Tweed Bars

I know that it's scorching outside and you have every right to avert your eyes after you skim this posting and see that I've turned on my oven for this (boo).   I completely understand if you want to move onto a blog that posts a chilly, no-bake appetizer, dinner, and dessert.  I kinda want to do that too!

There's someone in my kitchen that continues to roast vegetables, cook grains, and bake.  There's someone here that tries mightily to use the oven for many recipes or parts thereof with just one turn-on.  This someone's efforts are to produce meals for a few days with minimal oven usage subsidizing with those easy throw-together crispy fruit and veggie salads, quick stovetop heating (if necessary), and microwave assistance.  We could go out to eat, you say?  Yes, but... I really like being in the kitchen and I do really resist overuse of the oven in summer's prime.

So in the crushing heat of the summer, I bake and roast at the same time.  I plan for this in the morning.  Cookies or bars, corn or beets, potatoes or eggplant, peppers or garlic. They.all.go.in.simultaneously.  Yes, the cookies likely come out first, and yes, the oven temperature might have to be adjusted for the veggies, but I think overall oven time is reduced.  Rest assured that this little number above was not alone, but nestled in with other oven food friends, providing parts of future meals yet to be assembled.

Why tweed???  Well, the bars have that speckled look that is a hallmark of some tweed fabric like this one.  The speckles are due to Heath Bar bits, but you could achieve a similar look using mini chocolate chips (or a combo of both).

So very easy to put together, this shortbread can be baked in a pie pan as you see above, an
8 X 8 square pan, or round cake pans. The key to serving shortbread is to score while still warm. Once cooled your portion shapes will abide by your wishes.  If you wait until the shortbread is completely cooled, your pieces may shatter and crumble into their own shapes.

Notes

1.  I usually cut the mentor recipe in half to yield only one tweed bar cake.

2.  Because of the look, I used a glass pie pan.  It travels well too.

3.  The photo below illustrates the light scoring of the warm shortbread.  The resulting triangular pieces were perfect.

4.  I cut the butter down to one-half stick for ease.

5.  How do I measure 3/8 cup sugar?  Measure 1/4 cup first, place it in with the butter, and then fill the 1/4 cup up halfway (as best you can).  That's 1/4 + 1/8 = 3/8 cups

6.  How do I measure 1 and 1/6 cup flour?  Well, measure the one cup, and fill your 1/3 cup up halfway.  That's 1 + 1/6 = 1 and 1/6 cups

7.  I used the Heath brand of toffee pieces.  They did not need any additional chopping.

8.  During the month of July, I made this recipe a few times.  On one occasion, I was short on toffee pieces and so modified with mini chocolate chips to accommodate.  You will see these chips in some photos.  Still good!

Tweed Bars
Yield from a pie pan: 12
Mentor recipe

4 Tablespoons salted butter (1/2 stick), room temperature
3/8 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 and 1/6 cups ap flour
1/2 teaspoon salt, optional
3/4 cups of chopped pieces of chocolate covered toffee

Directions

1.  Preheat the oven to 300ºF.  Grease your pan of choice (or line with parchment paper).

2.  In your mixer, beat together butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add vanilla and mix.

3.  Add in the flour and salt, if using.  Mix until dough comes together.

4.  Add in toffee bits.  Mix.

5.  Pick up the dough from the bowl and press it into the pan, leveling and smoothing with your fingers.

6.  Using a fork and spoon, prick the dough and add visual touches.  For example, crimp the edge as if this were a pie, press the spoon's tip into the dough to make pretty indentations, or use your fingers to push the dough into small ridges.  You decide what looks nice!

7.  Bake the Tweed Bars for about 40 minutes until golden.

8.  Remove and set on a wire rack to cool.  After 5 minutes, lightly score your pieces with a knife.

9.  When completely cool, a sharp knife cutting through the scored lines will give you the pieces you want.

These were made with mini chocolate chips and toffee bits!