Grasshopper Cookie Bars

These are so very easy and yummy!!  My daughter Hannah was my helper in the kitchen making these.  She wanted to know what the name of the recipe was.  So I told her.  I really wish I had taken a picture of her expression.  She seriously thought that grasshoppers were one of the ingredients. 

I am not a fan of making cookies.  Something about the time it takes to make them.  I'd rather just throw everything together and place in the oven.  So I thought hmmmm I can just spread the batter out onto a pan and bake.  They turned out great!!  The best part of it is I can cut the bars as big or small as I need. 

Grasshopper Cookie Bars

 

For the base of the cookies:

1 box of Devil's Food Cake mix

2 eggs

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 tablespoons brown sugar

 

Frosting:

3/4 cup butter, softened

1 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract

2-3 cups powdered sugar

trace of milk if needed

1 drop of green food coloring

 

Chocolate Drizzle:

1 1/2 cup chocolate chips

1 tablespoon shortening

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

 

Melt the butter in a microwaveable mixing bowl.  When the butter is cool to the touch, add in the eggs, brown sugar and extract.  Mix until well incorporated.  Add the box of cake mix.  Stir until all the ingredients are mixed in.   Spread the batter onto the cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.  Bake in the oven for 10 minutes.  The bars will still be a little soft when you take them out of the oven.  As they cool they will firm up.

 

While the bars are cooking you can make the frosting or do it after they are cool.  It's totally up to you.  Soften the butter so that you can mix it.  In a mixing bowl add the butter, powdered sugar and extract together.  Mix well.  Keep stirring, sometimes it takes a bit for it to come together.  If after a minute of stirring it still does not come together to look like frosting add a tablespoon of milk.   If you desire add 1-2 drops of green food coloring.  Spread the frosting onto the cooled bars.  Wait about 10 minutes for it to set.

 

Now this is the tricky part.  Melting the chocolate chips down for the glaze.  Place the chips and shortening into a microwave safe mixing bowl.  Microwave at 50% power for 10 second spurts.  Stir in between each heating.  You must stir them.  The chips will hold their shape until you stir them.  Be careful because chocolate burns very quickly.  Speaking from experience here!

 

Drizzle the chocolate on the bars.  Then using a pizza cutter cut the bars into the size you would like. 

 

 

Enjoy!  These are SO good.  And I am not a fan of chocolate.