Chili Lime + White Chocolate Macadamia Bars

     I have been thinking about bars a lot recently. No, not like pull up bars, nor the bars at the trendy ballet classes, or even the bars that fill you with beer and margaritas. I mean, I have been on a complete cake fixation for months, and then about two weeks ago, it hit me- I wanted my dessert to be in bar form. Particularly, brownies were becoming an obsessive thought. How to make the perfect fudgy brownie? I researched and read up on the science of brownies from the classic sources of chocolate knowledge. It was settled; I would go home one night and make a big batch of brownies, open a red wine and relax. 

     I had the chocolate in hand, walked into the kitchen and all of a sudden, I remembered a recipe I had promised to come months ago when my step-mom bought me a bag of macadamia nuts. I had white chocolate. The wheels started to turn. I no longer wanted brownies; I wanted white chocolate macadamia nut bars. I put away the semi-sweet and replaced it with a bag of white. The ideas started to flow...about an hour later, out came these.

      I disregarded all my thoughts of brownies the moment the chili and sugar coated the macadamias and wafted up at me. By the time they came out of the oven, all I wanted was the rich, buttery squares in front of me. The macadamias are toasted in butter, sugar, and chili and achieve a rich creaminess of their own. They provided the perfect amount of buttery crunch, with tingles of chili in every bite. Occasionally, you get a stronger chili-punched mouthful, but its softened and sweetened by the white chocolate melted throughout. The small chips allow the flavor of white chocolate to never overpower, but only hold in check all the strong flavors vying for your attention. Balancing the bar with their unique sweetness.

     The lime adds a bright fun flavor with the same sensation of the chili-prevalent in every, bite but with strong burst hidden throughout. The chili and lime create a competing warm and cool liveliness on your tongue, dancing around in the sweet, the butter, and the hints of salt. Although this is technically a Blondie, the browned butter yields a dark colored bar. It ups the creaminess significantly and adds a nutty richness. I mean honestly, it does what browned butter does best-just makes everything so much freaking better. These are not as chewy as a traditional Blondie, but they are not at all cakey. Instead they mirror their cousin, the cookie, more than I realized was even possible in a bar. I did not realize what that could be until I made these. They are delightful-so delightful and addictive, I made them twice in four days. I admit to that proudly. 

Inspired by the Beekman 1802 Heirloom Dessert Cookbook's "White Chocolate Macademia Nut Blondies" 

Ingredients: 

1 C flour

1/2 TSP baking soda 

1/2 TSP salt

1/2 C (1 stick) butter + 1 TBSP

1 egg

3/4 C brown sugar 

3/4 C macadamia nuts 

3/4 C white chocolate chips (mini are great)

1 TSP sugar (or brown sugar)

1 1/2 TSP chili powder*

Zest of one lime 

*You can use 1 TSP to 2 TSP depending on your palate preferences and the freshness of your chili powder. If it is brand new, then go lighter, if it is older, you can use the larger amount. 

Instructions: 
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F and prepare and 8x8 pan by lining it with aluminum foil and oiling it. 

2. Place the macadamia nuts, chili powder, 1 TSP white sugar, and 1 TBSP butter in a pan, until the butter is melted, the nuts are toasted and the sugar and chili powder caramelize and coat the nuts. The mixture will be fragrant of sweet chili.

3. Remove from the pan and place in a separate bowl to cool. 

4. Wipe out the pan and return it to medium heat on the stove. Add the stick of butter and melt then cook over medium heat until foam forms, goes away and the butter browns to a nutty color and aroma. Pull immediately, move it into another bowl and whisk to cool it quickly and prevent from further cooking. 
5. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
6. Add the brown sugar to the butter and mix until combined.
7. Gently mix together one egg to break the yolk and then stir it into the butter and sugar. Be careful not to over mix here as these bars are prone to a lot of air and you want to avoid creating a meringue effect with an over beaten egg. 
8. Stir in the flour mixture, followed by the nuts, white chocolate, and lime zest. The batter will be dark from the brown butter and a thick, sticky mass.
9. Dump the dough into the pan and spread it out with your fingers to an even top. 
10. Bake for 25 minutes, remove from the oven and allow cooling for 10 minutes before taking the bars out of the pan. Allow cooling for 10 more minutes, then cut into squares using a sharp knife or pastry cutter.

