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You are here: Home / bar cookies / Salty Sweet White Chocolate Cashew Bars

Salty Sweet White Chocolate Cashew Bars

March 15, 2014 By Laura 6 Comments

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Salty Sweet White Chocolate Cashew Bars breathe new life into boring white chocolate, creating something indulgent and delicious. Affiliate links have been used in this post to link to items I am discussing.

Salty Sweet White Chocolate and Cashew Bars

This is the second of the 2 desserts I made for the teachers’ conferences this past week. There is another dinner coming too, and the other cookie will be shared next week. Whew! That was a lot of cooking and baking! But cooking and baking is what I like to do so it is by far my favorite way to volunteer for the school, after reading in the library of course.

On a side note, would you believe one of Sammy’s friends from her class last year told her she really missed having me read in the library? That just melted my heart!

Salty Sweet White Chocolate and Cashew Bars

But anyway, about these bars. They had all been eaten when I went to pick up my tupperware the next day, so I am assuming the teachers liked them ok. Sammy, John and I definitely did; lately Alex rejects anything with white chocolate. Which I highly urge you not to do–even if you hate the taste of it plain! Match it up with something tart, salty, bitter or any combination thereof and it totally changes things. For example, combine it with these cashews and it is a whole new ballgame. Just please, please, please make sure you use real white chocolate. If you cannot find it locally, my absolute favorite is Green & Black’s Organic White Chocolate with Vanilla Bar (I always have at least 3 or 4 in my pantry for baking) and it is available online.

Salty Sweet White Chocolate and Cashew Bars

Do any of your old cookbooks suddenly provide a wealth of new recipes after gathering dust for a while? This is why I cannot ever throw out or get rid of any cookbooks. You just never know! Both this recipe and another coming soon came from The King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion: The Essential Cookie Cookbook. This is one of those classic, classic cookbooks that everyone should own if they like to bake cookies at all. Not any photos, it is old school with some illustrations, and the selection is nearly encyclopedic for American style cookies, as well as a decent selection of international ones. And almost 10 years after buying it I can still find great new (to me) recipes in it!

Salty Sweet White Chocolate and Cashew Bars

Salty Sweet White Chocolate and Cashew Bars
Print
Salty Sweet White Chocolate Cashew Bars
Closely adapted from King Arthur Flour
Course: Dessert, tea time
Cuisine: Cookies
Author: TheSpicedLife
Ingredients
  • 2 jumbo eggs
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 t fine sea salt
  • 1 t ground vanilla beans
  • 1 t vanilla extract
  • 1 t baking powder
  • 6 oz good quality white chocolate cut into chunks-I prefer Green & Black's, divided
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick; 4 oz) unsalted butter
  • 1 3/4 cups (7.25 oz) AP flour
  • 1 cup salted and roasted cashews, coarsely chopped
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a 9X13 baking pan with parchment paper overhanding at least 2 opposite sides--if it does not cover the pan completely on the ends, lightly grease those spots.
  2. Using the whip attachment, beat your eggs on medium high speed until foamy. Add the sugar gradually on medium low speed, then scrape the sides and add the salt, baking powder, ground vanilla beans and vanilla extract.
  3. Return the speed to medium high. While it is beating, add the butter to a small saucepan on the lowest heat to melt.
  4. Let the eggs beat until lightened and quite thick and shiny. Turn off the mixer and remove the attachment.
  5. Return to the butter. When it is starting to brown, add half of the chopped white chocolate. Stir for about 20 seconds and then turn off the heat. Continue stirring. If the chocolate does not melt, turn the heat back on for a moment of 2 on low--be careful as white chocolate scorches easily. Stir until the chocolate is melted and then remove completely from the heat.
  6. I did the rest by hand but you could also switch to a paddle attachment. Stir the flour into the egg mixture in 2 additions. Stir until it is completely incorporated but do not overbeat.
  7. Beat in the melted white chocolate and butter. Do not overbeat, but do beat enough to completely incorporate the chocolate and butter--the butter especially will want to separate at first.
  8. When it is all incorporated, scrape into the prepared pan and use a spatula to spread it out evenly.
  9. Sprinkle the cashews over the batter evenly. Then sprinkle the remaining white chocolate chunks evenly around the cashews.
  10. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the bars are puffed, shiny and golden brown.
  11. Cool completely before removing by the parchment overhang and then slicing into bars.

 

Affiliate links were used in this post, but only to link to items I would be linking to and discussing anyway.

Filed Under: bar cookies, brownies, cashews, chocolate, cookbooks, cookies, reviews, white chocolate Tagged With: bar cookies, bars, cashews, chocolate, cookies, nuts, white chocolate

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Comments

  1. Joanne says

    March 15, 2014 at 7:34 am

    I definitely go through phases with my cookbooks where I won’t use them for a long time and then all of a sudden, I can’t stop cooking/baking from them! I am a big fan of white chocolate. Definitely want to try these!

    Reply
  2. Laura@Baking In Pyjamas says

    March 16, 2014 at 4:31 pm

    I love salty and sweet but have never tried white chocolate with the salt element before. So gonna do it now though. Those bars look so yummy.

    Reply
  3. Michelle @ A Dish of Daily Life says

    February 13, 2015 at 2:08 am

    Those look like a great sweet treat and snack…pinning so I can try them!

    Reply
  4. Kirsten says

    February 13, 2015 at 8:56 am

    Laura,
    Your kids’ teachers are lucky! I send beets in the baked goods to school. I am sure it reflects upon the quality of instruction provided to the kids 😉

    These bars look terrific, and I’d be delighted to eat them–or have my daughter make them!

    Reply
  5. Sabrina Modelle says

    February 13, 2015 at 2:46 pm

    Oh goodness. These look so perfect. I need to try a GF version of this. Cashews are my absolute favorite nut… and pistachios… and almonds…. and walnuts. Okay, never mind. I love all the nuts!
    I don’t usually love white chocolate, but the guitard white chocolate chips are pretty good. I’ll have to try the green & white. I’ll bet theirs is great. Thanks again for this gorgeous recipe!

    Reply
    • Laura says

      February 13, 2015 at 2:59 pm

      Just a head’s up the Green and Black’s is a chocolate bar–and it is real white chocolate (I don’t think any f the chips are). So you will definitely notice a difference!

      Reply

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Hi! I’m Laura and I am a recovering history major who has re-channeled all of my passion for learning about the history of different countries to learning about their food culture. That doesn’t mean every dish on here is strictly authentic, but it does mean that even my adaptations are not undertaken lightly. My goal is to show you–by doing–that these dishes are possible in your kitchen. Including desserts because I have quite the sweet tooth! Read More…

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