Ooey Gooey S'mores Bars

I hope you and the kids are having fun celebrating S'mores this week! Here's a quick and easy recipe with all of the magical ingredients of S'mores!

What You Need:
1 (1-pound 1.5-ounce) pouch sugar cookie mix (I use Betty Crocker®)
1 cup graham cracker crumbs (about 12 squares)
1 cup butter or margarine
3 cups milk chocolate chips
4 1/2 cups miniature marshmallows 

Make It:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. About 12 squares of graham crackers will make about one cup of crumbs. Have the kids place the graham crackers in a zippy bag and roll with a rolling pin until they have fine crumbs. Kids love rolling, stirring and whisking!

Use a large bowl and let the kids dump in the cookie mix and the graham cracker crumbs. Whisk dry ingredients together until well blended (or until the kids are tired of whisking)!

Place butter in a small bowl and melt in the microwave.  Stir the melted butter into the dry ingredients a soft dough forms. Let those "little hands" press into an ungreased 13x9-inch pan until flat (it doesn't need to be really smooth).

Bake about 18 minutes or until graham cracker crust is set. Remove from the oven (adult helper needs to be very close here)... immediately sprinkle chocolate chips over crust (depending on the age of the kids, determine who does this step). Let stand 4 or 5 minutes or until chocolate starts to melt. Using the back of a large spoon, spread chocolate evenly over crust.

Set oven to broil. Sprinkle the marshmallows over the top of the chocolate. Broil about 6 inches from heat for only about 20 seconds... watch carefully as you want the marshmallows to just be toasty and they will continue to cook a bit when removed from broiler).

Cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack. Serve warm.

If you want to have a super sweet treat, serve with a scoop of marshmallow ice cream (vanilla works too)!
Makes 24 bars

Ooey Gooey Yum!
S'more Fun Cooking with Kids!
Jan McCracken, Culinary Coach

Fudgey S'more Monkey Bread!

Let's continue our S'mores Celebration with really ooey gooey and yummy recipe!

Are you ready to get messy? The kids will love it! Make sure they have on aprons or chocolate-proof shirts!

What You Need:
13 refrigerated buttermilk biscuits (Note: This will require 2 cans/one w/8 biscuits & one w/5 biscuits... Grands Homestyle is what I used)
1/2 cup butter
13 large marshmallows
1/2 cup hot fudge ice cream topping
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon dark baking cocoa
Butter for greasing pan

Make It:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a Bundt pan and set aside. Cut all 13 biscuits into quarters; set aside.

Use a large microwave-safe bowl. Let the kids put the  butter, marshmallows, hot fudge topping and vanilla in the bowl. They can put the bowl in the microwave and set it. (Let them do as much as possible, okay?) Microwave (uncovered) on High 1 to 2 minutes, stirring once, until melted. Using wire whisk, stir until smooth.  Note: Please do not let the kids stir the hot ingredients! Set aside to let it cool a bit (the mixture needs to cool enough so it is safe for the kids to work with).

Meanwhile, let them combine the sugar and the cocoa in a medium bowl stirring until well blended (Kids love to stir and whisk!

Spread out some waxed paper for the kids to work on (you won't be sorry)!

At this point, I would advise the adult helper to place 1/4 of the biscuit pieces into the chocolate mixture and gently fold in to coat with chocolate. The add another 1/4 of the biscuits and repeat.

Now hand over the tongs to the kids... they are gonna love this... Remove the biscuits from the chocolate, using tongs,"patiently" letting excess chocolate drip off. Drop each biscuit piece, one at a time into sugar mixture. Spoon the sugar over the biscuit to coat. Then layer the biscuits (one at a time) in the Bundt pan. Repeat until all of the biscuits have been sugared and layered in the pan. If there is any sugar mixture left, sprinkle it over the biscuits.

Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until biscuits are a deep golden making sure they are not doughy in center. Remove from the oven and cool in pan for 5 minutes. Now the adult helper can place plate upside down over the Bundt pan and carefully turn plate and pan over. The kids eyes will be big and round! Remove pan and immediately scrape any remaining topping in the pan onto the top of the bread. Pull apart warm bread and serve with milk! YUM!
Makes 12 servings (yeah, right)! 

S'more getting kids into the kitchen!

Jan McCracken, Culinary Coach