Butterscotch Blondie Bars

Even though the sun is going down a little earlier and we're starting to need lightweight jackets after sunset, the summer party season is still in full swing!  It seems like all of my friends and family are trying to make the most of the last few weeks of this oh-so-short summer, so Howie and I's social calendar has been chocked full of BBQ's housewarmings (including our own this weekend!) and birthday parties.  I absolutely hate showing up to these types of social gatherings empty-handed, so I usually try to whip up a quick dip or dessert to share with friends and alleviate the host's plate a little bit.  One of my favorite hand-held desserts in the summer months are Butterscotch Blondie Bars, a sweet treat that only takes about 10 minutes to make and a half hour to bake.  Sorry store-bought brownies, you are delicious but one-in-a-million at summer barbecues...make way for these awesome little Butterscotch Blondies!

Peanut Butter Chip Banana Bars

I'm on a serious mission to find creative ways to use my entire banana graveyard by the time I move out in 3 short weeks. For those of you that don't know what a banana graveyard is, it's the lonely top shelf of my freezer home to half a dozen ripe bananas that are begging to be incorporated into baked goods.  They actually look dead because of the dark brown color they turn when they freeze.  No matter how hard I try to bake banana things, the collection seems to keep growing.  Though I pride myself on my banana bread recipe, I'm bored of baking the same loaf and having it go stale after one day in the summer (thank you Lake Erie humidity!).  I did, however, come up with a new recipe that I'm really excited about: peanut butter chip banana bars.  It's pretty great that I came up with a new way to use my banana graveyard, even more great that they taste delicious, but fantastic that they rely on peanut butter and banana, my favorite flavor combination on earth!!