153 wood ear recipes

Three-layer pumpkin bars built on a yellow cake mix base with spiced pumpkin custard center and a buttery cake-mix streusel top. Makes 24 bars in a 9x13 pan.

Apricot almond bars with a buttery shortbread crust, spiced almond meringue topping, apricot glaze, and chocolate drizzle. Four layers of European-style pastry in every square.

Chocolate caramel nut bars with a German chocolate cake-mix crust, melted caramel middle, and chopped walnuts and chocolate chips. A potluck-ready bar cookie you can shortcut with a boxed mix.

These gooey cream cheese bars start with a yellow cake mix crust and get topped with a rich layer of powdered sugar, coconut, and nuts. They vanish from the pan faster than you can say "save me one."

Individual rustic fruit tarts with shortcrust pastry, apricot jam glaze, and thinly sliced apples or pears. A French-bistro dessert that bakes in 15 minutes and looks gorgeous.

Banana monkey bars: a one-bowl banana bread baked thin into chewy bars, studded with walnuts and finished with a chocolate sugar drizzle. Lunchbox sweet, ready in under an hour.

Double chocolate cheesecake with a chocolate wafer crust and a dense, fudgy chocolate cream cheese filling. Rich, smooth and crack-free, finished with piped white chocolate stars. A chocolate lover's showpiece.

Mississippi mud bars layer fudgy pecan-studded brownies under a glossy chocolate frosting and another shower of toasted pecans. Cut into small bars, they yield over four dozen from one 9x13 pan. Southern bake-sale royalty.

Sticky pecan bars with a buttery shortbread crust and gooey brown sugar-corn syrup filling loaded with pecan halves. Like pecan pie in bar form, easier to make and easier to share.

Helen's Cheesecake with a ground pecan and graham cracker crust, a lemon-kissed cream cheese filling, and a sour cream topping baked right on. Refrigerate 24 to 72 hours - patience is the secret ingredient.

Quick oatmeal bars with apple butter, coconut, and brown sugar baked into chewy squares ready in 30 minutes for easy lunch box treats or snacks.

Old fashioned fruitcake bars packed with candied cherries, dates, raisins, and nuts in a moist applesauce batter. Easier than traditional fruitcake and just as festive.

Fudgy chocolate espresso bars with cocoa, instant espresso, and chopped pecans, topped with a whipped chocolate chip frosting. Rich, dense, and deeply caffeinated.

Soft-baked bars with apples, cranberries, and nuts baked into orange-scented batter, then frosted with tangy orange cream cheese icing. Perfect for holiday cookie trays.

Fruchtebrot (German fruit bread) packed with dried pears, apricots, dates, plums, raisins, and walnuts in a spiced yeast dough with cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom.

Herbed cheese tarts bake as mini savory cheesecakes with cream cheese, cottage cheese, and Swiss in breadcrumb-lined muffin cups. Finished with sour cream, caviar, or olives for cocktail parties.