Dessert bar

A bar made of coconut shavings, caramel, chocolate and butterscotch chips, almond pieces, and an Oreo cookie crust.

Dessert bars, or simply bars or squares, are a type of American "bar cookie" that has the texture of a firm cake or softer than usual cookie.^[1] They are prepared in a pan and then baked in the oven. They are cut into squares or rectangles.^[2] They are staples of bake sales and are often made for birthdays.^[3] They are especially popular during the holidays, but many people eat them all year. Many coffee shops and bakeries also offer the treats. They include peanut butter bars, lemon bars, chocolate coconut bars,^[4] pineapple bars,^[5] apple bars, almond bars, toffee bars,^[6] chocolate cheesecake bars^[1] and the "famous"^[2] seven-layer bar. In addition to sugar, eggs, butter, flour and milk, common ingredients are chocolate chips, nuts, raspberry jam, coconut, cocoa powder, graham cracker, pudding, mini-marshmallows and peanut butter.^[6] More exotic bars can be made with ingredients including sour cream, rhubarb, pretzels, candies, vanilla, raisins, and pumpkin.^[7]

Guidelines for bars and bars in Minnesota

Lemon bars

Though similar to cookies, bars are not considered cookies and require no dough measuring.^[2] Rice Krispie treats are considered bars in Minnesota, but a brownie is not a bar.^[2] Bars are considered one of two essentials for potlucks in Minnesota, the other being hotdish.^[7] According to You Know You're in Minnesota When...: 101 Quintessential Places, People, Events, Customs, Lingo, and Eats of the North Star State by Berit Thorkelson, the bar is a Minnesota staple and a "typical Minnesota dessert".^[2] Thorkelson notes that bars are not included in Webster's Dictionary, and the word pronunciation of the "ar" is with "a pirate-like arrr" followed by a soft clipped s.^[2]

Because of the frequent Minnesota practice of bringing "a pan of bars" to potlucks and other social occasions, the ingredient combinations and variety of bars is mind-boggling. For example, recipes for bars from a 2007 Betty Crocker book include not only chocolate in all its forms, but also apricot-almond bars, popcorn and peanut bars, and trail mix bars that are similar to the classic seven-layer bar.^[8]

Milestones in the history of the dessert bar

Bars topped with walnuts

In 1971 the wife of a maintenance man from Snohomish, Washington won the $25,000 Best-of-Bake-off prize for a rich dessert bar combining cake mix and pecans with other ingredients.^[9] In 1993 Betty Crocker added two new varieties to the four existing Supreme Dessert Bar line of baking mixes it introduced in 1992. The two new flavors, M&Ms Cookie Bars and Raspberry Bars, joined lemon bars, chocolate peanut butter bars and caramel oatmeal bars.^[3] In 2004 Krusteaz added a line of dessert bars to its selection of quick and easy baked goods.^[10] The U.S. Navy SEAL Guide to Fitness and Nutrition includes numerous bars in its "lightweight menus".^[11]

• Jello salad
• Hotdish
• Glorified rice
• Pistachio salad
• Nanaimo bar
• Coconut bars

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Bodger, Lorraine (2000). The Four-Sided Cookie. St. Martin's Griffin. ISBN 9780312206758. http://books.google.com/?id=sYjkkCedsCwC&pg=PA36&dq=dessert+bar#PPA38,M1. Retrieved 30 January 2009. 
2. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Thorkelson, Berit (2005). You Know You're in Minnesota When...: 101 Quintessential Places, People, Events, Customs, Lingo, and Eats of the North Star State. The Globe Pequot Press. ISBN 0762738952. http://books.google.com/?id=rWSpAJc0G64C&pg=PA4&dq=dessert+bar+minnesota. 
3. ^ ^{a b} "Betty Crocker adds two flavors to popular line of dessert bars". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 14 February 1993. http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=MWSB&p_theme=mwsb&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EB827AE99C4843D&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM. Retrieved 30 January 2009. "They've been staples of bake sales and school birthday treats for years. Technically they are cookies baked in a pan, but most people call them 'bars'." 
4. ^ Buckert, Emily (24 December 1998). "Good Taste: Quick Dessert Bar". The Victoria Advocate: p. 23. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=d94LAAAAIBAJ&sjid=V1YDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6559,5435802&dq=dessert+bar. Retrieved 30 January 2009. 
5. ^ "Pineapple Dessert Bar Makes Sweet Tidbit". The Hartford Courant: p. 23. 22 March 1977. http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/courant/access/968517032.html?dids=968517032:968517032&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&date=Mar+22%2C+1977&author=&pub=The+Hartford+Courant&desc=Pineapple+Dessert+Bar+Makes+Sweet+Tidbit&pqatl=google. Retrieved 30 January 2009. 
6. ^ ^{a b} Siegfried, Susie (2006). Church Potluck Carry-ins and Casseroles: Homestyle Recipes for Church Suppers, Family Gatherings, and Community Celebrations. Adams Media. ISBN 1593375492. http://books.google.com/?id=eQyVcmT_c7wC&pg=PA155&dq=dessert+bar. Retrieved 30 January 2009. 
7. ^ ^{a b} Fertig, Judith M. (1999). Prairie Home Cooking: 400 Recipes that Celebrate the Bountiful Harvests, Creative Cooks, and Comforting Foods of the American Heartland. Harvard Common Press. ISBN 1558321454. http://books.google.com/?id=eEMyNDQP4VEC&dq=seven-layer+bar. 
8. ^ Crocker, Betty (2007). Whole Grains: Easy Everyday Recipes. John Wiley and Sons. ISBN 0470080604. http://books.google.com/?id=fleouPV4XC8C&printsec=frontcover. 
9. ^ "Jeanne Voltz Cake Mix-Pecan Dessert Bar Wins Best-of-Bake-off Prize". The Los Angeles Times: p. H2. 10 February 1971. http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/669718382.html?dids=669718382:669718382&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&date=Feb+10%2C+1971&author=JEANNE+VOLTZ&pub=Los+Angeles+Times&desc=Cake+Mix-Pecan+Dessert+Bar+Wins+Best-of-Bake-off+Prize&pqatl=google. Retrieved 30 January 2009. 
10. ^ "Krusteaz dessert bar mix tastes homemade". The Spokesman-Review. 11 February 2004. http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=SR&p_theme=sr&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=100B81EE10A144C8&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM. Retrieved 30 January 2009. 
11. ^ Deuster, Patricia A., Ph.D., M.P.H.; Anita Singh, Ph.D., Pierre A, Peltier, ENS, MC, USNR (2007). The U.S. Navy SEAL Guide to Fitness and Nutrition. Skyhorse Publishing. p. 416. ISBN 1602390304. http://books.google.com/?id=m2zzqcoMEyQC&pg=PA416&dq=dessert+bar. Retrieved 30 January 2009.