Mary's Maine Bars {OXO}

As a home baker I have been a huge fan of Dorie Greenspan for years!
Dorie's cookbooks (she has written 12!) are the best!  She is an incredible baker
and I was super excited when I found out that OXO was partnering with Dorie to
promote her latest book Dorie's Cookies.  

Today I am sharing a delicious recipe from Dorie's Cookies that is perfect for fall.
Mary's Maine Bars are cookie bars full of molasses and fall inspired spices, such as
cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves.  They smell amazing while they are baking!

You can certainly mix the cookie dough in a stand mixer, but I used the
OXO Illuminating Digital Hand Mixer because it was much more convenient
and I love how it lights up!  I keep it in the cabinet next to my mixing bowls
so that I can grab it easily whenever I want to mix something quickly.

Mary's Maine Bars are baked in a 9x13 inch bake dish.  I always reach for my
OXO Glass 3 Qt Baking Dish when baking cookie bars because I love using the
snap on lid to keep my baked goods fresh and it makes them easy to take to work
or to a pot-luck dinner.  You can also take it right from the freezer or fridge to the
oven without worrying about it shattering.  The OXO Brownie spatuala is perfect
for removing the bars from the pan!

Another reason that I love OXO is that they are very involved with Cookies for Kids Cancer.
This organization is very dear to my heart, as I have written about it several times on
my blog.  You can read those posts here, here and here.

OXO is donating $100 for each blogger participating in this campaign, up to their
$100,000 commitment.  I love this so much!

If you're looking for a delicious new fall treat to bake, I hope you will make Mary's
Maine Bars and be sure to look for Dorie's Cookies available October 25th.

Happy Baking!

Mary’s Maine Bars

Recipe from Dorie’s Cookies by Dorie Greenspan

Makes about 20 squares

1½ cups (204 grams) all-purpose flour

1½ cups (204 grams) whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon fine sea salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

¾ teaspoon ground cloves

1 cup (200 grams) sugar

¾ cup (180 ml) unsulfured molasses

½ cup (120 ml) flavorless oil, such as canola

1 large egg, at room temperature

¼ cup (60 ml) buttermilk, at room temperature

Sanding or granulated sugar, for sprinkling

Center a rack in the oven and preheat it to 350 degrees F. Generously butter a 9-x-13-inch 

baking pan or coat it with baking spray. Line it with a piece of parchment paper.

Whisk both flours, the baking soda, salt and spices together.

Working with a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, beat the sugar, molasses, oil and egg together until smooth. Add half of the dry ingredients and pulse the mixer to start blending them in, then beat on low speed only until the flour disappears into the dough. Pour in the buttermilk and mix to combine. Add the remainder of the dry ingredients and, still working on low, beat until incorporated. You’ll have a smooth, heavy, sticky dough. Scrape the dough into the pan, using a knife or offset spatula to get it into the corners and to even the top as best you can. Sprinkle with sugar.

Bake for 26 to 30 minutes, rotating the pan after 15 minutes, or until the top is dry and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a rack.

After 10 minutes, run a blunt table knife around the edges of the pan, invert the Maine bars onto a rack, peel away the paper, turn it over onto another rack and let cool. When you’re ready, cut it into 20 bars (about 1¾ x 3¼ inches).

Maine Blueberry Bars.

Once the dough is mixed, gently stir in 1 cup fresh blueberries. Or, if you’re making this in any season but summer, use 1 cup dried blueberries that you’ve soaked in very hot tap water for about 10 minutes, drained and patted dry.

Maine Apple Butter Bars.

Once the dough is spread evenly in the pan, dot the top with spoonfuls of apple butter (spiced or plain) — you’ll need about ¼ cup — and use a blunt table knife to swirl it into the dough to create a nicely marbled surface.

Storing

Wrap the bars well, and they will be fine at room temperature for at least 4 days; wrapped airtight, they can be frozen for up to 2 months.

Enjoy!

This post is sponsored by OXO.  As always, all opinions are 100% my own.