.
3. Press mixture into a 9"x13" (23 cm x 33 cm) pan. Bake 22 minutes until light brown. Allow to fully cool.
4. In a saucepan, combine corn syrup, butter or margarine, and butterscotch chips. Place over medium heat until mixture boils. Stir occasionally.
5. Spread mixture over cooled cookie layer and immediately sprinkle with candy and nuts. Gently press toppings in place.
6. Cool until butterscotch mixture is firm and cut into bars.

*Note I have occasionally multiplied the caramel topping mixture from 1.5x to 2x. It works fine, but be warned that it does make the bars a little gooey, as once they are cut the caramel will spread over the edges a bit.

Haystack Cookies

These cookies are super tasty and take only minutes to make. I love their crunchy texture and simple flavour. During Christmas time, I like to call them Reindeer Haystacks.

Makes 12 cookies

1 cup	170 g	Butterscotch, Chocolate* or Peanut Butter Chips
1/2 cup	130 g	Peanut Butter**
1 cup	150 g	Peanuts
2 cups	90 g	Chow Mein Noodles

1. Using a microwave*** or a double boiler, melt peanut butter and chips together. Stir constantly until a uniform mixture is achieved.
2. In a large bowl, mix together peanuts and chow mein noodles.
3. Pour melted peanut butter mixture over the peanuts and chow mein noodles and stir until well coated.
4. Drop by spoonfuls onto wax paper, and allow to cool until set. For faster cooling, place cookies in fridge.

Notes:

*I find chocolate chips tend to make gooier cookies than the butterscotch or peanut butter chips. If you don't like sticky cookies, reduce the amount of peanut butter you add to about 1/4 cup or 65 g.

**While it may be healthier, stay away from natural peanut butter. Its much too oily and the cookies won't stick together.

***I find 3-4 minutes on medium low heat works well. If unsure, always remember less is more. I've burnt this recipe a few times and the results are rather unappealing.