Some little known facts about me:
1. I absolutely can’t stand the sound of sandpaper on anything. I simply cannot be around it. I literally leave the room whenever Dan sands something for a home project, since I clearly can’t do it myself. Just thinking about it is giving me chills, so moving on…
2. I go on cooking and baking sprees. I’ll make 4 or 5 recipes in one day, then not cook for the next two days.
Poor Dan. Our deal is that I cook and he does the dishes. He’s not a huge fan of the clean-up that comes with my cooking sprees.
3. I do not like washing silverware. I will wash as many mixing bowls and baking sheets as you give me, but leave all the forks in the bottom of the sink. Good thing our new house has a dishwasher!
4. At thrift stores, flea markets and garage sales, I can spot Mason jars and vintage Pyrex from a mile away. I have a bit of a problem, according to Dan. I beg to differ. Whereas most girls buy shoes, I buy jars and Pyrex. That’s not weird, right?
5. Usually, I can limit myself to a serving or two of whatever recipe I bake up. Not so with these bars. Within one day, the pan was 3/4 gone. And Dan only ate one bar.
6. What’s really funny is I don’t even like pie all the much, but I love these bars. Especially the way the blueberries burst when you bite into them.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose or whole wheat pastry flour
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) cold butter
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- Pinch of salt
- 1 cup (about half a 14oz can) sweetened condensed milk
- 1 1/2 tablespoons vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
- 1 cup all-purpose or whole wheat pastry flour
- 1/4 cup melted butter
- 3 cups fresh blueberries
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375F and grease a 9x13" baking pan.
- In a food processor fitted with the dough blade, stir the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and lemon juice. Cut the butter into 8-10 pieces, then use the processor to work the butter into the flour until the butter is in pea-sized chunks.
- Savvy Tip: If you don't have a food processor, you can also use a pastry cutter or two knives to cut the butter into the flour.
- Evenly press the dough into the prepared pan, and bake at 375F for 20 minutes, or until the edges begin to brown.
- In the meantime, blend the sweetened condensed milk, vanilla, flour, and butter until smooth. Fold in the blueberries.
- Pour the blueberries over the crust, spreading the filling evenly over the pan. Bake for an additional 10-15 minutes, or until the top begins to firm up. Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before cutting and serving.
- Optionally, serve the bars a la mode with French vanilla ice cream. You won't be sorry.
So….who wants to go shopping for vintage Pyrex with me this weekend?