Crunchy Salty Sweet

There are few things in life I like more than shortbread bar cookies. I especially love the ones with (preferably homemade) strawberry or raspberry jam and a slight dusting of powdered sugar. As soon as the seasons decide to ACTUALLY change here in Boston, and we’re blessed with some fresh fruit, I will be perfecting and sharing those little gems.

Until then, I give you another type of bar cookie, the s’mores bar. S’mores are up there with my favorite dessert combos, so when put into bar form, these are the bomb. The graham cracker shortbread crust, a thick layer of chocolate, and melty melty marshmallows come together to form (dare I say?) an even better version of the original.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Line a 9×13 pan with parchment paper, leaving a couple inches of overhang at each end.

Spray the parchment with cooking spray.

In a food processor, grind the graham crackers until fine.

In a bowl, mix together the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, sea salt, and brown sugar.

Press the crumbs (minus a heaping 1/2 cup, which you’ll save for the topping) into the pan and bake for 12-14 minutes.

In a double boiler (or glass/metal bowl laid over a pot with 1 inch of simmering water), add the chocolate chips and coconut oil. Stir occasionally, until the chocolate has melted thoroughly.

Preheat the broiler.

Pour the chocolate over the graham cracker crust and spread to cover the crust.

Sprinkle marshmallows on top of the chocolate. I didn’t have mini marshmallows, so instead, I some scissors to my jumbo marshmallows, and cut them into 6 pieces per marshmallow. It took about 14 marshmallows to get the 3 1/2 cups.

Then, sprinkle the reserved crumb mixture so it fills in all the empty spaces between marshmallows.

Broil the bars until the marshmallows are browned to your liking. It only took about 80 seconds for mine, so after you hit about 60 seconds, you’ll want to check them every 5-10 seconds because they’ll burn fast!

Let the bars cool to room temperature, and then place into the refrigerator until the chocolate firms up, about an hour or two.

Use the parchment to lift out of the pan, and then slice into bars.

I sliced them into 20 bars, but once I tasted how rich they were, I went ahead and halved them, giving me 40 perfect 3-bite desserts.

These are the perfect thing to bring your coworkers or any other potluck type event, if you can bear sharing!!

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Adapted from: Food Network

Makes: 40 small bars

Prep: 20 minutes, Cook: 20 minutes, Total: 40 minutes, plus cooling time

• 2 sticks unsalted butter, melted
• 18 graham crackers (2 sleeves)
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3 cups semi-sweet (or milk) chocolate chips
• 1 teaspoon coconut oil
• 3 1/2 cups marshmallows

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Line a 9×13 pan with parchment paper, leaving a couple inches of overhang at each end. Spray the parchment with cooking spray.

In a food processor, grind the graham crackers until fine.

In a bowl, mix together the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, sea salt, and brown sugar. Set aside 1/2 cup of crumbs (for the topping).

Press the crumbs into the pan and bake for 12-14 minutes.

In a double boiler (or glass/metal bowl laid over a pot with 1 inch of simmering water), add the chocolate chips and coconut oil. Stir occasionally, until the chocolate has melted thoroughly.

Preheat the broiler.

Pour the chocolate over the graham cracker crust. Sprinkle marshmallows on top of the chocolate, and then sprinkle the reserved crumb mixture so it fills in all the empty spaces between marshmallows.

Broil the bars until the marshmallows are browned to your liking. It only took about 80 seconds for mine, so you’ll want to check them every 5-10 seconds after 1 minute of cooking.

Let the bars cool to room temperature, and then place into the refrigerator until the chocolate firms up, about an hour or two.

Use the parchment to lift out of the pan, and then slice into bars. I sliced them into 20 bars, but once I tasted how rich they were, I went ahead and halved them.