If there’s one thing you guys have probably learned about me by now it’s that when it comes to cooking, I don’t do complicated.
Well, fine, okay. I make these avocado egg rolls, and those are admittedly complicated. But I only make them once a year.
On a regular Shabbat, though, I like good food, healthy food, simple food. Salads, dips, interesting sides, yes. But not ones that call for dozens of ingredients (none of which I regularly stock in my pantry) or more than 10 steps!
So rest assured: If I’m sharing a recipe with you, you can bet it’s simple. E.A.S.Y. Which brings me to today’s post.
A few months ago, I wanted to make chocolate chip cookie bars, but I didn’t have any margarine.
I had never baked them without margarine, so I turned to my trusty friend Google. And wouldn’t you know it, my friend Miriam’s fantastic blog, Overtime Cook popped up.
Only her recipe was for Chocolate Chip Cookies, Without Margarine or Butter. And you know I didn’t want to make cookies, because — hello — too time consuming.
So, I tinkered. I removed the cornstarch. I increased her measurements a bit (since with her original measurements, I was only getting 1 1/2 pans-worth). And then I landed at this: The Easiest Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars Without Margarine or Butter! I’ve made them six times since then, and every time, they have turned out perfectly.
Easiest Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars (Without Margarine)
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 3 eggs
- 3 3/4 cups flour
- 1 bag of chocolate chips (if you’re really gung ho about chocolate, you could add in another 1/2 a bag, but I find that 1 bag is actually enough)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375ºF. Spray 2 9×13 baking pans (I usually use the disposable ones from Costco).
- With an electric mixer or KitchenAid, beat together oil and sugars until creamy.
- Add vanilla, baking soda, and eggs, and mix well. Add flour, mixing until just combined. Add chocolate chips and stir by hand.
- Put mixture into the prepared pans. (By the way, there’s probably a more elegant way to do this, but for me, “put” means scrape it out, plop it in, then pat it down with clean fingers.)
- Bake for 25-30 minutes until set. I like to under-cook mine a bit. They should be golden brown on top and spring back when you touch them with your finger (I know some use a toothpick, but I’ve always found the spring-back test to be more reliable.) These will “harden up” a bit more once you remove them from the oven.
- Let the pan cool, then flip it out onto a large cutting board. Use a serrated knife (or not, but I find that serrated is easier) to cut them in half length-wise. Then cut them into 1-inch strips.
Do you make cookie bars – aka blondies – without margarine or butter? What’s your recipe?
I made these at the last minute on friday afternoon (thanks for posting it!). I made them with olive oil instead of vege oil which was fine but it needed more salt. Not sure if it was bc of the oil or not.
This recipe is great. What makes it even better is to add some instant coffee granules and sprinkle some sea salt on top. Yum!!
YUM!!!
I found this recipe when I searched for “chocolate chip bars with oil.” Oil is so much easier to work with than butter. Your recipe was simple to divide in three to fill a 9” square pan. These bars are delicious and I will definitely make them often!
Awesome! Thank you so much for this positive review 🙂
How perfect…I am making these to have in the Synagogue’s freezer. Sweets are always necessary for Shabbat.
Enjoy!