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You know what hours of endless brainstorming results in?
Combining two desserts to make one awesome… dessert love child. Dessert love childs are kind of a thing in the food blogging world.
Think about it. Without food bloggers we would not have the Better than Crack Brownies, 7 Layer Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars, Oatmeal and Chocolate Cookie Bars, Peanut Butter S’more 7 Layer Bars or Oreos stuffed in just about anything.
Dessert would be just plain boring with out us. I mean really, we all need brownies, ice cream and cookies rolled into one. Right?
Yeah, yeah. Dont answer that.
Seriously though, I thought these up because of my brother, Kai.
Poor broken Kai. It seems like he is always broken. This time it’s his collarbone, for the second time. He had surgery on it the other day, which totally gave me an excuse to make Special K-Bars. Cause obviously they are special. Oh and they are his favorite.
But then I went hiking……
The dot, dot, dots are my way of saying, oh no here I go. Cause when I go hiking, I brainstorm. Some things are just gross, somethings could be ok, but then there are some things that just work. These, these and these were all hiking creations.
Kai, he loves only three desserts. Yeah, three. Chocolate chip cookies (and just chocolate chip, no crazy add ins), Special K-Bars and cookie dough (the real stuff with eggs and all).
So yeah, you get where this is going. I put cookie dough in the K-bars. Minus the raw egg of course.
I used this dough recipe from the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cups I made earlier this year and it just so happens that they are like kind of, NOT all that bad for you. Yeah, skinny cookie dough.
And it’s actually good. Kai approved. Promise.
Here’s the funny thing. I presented these to Kai and he said, “what the heck, you put cookie dough in the K-Bars. Tieghan, come on you can’t do that. I want K-Bars and Cookie Dough, but I don’t want them together!”
Kai, he hates all love childs. The rest of us?
We love um. He’s just plain boring. Oh and since they’re “skinny” you can totally have like four, five, or maybe six!
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Special K-Bars
Ingredients
Special K-Bar
- 1 cup karo syrup, or brown rice syrup
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1/2 sugar
- 4 1/2 cups corn flakes
Cookie Dough
- 2 cups roasted, salted cashews
- 1/2 cup raw unsalted pecans
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons sucanat or brown sugar
- 1/2 tablespoons butter, softened
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
- 2 1/2 cups dark chocolate chips or milk chocolate chips
Instructions
- Grease 9×13 inch pyrex pan.
- Place cashews and pecans into a food processor and process until the mixture resembles a smooth nut butter, stopping to scrape down the side of the bowl if necessary. This can take 5 to 10 minutes of processing, so be patient.
- Process in the sugars, butter and vanilla. The sweeteners will at first thicken the nut butter quite a bit, but keep processing and the heat will eventually melt the sugar and smooth out the nut butter. Once again, if it still looks too thick, keep processing!
- Now here is the hard part – when your nut butter is finished processing, you need to pop it into the fridge to chill. If you don’t chill it, the chocolate chips will melt right into the nut butter and turn everything brown (yes, this happened!). Once it’s chilled, about 25 minutes, stir in the mini chocolate chips.
- While the "cookie dough" is cooling off, mix Karo syrup, peanut butter and sugar all together in large saucepan. Heat almost to a boil, being careful not to burn. Turn off heat and mix in corn flakes. Press into the greased pyrex pan.
- When the cookie dough is ready spread an even layer. Just do the best you can, I used my hands and patted the dough in that way.
- Melt the chocolate chips (I do mine in the microwave, heating on full power for 30 seconds, stir, 30 seconds again, and stir until melted). Pour the melted chocolate over the cookie dough and spread out in an even layer. Refrigerate at least 2 hour. Let the bars sit 15 minutes at room temperature before cutting. Dont freak if the top chocolate layer cracks. This is going to happen and there is nothing you can do about it. Store in the refrigerator.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
Addicting? Definitely.
Cookie dough combined with anything is good in my opinion, but these look so delicious! The pictures are beautiful, too. I like the glass of milk in the background.
Thank you! I hope you give these a try!
Yum, these look phenomenal! Love that you put K-Bars and cookie dough together. Pinned!
Thanks Rachel and thanks so much for pinning!
Gorgeous dessert bars! I especially love how you stacked those bars one on top the other into a tower. Pinned!
Thank you and thanks so much for pinning!
One of the earliest recipes on my site is my grandma’s recipe for Special K Bars and I love love love those things. That you’ve make S.K.Bars with cookie dough and that top choc layer….amazing! Love these!
OMG no way! I thought my family was the only special k-bars lovers!! My mom has made them ever since I can remember!
http://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2011/01/special-k-bars.html
Thats awesome! You grandma made them a little diffent than we do, but butter is always a good thing!
Oh my love these!! I would be too tempted if I made them.
Stopped by from Pin Me.
Alexis from Running Away? I’ll Help You Pack!
Thank you, you need to give them a try!
Another winner. Thanks for your great recipes. {and photos}
Thank you! So glad you like these!
These sound SO tasty! I guarantee that they are WAY better than a Special K bar any day!!
Ha! Thank you, they are a fun twist on the original!
Isn’t it wonderful when brainstorming works?!These look chewy and delicious! I wish I did my brainstorming while hiking. My brain does food thoughts at night. Not good for sleeping, but does produce occasional inspired thoughts. 🙂 Am I missing something,or do the Special K bars not have any Special K? Are the corn flakes better in this case or interchangeable?
I have no idea why these are called special k bars! That is just what I have always known them to be and my family has always used corn flakes. Go with corn flakes, the recipe is just soo good and I cant tell you what special k would taste like. Pretty funny right?
Yes, these are speaking to me right now “you must make me immediately!” I would love for you to share this (and any other recipes you may want) at what i am eating http://www.townsend-house.com/2013/04/what-i-am-eating-homemade-coconut-milk.html
Thank you!! Let me know if you make these!
I’d hang with your dessert love childs any ol’ day! I didn’t realize hybrid desserts were “a thing” until I started blogging too and by golly, I love it! One of the first posts I happened upon as a blogger were “slutty brownies” which I’m pretty sure are 4 or 5 desserts rolled into one massive hunk o’ love. In any case, I love your special K bars, keep up that hiking, deary!
Ha, thank Julia! Dessert love childs are the best!
Thanks Julia! dessert love child’s are the best!
Hahaha…. i love it… “dessert lovechilds” – too funny. Thanks for linking to my bars! These look awesome. Can’t go wrong with anything cookie dough in my book. 🙂
Of course Sally! Thanks so much for reading, you have some of the best dessert lovechilds I know of!
These look very addicting! Yum, Yum, Yum!
Thank you Meagan!
Wowza! Hiking is dangerous with you!
Yup! It sure is. The things I come up with! LOL
Those bars look and sound really good! I’ll take one tall stack of them to go! 🙂
Ha, thanks Kevin!!
OMG yum. Looks amazing!
Thank you!