When we were children, most of us had great anticipation for Santa’s midnight visit, hoping we’d earned favor with jolly old St. Nick and would wake on Christmas morning to toys under the tree and candy in our stockings. I was on my best behavior for maybe a week before the big day. That’s about all I could muster. Just in case that one week of good behavior wasn’t long enough, I’d always leave a note for Santa reminding him of something good I’d done, along with a glass of milk and a couple of cookies.
I remember one year there was a note left on the table for me, asking if next year I could leave a cup of coffee, instead of milk, along with the cookies. My Dad didn’t like milk, but I never put two and two together! Not only did Santa prefer coffee to milk, but he also seemed to like hard cookies that could be soaked in a cup of coffee, so I made sure he had some to send him and his reindeer on their way to the next house.
On Christmas morning, the first thing I’d check was the sock I’d hung up. We had no chimney, so I taped one of my dad’s socks (which were bigger than mine) to the door knob inside the front door. We didn’t have coal, but my mom said he’d put rocks in it if I’d been bad. Luckily, I usually found a banana, a few nuts in their shells and a couple of pieces of chocolate in it, but no toys because they were under the tree.
While my childhood Santa may have liked hard cookies, these Oatmeal Toffee Bars may be even better with coffee, or even milk! Merry Christmas!
OATMEAL TOFFEE BARS
1 cup quick-cooking oats
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, melted and divided
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups (12 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate chips
Additional chopped walnuts, if desired
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 13-by-9-inch baking pan. In large mixing bowl, combine oats, flour, brown sugar, walnuts, 6 tablespoons butter and baking soda. Press firmly on bottom of prepared pan. Bake 10 to 15 minutes or until lightly browned.
Meanwhile, in medium saucepan over medium heat, combine remaining 2 Tablespoons butter and sweetened milk. Cook and stir until mixture thickens slightly, about 15 minutes. Be careful not to let it scorch.
Remove from heat; stir in vanilla. Pour evenly over baked crust and bake 10 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. It will be bubbly.
Remove from oven; immediately sprinkle chips on top. Let stand 1 minute; spread chips while still warm. Garish with additional walnuts, if desired; press down firmly. Cool completely. Cut into bars. Store tightly covered at room temperature. Makes about 3 dozen bars.
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