How to Win Friends and Influence People:
English Toffee Pastry Bars

Now that I’m halfway through my life (OK, probably more than halfway, but let’s not dwell) I have learned a few things about influencing others. And not from books – I learned it in my kitchen! Because it turns out the path to someone’s heart (and not just for men!) really IS through their stomach. For example, as if middle school isn’t bad enough last year my daughter became the “new kid” when she had to change schools midway through the year. To help her break the ice, she and I made a Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cheesecake so she could offer samples to her classmates (and share the good news about Tastefully Simple, of course). It was a huge success – she had something to talk about, and so did the other kids. They asked her questions and told her how much they loved the recipe, and the next thing we knew she was having lots of conversations with lots of kids … and most importantly, making new friends.

Now I’m applying this strategy in a new way. One of Tastefully Simple’s core values is “We nurture the community in which we live,” and I am honored to be the United Way (UW) Campaign Chair for the annual fundraising drive in our county. I have discovered that some of the business owners in our area have not yet heard the good news about the amazing impact they can have via the UW, so I just baked up a batch of English Toffee Pastry Bars and I’m taking a plateful of them to one of our local businesses. I figure they’ll pay more attention to my pitch for the UW that way … I’ll let you know how it turns out!

Meanwhile, check out our new Recipes for Warm Gatherings cook booklet – you’ll find the English Toffee Pastry Bars on page 9, as well as a host of other wonderful treats. Pick your favorite, and be a positive influence on your friends and family!

j*a*N*e

English Toffee Pastry Bars

Submitted by Rosemary (MN) HQ Resident Chef

Ingredients

• 2 packets English Toffee Cheese Ball Mix
• 2 (8 oz.) packages softened cream cheese
• 1 egg
• 2 (8 oz.) tubes refrigerated seamless crescent dough sheets
• ½ cup Caramel Cinnamon Sprinkles

Directions

Preheat oven to 375°. In a large bowl, beat cheese ball mixes (including toppings) and cream cheese on medium speed with an electric hand mixer until combined. Add egg; beat on low speed until blended. Unroll 1 can of dough into a large rectangle; press into the bottom of a greased 9 x 13 baking pan. Spread cream cheese mixture over dough; top with second sheet of dough. Sprinkle Caramel Cinnamon Sprinkles over all. Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely; cut into bars. Makes 16-18 servings.

English Toffee Pastry Bars

Testing Notes

• OK – first off these are fabulous! I absolutely love our new English Toffee Cheese Ball Mix – anything with crushed up toffee bars in it is tops in my book!
• I used half regular cream cheese and half light cream cheese and it worked very well. I softened both together in the microwave on defrost for about 25 seconds.
• The refrigerated crescent roll dough sheets are very nice and easy to use. However if you can’t find them, the regular crescent roll dough will work just fine.
• Getting the bottom layer of the dough into the pan was easy peasy. For the top layer, I stretched it out and shaped it on a lightly sprayed cutting board first. I set my pan over the top of it to get the size right (just as a measure), then gently lifted the dough and quickly plunked it onto the top of my cream cheese layer. That layer was a little trickier – you’ll want to have good aim and try to keep the dough fairly flat as you do it. I then tucked the edges in with my rubber spatula.
• But if you are dough-placement challenged, no worries. Just straighten it out as best you can – you’ll cover up the top with Caramel Cinnamon Sprinkles anyway!
• The house smelled like heaven as this was baking! My husband walked into the house midway through the bake time and was drawn into the kitchen in a trance-like state on the aromatic wafts of cinnamon. I think I could have asked him for anything at that moment and he would have said yes.
• You must resist the temptation to cut into the bars before they have completely cooled! This was the most difficult part of making the bars for me, but the filling is too soft right out of the oven to cut. On the other hand, if presentation isn’t important … dig in!

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