Toffee Crunch Bars

As Piper so eloquently put it, these cookies are a "taste adventure." Don't be fooled by their rather uninspiring looks. These pack a wallop of flavors--there's espresso, almond, chocolate and more than their fair share of delicious rich buttery goodness. There's no actual toffee in the cookie, but something about the interplay of the coffee and the almond...ahh. I had originally made these for dessert, and kept noticing the way my family members kept casually nipping through the kitchen to grab another cookie.

Cherry Brown Butter Bars

Guys. I made these things and they are sort of a big deal.

I'm definitely in the "it's always better with browned butter" camp. I was converted after having a bake-off with my brown-butter brownies (which are going to have to be put up here pretty soon) against my mother's traditional brownie recipe. The judges said it was a draw, but I'm pretty sure they only said that because you don't anger the person who's just made you a bunch of brownies. Anyway, I'd been ogling these little beauties over at Smitten for a good long while when my good friend Katrina invited me to her family's Easter barbecue. And then, since I couldn't decide whether to make hot cross buns, mini tarts or these bars, I made them all. Because why not? Someone's gotta support the butter industry.