Sweet tooth fix

While driving home yesterday, I had a taste for those incredibly divine and 'Smoregasmic' Smores Bars from the other week, but I wasn't in the mood to make it and didn't want the entire pan sitting there, taunting me to eat 'just one more' since the old man doesn't care for them (WEIRD-O!). So I stopped at a Walgreens and was hoping they'd have a cookie bar mix or something but no such luck - just brownies. Boo! So I found a package of chocolate chips, checked out the back side and saw that I had everything to make its cookie bars.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars (Nestle's)

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened*
  
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 (12 ounce) package semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup chopped nuts (I like pecans) (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 375* Grease a 15x10-inch jelly roll pan. **
   
2. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl.
3. Beat butter, both sugars and vanilla in large mixer bowl.
4. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each.
5. Gradually beat flour mixture into butter mixture.
6. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts.
7. Spread into prepared pan.
8. Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. ***

*Neat trick to soften cold butter ... cut up in pieces and trhow in bowl and mix, mix, mix, mix till softened. Then add sugar and mix again. Much faster than waiting an hour or so to make butter room temperature.
** I used 9x13 and lined with parchment paper - a gift from the gods.
*** If using a smaller pan like I did, just make sure the entire thing is the same color when taking out; no need to add time. I baked for 20 minutes and waited an additional two or three minutes for the entire thing to be brown and they came out PERFECT.

D E L I C I O U S!