The Motherlode

Over the weekend, we went to a BBQ with some of Justin's family, and I decided to make some dessert bars. I thought about telling everyone that they were a secret family recipe. 'Cause it would be kind of fun to have a secret family recipe that everyone always wanted. But even if I told everyone that, I'm sure I'd end up giving them the "secret" recipe anyway....'cause I feel like recipes are for sharing. And share I will...

Let me introduce you to the "Motherlode Layered Cookie Bar" from Picky Palate. Man, I wish my layers looked as good as hers do! But mine don't, probably because I didn't follow her recipe exactly. Basically, the idea is that you take four different kinds of cookie dough, layer 'em, and bake 'em. We have a peanut allergy in the family, so I did Sugar Cookie, Chocolate Chip, Double Chocolate, and Oreo Cookies. We had to bake ours for about 47 minutes, with foil over the pan for the last 20 minutes.

I did use refrigerated dough for two of the layers, and I found it hard to get the dough to spread over the entire 9 x 13 pan. The two other layers had the little extra melty fudge pieces, which probably contributed to the indistinguishable layers. Either way, they were good. Really good. So good that I begged Justin to take the leftovers to work, so that they would not be here to tempt me. He did not. And now the one bar that you see is all that is left.