Cracking the Code on Toffee Bars

I think that I finally cracked the code.

An almost identical duplication of the much-loved toffee bars from that very large conglomerate of coffee shops spread throughout our universe. I hesitate to use the name of the company, as I imagine that it has fleets of lawyers out trolling for trademark infringement. At the tea shop in my mall, they refer to it as "S." You get my point.

But the really important news here is that I finally found a recipe that matches my older daughter's and my favorite treat from there. A blond brownie with some butterscotch undertones, vanilla, chunks of white chocolate and semi-sweet chocolate, and chewy and thick without being too cake-like. In my quest, I've mentioned before that we spent an entire summer researching and taste-testing the real thing and home-made versions without coming up with a match. And here, the internet also failed me; no one, even the websites that focus on making faux versions of everything, even White Castle hamburgers, for pete's sake, had nothing.

So, here you go. Adapted from the Cook's Illustrated baking book, Baking Illustrated, with some changes in proportions and ingredients:

Toffee Bars

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt 1 stick of margarine in a large saucepan. Beat in 2 eggs and 1 1/2 c. light brown sugar until well mixed. Add 1 tsp. good quality vanilla extract. Stir in, only until mixed, 1 1/2. all-purpose flour, 1/2 tsp. salt, and 1 tsp. baking powder. Stir in 1/2 c. white chocolate bits and 1/2 c. semisweet chocolate bits. Pour into greased 8 x 8 metal baking pan. Bake for about 15-20 min. Remove from oven when toothpick test still has slight crumbs on it. Let cool. Slice into large square bars. Rejoice!