Love,

   Boulder Butter 

Savory Bread Pudding

     My friends and I are lucky enough to get to spend some weekends together in a wonderful little town in Colorado called La Veta. Weekends in La Veta are about as happy and peaceful as you can get: not a plan in sight, except certainly a game called Z Ball, art projects, time in nature, and most definitely delicious food. As a group, we divide and conquer meals and everyone always brings tantalizing meals. It is a time of feasting, grazing, and best of all, sharing.

      Eating is wonderful, as is getting to cook, but there is a massive amount of joy that comes along with getting to feed other people. It is a small way to give them a part of yourself, your love, and your appreciation. There has been a rise in the trend of people eating on the fly, or while distracted by books and technology. However, I believe that this same rise has sparked a feeling of increased community when we do make the time to come together.

        Getting to feed a crowd is a wonderful treat because you get to share your heart with many in a moment of gratitude for each other, a warm belly, and the gifts of the earth. This recipe is a way that anyone can get to enjoy that amazing feeling. It is warm, comforting, filling, and homey. However, it is also very easy to make and a great way to feed a crowd without spending tons of money. You can serve it warm out of the oven at breakfast, alongside some fruit and a hot cup of coffee. Then the leftovers make a perfect lunch of dinner alongside a simple salad of greens.

        Bread Pudding is most often associated with sweetness, but I am telling you, a savory bread pudding will bring out a whole new meaning to this in your mind. It is cheesy and custardy bread, with thick pieces that still have some bite to them on top. There is brightness from the vegetables that add a depth of flavor as well as a balance to the heartiness of the dish. The spices add a nice pick me up, which compliment beautifully with the cheese. Sinking you teeth in feels like soulfulness and it continues on that way all the way down to your belly. I am telling you, sweet bread pudding is fine and good, but its time to give it a twist and see just what a different potential eggs, milk and bread hold together. A perfectly, messy scoop of this in a bowl is a non-pretenscious breakfast path to a person's heart. 

*Makes 1 full 3 quart (9x13) dish
Ingredients:  
3-4 baguettes
2-4 TBSP olive oil
1 small to medium yellow squash, cut into small quartered pieces
1 small to medium zucchini or mexican squash, cut and quartered
1 jalapeno, deseeded and diced
3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1/2 medium onion, diced
1 C grape tomatoes, halved
1/4 TSP salt + extra for sautéing veggies
1/4 TSP pepper + extra for sautéing
1/4 TSP chili powder + extra for sautéing
2 3/4 C whole milk
8 eggs
1 C shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions:

1. Dice the baguettes into rounds and then quarter them, so they are in medium-sized chunks. Lay them out for 8-24 hour to allow them to stale. You can speed up this process by putting them in the oven at 350 for 20 minutes, and then continuing to let them stale for a few hours, making sure they cool completely.

2. Preheat your pan, add the oil, then the onions, and lightly salt and pepper them. Sauté until they become translucent lightly. Next add the jalapeno, garlic, and squashes, and continue to sauté them. Finally turn off the heat and add the cherry tomatoes, mixing them so they just barely cook in the residual heat. Salt and pepper to taste.

3. Once the veggies have completely cooled, add them and the cubed bread to a greased baking dish, mixing together to distribute evenly.

4. In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs; then add the milk, salt, and pepper, and whisk until combined. Finally, add the cheese and give a final whisk to mix it in.

5. Pour the mixture over the bread, cover with tinfoil, and refrigerate the pudding for 8-24 hours.
6. Remove the pudding from the refrigerator and allow it to warm up for 30 minutes; meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350.
7. Bake the pudding for 34-45 minutes, until it has fully set and the top has lightly browned.
8. Remove from oven and allow cooling for 10 minutes before digging in...and then going back for seconds.