Yesterday I spent more time than I’d like to admit working on redesigning my blog. I took a basic template that I found elsewhere and started playing with the HTML in order to personalize it. Of course, thinking I’d be able to finish it this weekend was a wee bit ambitious–I’m going to put it aside and plan on going live with it next week.
I did manage to squeeze in some time for baking yesterday. In my ongoing quest to use up pantry items before we move in June, I found a recipe for Chocolate Gingerbread Bars that used several ingredients we had on hand–we only needed to buy sour cream and eggs. This alone is enough to make any recipe a winner in my book. Oh, and the bars tasted great! And they were easy! So there’s three reasons to love this recipe.
I’ll include the recipe here–as I mentioned above, it’s not mine. I got it from Everyday Food, one of my favorite cooking magazines (even if a certain blogger I know is mad at Martha Stewart right now for stealing her bottle cap magnet idea!). I love Everyday Food because the recipes tend to be quick and simple to make (as the name of the magazine implies), and they almost always turn out well too.
Chocolate Gingerbread Bars
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for pan
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, plus more for pan
3/4 cup all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup unsulfured molasses
1 large egg
1/4 cup sour cream
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips (I used a chopped dark chocolate bar I had on hand)
confectioners’ sugar for dusting
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter an 8 inch square baking pan. Line bottom with a strip of parchment paper, leaving an overhang on two sides; butter paper. Dust paper and sides of pan with cocoa; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together cocoa, flour, ginger, pumpkin pie spice, and baking soda; set aside.
