Weekend Review.

The weekend turned out to be wonderful. The parties and dinners I hosted/organized went smoothly, and all three were really fun. I had a few girlfriends over for lunch on Saturday and my sister made the amazing sandwiches pictured above. Seriously incredible. (She is going to post the recipe tonight or tomorrow. You really need to check it out!) The neighborhood BBQ my friends and I organized was a great success. Lots of hot dogs and music and dancing. Other than the two times this weekend that I burst in to tears unexpectedly, it was marvelous.

Oh, the tears. I'm not sure what is with me lately. I'm really not much of a crier, but I've been a basket case. My poor husband and neighbor, Megan, who had to witness it. (And I'm not a pretty crier.) A combination of a few things, including my sister (best friend) moving to Nebraska in two weeks. The tears all started with that blasted camera incident. Hoping for a less weepy week.

Changing the subject to a happier note...I made a dessert this weekend. It is easy peasy and thrills even the pickiest of eaters. Great for a pot luck. It made a triple appearance this weekend: at the bbq, cooking club and a dinner party. I made three 9x13 cake pans of these babies and have no leftovers. I'm happy to say they were a hit.
PASSION BARS
2 cups quick cooking oats
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
3/4 cup peanut butter
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 inch baking pan.
In a large bowl, stir together the oats, flour, brown sugar, salt and baking soda. Cut in the butter to form a crumbly mixture. Reserve 1 1/2 cups of the crumbs, and pat the rest evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan. In a medium bowl, stir together the sweetened condensed milk and peanut butter. Spread evenly over the oatmeal layer. Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the peanut butter layer, then crumble the reserved crust over the top.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes in the preheated oven, until golden brown. Cool completely before cutting into bars.

Recipe and image courtesy of allrecipes.

14 comments

  1. My Mom used to make those! She called them 'Mystery Bars'. Looks like the same recipe. Yumm!

    Hope you have a better week.

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  2. I've had those bars before - they are so good they are dangerous - you can't eat just one!

    xo Erin

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  3. Hmmm....well your baby is too old for you to be post-partum....no? Maybe not. Or maybe you have another one on the way?! :) Or maybe you just really love your camera...and your sister.
    And...um....what happened to the health focus? Passion bars are not helping me. Sweetened condensed milk - sweet mother! I could eat that right outta the can with a spoon!
    Hope you have a less tearful week!

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  4. ha, Michelle. Sorry for the temptation. I have a theory on "dieting." You should never cut anything out of your diet. You should just eat it sparingly. I ate a tiny sliver of these after eating healthy all day. A little reward of deliciousness on the weekend is a-o-k by me.

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  5. Those open-faced sandwiches are so eye-catching! And YUM on the passion bars!
    oxox
    Denalee

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  7. I don't diet...anymore - been there, done that. I've made a lifestyle change. And I've had to admit to myself that I have zero self-control. Seriously: NONE. I can't eat a sliver of something. A sliver becomes a slice...becomes 2 slices....becomes the entire platter. No lie. That's why I'm 3x your size - don't let this happen to you - ROTFL So for me - I DO have to cut things out. However, I have lost um...16 pounds in just a few weeks...so I'm good. I actually LIKE seeing the pictures....and I love sweetened condensed milk. That could be on my once a month plan...sweetened condensed milk. Have you ever boiled the can? Boil the can...the inside gets REALLY thick and pasty...and you scoop it out with a spoon like peanut butter....

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  8. Oh, and Michelle. I forgot to address your first comment. I do not have PPD. I have a little thing called "only 2-3 hours of sleep a night for the past 2 weeks." Some craziness in my life has been keeping me up at all hours. When I'm this tired, the littlest things set me off.

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  9. Oh my gosh! I can see why they're called passion bars! This is a must try! I'm new here and really like you blog! I'll be back to see what's going on!

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  10. So it was you that brought those evil things to the party! Those were so delicious. and the reason you had no leftovers was because I could not stop eating them.

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  11. Oooo - but you didn't address the second part!! *giggles* But I'm glad you don't have post-partum...don't need that along with all the other stuff.

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  12. How in the heck do you spread the peanut butter/condensed milk?? I just popped these into the oven and the bottom layer is mangled due to my trying to spread the peanut butter mixture. I'm sure they'll still taste good, but man. That was one to raise my blood pressure!

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  13. Holly- haha. I put little mounds all over and then carefully smoosh it flat. It is kind of a pain, but they still taste yummy mangled!

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  14. These look a-maz-ing!!
    Thanks for your comment on my blog! I'm your newest follower :)

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