I thought it was only right that this be my first post because this it is my family’s go-to dessert recipe for every gathering and it’s still always my top choice when my Mom asks me what to bake for my birthday dinner!
I’m not sure how this recipe first came about (the recipe is mysteriously taped to the back of a note-card) but I’m sure glad it did because these buttery, chocolatey treats are easy to make, INCREDIBLY delicious and a perfect mix between a brownie and cookie texture (depending on the “egg” part of the recipe; see below notes). They’re great at room temperature or chilled for a stiffer texture (my brothers and Mom prefer it that way). I’ve made them for get-togethers with friends, for my best friend’s older sister’s engagement party, and someone always comes up to me asking “WHAT ARE THESE!?!” The ingredients are so straight forward, but no one can quite peg what they are! There’s also a ton of ways you can jazz them up (use a different kind of chocolate, add sprinkles, add nuts, etc.) but I’ve listed the classic recipe below because it just can’t be beat!
1 cup of butter or margarine, softened (I always use butter)
1 cup of brown sugar
1 egg yolk (Add whole egg if you prefer a fluffier consistency compared to the crumbly shortbread texture you get with just the egg yolk. A whole egg was used for the batch in the below photo.)
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups of flour
¼ tsp. salt
1 package of semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips (I use milk chocolate and my Mom uses semi-sweet; totally preference!)
½ cups of chopped nuts (Optional; I never add nuts)
- Heat oven to 350°F. Grease a 13×9 baking pan.
- Mix butter, sugar, egg yolk and vanilla until creamy. Blend in flour and salt.
- Press batter evenly into bottom of pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until very light brown (my oven takes closer to 25 mins but all ovens are different).
- Remove from oven and immediately place chocolate chips over top until the whole area is covered (add more if you prefer a thicker layer of chocolate on top). As soon as the chocolate chips are soft and begin to melt, spread evenly.
- Sprinkle with nuts (optional). Let cool and cut! Enjoy!