I don’t think much about Mermaids on a daily basis. They cross my mind while watching Discovery Channel’s ‘Shark Week’ mid-summer, when I see movie trailers (currently for ‘Pan’) and when I drive down a main drag in Boulder where hanging from the top balcony of a three story apartment complex is the bottom half of a mermaid tail in view of the street. The latter has piqued my curiosity about what is on the other end. Being in a landlocked state, sea life, real or whimsical, isn’t my usual mental fodder. We are more apt to consider the likelihood of Big Foot.
When spending time by the sea, that all changes. While traveling through the Canadian Maritimes this summer, we were always by the water. We took long beach walks. We looked constantly for whales from the shore or the car ferries. While at the Bay of Fundy in New Brunswick we did a rigorous sea kayaking session. When being reminded of what to do in the freezing water if one’s kayak tips over, and then watching that come into play when someone in the group did tip over caused thoughts of everything that might lurk in the deep blue-green waters of the bay. As well as of every scary movie scene of surprises popping out of said water, whether real or mythical.
One thing I’ve certainly never given thought to is how I’d go about catching a mermaid. Or even whether I’d want to. However when stumbling into a little bakery in a seaside town that was reputed to have gluten-free options, I spied something in the bakery case I could not rid from my mind: Mermaid Bait Bars.
The presence of the bars seemed thoughtful, and deliberate, and even perhaps ‘real’. Unfortunately this bakery seemed to be baiting gluten-eating Mermaids so I was unable to try the bar myself. Being desperate to learn the secrets of the bar I persuaded my husband to buy one and then annoyingly hung about 2 inches from his face asking 100 questions as he took each bite. After piecing together my best guess at what might be in them, I vowed to make a gluten-free batch once home (there must be gluten-free mermaids out there, don’t you think so?).
They are very easy bars to make with a mere six ingredients. A simple graham cracker crumb crust covered with a mix of chocolatey baking chips transform into a gooey taste treat anyone would love. They are definitely sweet (but living in a salty environment I would think mermaids would crave sweetness). I think they are perfect cut into 1-inch by 1-inch squares which satisfy one’s craving and yet are small enough that there is no guilt if popping a few in the mouth!
The bars have been a big hit! I will say I have not yet caught a mermaid, but have definitely caught a few kids with their hand in the Mermaid Bait Bar box!
Recipe
Mermaid Bait Bars
Ingredients
- 2 cups Gluten-Free Graham Cracker Crumbs* or 1 ½ cups regular Graham Cracker Crumbs
- ½ cup (1 stick) Unsalted Butter, melted
- 1 14- ounce can Sweetened Condensed Milk
- 2 cups Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
- 1 cup Butterscotch Baking Chips
- ¾ cups White Chocolate Chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a 13 inch by 9 inch baking pan by spraying with no-stick cooking spray.
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs and the melted butter. Stir to fully incorporate.
- Spoon crumb-butter mixture into the prepared baking pan and press to form a crust covering the bottom of the pan.
- Pour the sweetened condensed milk over the graham cracker crust and using a mixing spoon spread to cover the crust fully.
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine the three baking chips and mix. Pour the chips evenly over the sweetened condensed milk to cover.
- Bake in the oven for 25 minutes, remove and allow to fully cool before cutting. Cut into desired bars (1-inch by 1-inch bars are perfect in my opinion). Note: the bars have a gooey center; if a firmer texture is desired they may be kept in the refrigerator in a sealed container, otherwise they may be stored at room temperature.
Chris Scheuer says
Your bars look just like they came from a fine bakery by the sea Toni! I love how travel inspires new culinary creations. These are so fun and would definitely be perfect for mermaids of all ages@
Stacie @ Divine Lifestyle says
Those look so delicious. My entire family would devour these!
alison blair stern says
This is my kind of recipe! They looks scrumptious and the recipe looks like even I can manage the 6 easy steps.
Lindsey @ Redhead Baby Mama says
Great photos! Those bars look divine, and I would love to make them. We’re not bound by GF, but if we made them that way, we’d certainly share them.
Toni Dash says
I have only made them gluten-free but you could definitely make them with regular graham crackers Lindsey. As mentioned in the recipe, I feel gluten-free graham crackers do not absorb butter as readily so require more to crumbs to make the crust. If you follow the gluten instructions you’d be good to go!
Kristi says
I make these occasionally… and they are eaten up and gone almost as fast as I can get em out of the oven.
sue|theviewfromgreatisland says
Love the name and love the ingredients, I’m going to be making these this weekend!!
Linda@ThereandBackAgainFood says
I love the name of these bars! And they sound delicious. I wonder if adding nuts would cut some of the sweetness? Hummm…looks like I’ll be baking soon!
Toni Dash says
I personally think the sweetness is the combination of chocolates and baking chips but will say it’s a personal thing in terms of one’s sweetness tolerance. If you added nuts it would add a different flavor and texture to them but not sure it would change the sweetness overall.
Tricia @ Saving room for dessert says
These are perfect for any occasion and I LOVE the name! I must be a mermaid because I took the bait! Lovely photos – sharing 🙂
Jennifer @ Seasons and Suppers says
What a fun post! Love the name of these bars and they look absolutely delicious!
Robin (Masshole Mommy) says
Those sound yummy. I bet they are ah-m,azing warm right out of the oven.