Red velvet-chocolate chip cookie bars

I believe that love can be created in the kitchen. Well, maybe not love, itself, but expressions of love certainly can be.

When I look back on the gifts my children have given me over the years, the most memorable and valuable ones to me were the things that they created, wrote, or worked to purchase. They’re the things that cost more, emotionally speaking, and they mean something. I’ve enjoyed bottles of body spray, but I’ve cried over three sentences on a card. I’ve eaten the contents of a heart-shaped box of chocolate, but I’ve clutched a poem to my heart and have saved it forever to read again and again. The little flowers the chubby little boy hands gave me for my birthday just moments after they were plucked from the garden meant as much to me than a $200 bouquet of the most fragrant roses.

Now, Valentine’s Day has come to a close for 2016, and it’s been a great reminder to tell those around us that we love and appreciate them, not just in words, but also in actions. And not just on February 14, but everyday.

One easy way you can do that is to make someone you care about a special treat. 🙂 That always does it for me! These red velvet-chocolate chip cookie bars are delicious and simple to make. They’ll be devoured, you’ll see.

Red velvet-chocolate chip cookie bars

Ingredients:

Chocolate chip cookie dough (make your own from scratch or use one roll of pre-prepared dough)

1 box of red velvet cake mix

1 1/3 sticks of salted butter, melted and cooled some

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Powdered sugar for dusting

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8×8″ square baking pan with cooking spray.

2. Press cookie dough into bottom of pan, to cover. Make it as even as possible.

3. Bake cookie dough 15 minutes, then remove from oven and allow to cool

4. In medium bowl, whisk together cake mix, melted butter, vanilla extract and eggs until combined.

5. Spread the cake batter over the cookie dough crust. Smooth with offset spatula. Bake for 25-30 more minutes.

Bars are ready when toothpick inserted into center come out clean. Allow to cool before cutting, and sprinkle with powdered sugar for presentation.

Tip: Line your pan with foil before spraying with cooking spray. Leave overhang on two sides to make removal of cooled bars easier. Place on cutting board to cut into 12 squares.

Based on a recipe found at Pillsbury.