SEVEN LAYERS OF YUM

Dessert bars are the lazy man’s (or woman’s) cookie and this is the first one I remember making. I was around 11 years old and used to spend a lot of time with the girl down the street. Her mom was my perception of the perfect Betty Crocker. Her house was spotless, she loved to garden, and she was a great cook! Growing up you could easily find these at bakeries and restaurants too. The always went by different names, 7-layer bar, Hello Dolly bars and the most common – magic bars.

I’ve seen many versions. The first layer varied from shortbread cookies, graham crackers and even corn flakes (the non-frosted kind). One could vary the chips but one thing was always a constant – the can of sweetened condensed milk! I guess that’s why they called it magic. It was the sugar and binder in one. The sticky gooeyness is best with a cold glass of milk.
 

INGREDIENTS

• 1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs
• ½ cup butter, melted
• 1 cup butterscotch morsels
• 1 cup dark chocolate morsels
• 1 cup coconut flakes
• 1 cup walnuts
• 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

PREPARATION

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a 9x13 baking pan and set aside.
2. Combine crushed graham cracker crumbs and butter and evenly spread on the 9x13 baking dish.
3. Evenly sprinkle each of the following: butterscotch morsels, dark chocolate chips, coconut flakes, and walnuts.
4. Pour the sweetened condensed milk evenly over the layers.
5. Bake in preheated 350° oven for 30 minutes or until the edges are golden brown and the center is set.
6. Allow to completely cool before slicing into squares. Yum!

SHRIMP SCAMPI

The only story here is that my husband loves shrimp and what is better to serve with it than garlic and butter. This is such an easy recipe it takes under 1/2 hour to prepare. 

INGREDIENTS

• 5 Garlic Cloves (minced)
• ¼ Cup Butter
• ¼ Olive Oil
• ½ Cup Cherry Tomatoes
• ¼ White Onion, (sliced thin)
• 1 lb Shrimp (peeled, deveined & tail removed)
• ¼ Cup Lemon Juice
• ½ teaspoon Black Pepper
• ½ teaspoon Salt
• ¼ Cup Fresh Basil
• ½ Red Bell Pepper (sliced thin)
• ½ lb Angel Hair Pasta (cooked, hot)
• Parmesan Cheese (freshly grated)

PREPARATION

1. In a large skillet sauté garlic in butter and olive oil until fragrant.
2. Add onions and tomatoes. Cook until soft and tomatoes can be smashed.
3. Add shrimp, lemon juice, pepper and salt and cook until shrimp is pink.
4. Turn off fire, add basil and red bell pepper.
5. Serve on top of hot angel hair pasta and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.