Almond & Chocolate Five Layer Bars

These are a fun alternative to a typical five layer bar.  This is a nice recipe when you want something sweet with a bit of coconut, chocolate and almond all thrown together.   These are also really easy to whip together, and a perfect recipe for kids to be able to put together, since they'll love putting on all the layers of toppings.  Enjoy!

Gluten Free Five Layer Bars with Almonds and Chocolate

Almond & Chocolate Five Layer Bars
Makes a 9" x 13" pan

Preheat oven to 350F.

Mix together in a medium-sized bowl:
~2 cups brown rice cereal, half crushed
1/2 cup melted butter
1/2 cup sugar

Press into the bottom of a 9x13 pan. (You can line the pan with parchment paper, if desired, for easier cutting and clean-up).


Sprinkle overtop: 
1/2 - 1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup shredded coconut (unsweetened or sweetened)
1 cup mix of semi-sweet & milk chocolate chips

Toppings happily spread by my daughter.

Pour over-top as evenly as possible:
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Bake at 350F for about 25 minutes, until lightly browned around edges.  Cool and enjoy!

Gluten Free Five Layer Bars - Fresh from the oven. Cool on a cooling rack. 

Caramelized Almond Crunch Cookies

These are amazing!!! I based these on the almond wafer cookies sandwiched with chocolate sold at the Anne of Green Gables Chocolate Shop here on Prince Edward Island.  They call it 'Moo Munch'.  They are SO delicious.  It's a good thing they only come in small packages.  We love them!  I figured it was high time to figure out how to make them at home, so after some trial and error, we have success!  As you may note, the recipe doesn't make a huge number of cookies, so yes, you can double, triple, quadruple the recipe, as desired.  However, I find this number is perfect for those snack-time sweet-tooth munchies. Enjoy!

Doesn't that caramelized almond-chocolate goodness look amazing?! Yes, they are!

 

I applied to the Recipe to Riches show with this recipe - looking like these here.  I was a finalist in both Moncton and Toronto. Woohoo! (aka, these are tasty treats)

Caramelized Almond Crunch Cookies

Makes 7-8 sandwiched cookies

 

Preheat oven to 350F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Mix together in a bowl the following:

¼ cup slivered almonds, chopped into even smaller pieces

Chop slivered almonds so they look something like this.

2 Tbsp butter, softened

2 Tbsp sugar

1 tsp milk (lactose-free works well)

2 Tbsp Kristin’s gluten-free flour mix

1/8 tsp salt

1/8 tsp vanilla extract

 

Scoop small teaspoon-sized amounts onto the parchment paper, leaving ample room for them to spread.  Gently flatten each scoop into a 1 ½ - 2 inch diameter circle. (it doesn’t need to be perfectly neat.)  You will find you can only fit about 12 cookies per tray, so you’ll need to put another 2 – 6 cookies on the next tray. (this all depends on the size of your scoops)

Bake 8-9 minutes, until browned.  Remove from oven, let cool on parchment paper.  You can remove the parchment paper to the counter to finish cooling after about 5 minutes.

These spread A LOT, but even if they all run into each other, you can still let cool and sandwich odd sizes together. It's a win-win recipe!

Line a cookie sheet with a fresh piece of parchment paper.  You need this to fit into the refrigerator to help the chocolate set, so if needed, use plates or something flat that will fit into your refrigerator.

 

Melt in a small bowl:

1/3 cup milk, semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips

Carefully spread a bit of chocolate on the underside of one wafer cookie.  Sandwich together and place on the prepared parchment paper.   Continue sandwiching the remainder of your wafer cookies. Once finished, place the tray into the refrigerator until your chocolate has set. 

You can store your finished cookies at room temperature for 3-4 days (perhaps more, but they’ve never lasted longer than a few days).  Drizzle with chocolate, as shown below, for a fancier looking treat.  But both ways are equally delicious!

Enjoy!!!