Oct 1, 2008

Works For Me Wednesday: Striking Gold


There are certain memories I have of my childhood.
Tragic, painful, memories.

Like the time my dad called the radio station on the day I turned 16 and dedicated a Birthday Shout-Out to me. Hellllooo??? MORTIFYING.

Or the time I made plans to sneak out of the house with my friends but my mom refused to go to bed that night all the while saying things like, "Hmmm...this is strange, Melissa. The Lord just won't let me go to bed tonight. Why do you think that is?"

Or the time I came home ravenous from school and decided the best afternoon snack I could give myself would be a fresh batch of fried shrimp. And set the kitchen completely on fire. (Still to this day I am undecided on what is more embarrassing...having firemen come out to check on your kitchen, or confessing it was due to your frying shrimp. And you're only 14.)

But then there were other memories. Good ones. Sweet ones.

Personally, I can't remember one of them right now.

But what I can remember is my mother's Texas Gold Bars.

Oh, my.

Now originally they were called Chess Bars. But somewhere along the Mason Dixon Line they were changed to Texas Gold Bars and this was the name that stuck in our house. I suggest you stick with this name, too. I mean, Chess Bars sounds good - don't get me wrong. But why call something Chess Bars when you can call it by the name God has given to his chosen land?

TEXAS. Home to...

The San Antonio Riverwalk

The Texas Stadium

The Grassy Knoll

And Tony Romo!

And now these bars.

Try them. You can thank me in the comments.

Texas Gold Bars

1 package yellow cake mix
2 sticks butter or margerine
4 eggs
1 8oz. package of cream cheese
1 pound confectioner's sugar

Mix together: cake mix, 1 stick of melted butter, 2 eggs. Spread in a 9x13 pan that you have sprayed with Pam.

Now mix together: 2 eggs, 1 stick of melted butter, powdered sugar and cream cheese. Spread over your first layer.

Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes of until golden brown. LET COOL COMPLETELY before you try to cut them. They are ooey-gooey and must cool, believe me. I've tried it.

P.S.
Please don't leave me a comment letting me know that you have tried this recipe and "although it was wonderful we always referred to them as Illinois Sweet Bars," "Reno Rich Bites," or "Grand Forks Grand Cake."

Nope. I just won't believe it. It's Texas Gold Bars, my lovelies, and I am obligated by God, man and Tony Romo to refer to them as such
.


*Update:
To my first 13 faithful readers this morning...DO NOT - I repeat - DO NOT just mix butter and eggs and spread over the first layer. (I have corrected my recipe.)This will render your Gold Bars useless, disgusting, and more fitting for a mid-morning brunch. And the last thing I would ever do is give you a recipe for a brunch. Yuck. My recipes are always more inclined to be eaten in the back of a dark, closet, while your kids run aimlessly through the house looking for mom.

26 comments:

The Beauty Bargainista said...

ok, so I am dying to try these!!! I cant wait! :)

Trish said...

Pictures, must have pictures.........

or a batch delivered to my doorstep would be fine also.

And Tony Romo? Blech.

Lacey in the Sky said...

It sounds crazy to pour those eggs and butter on top and not mix it up... but I completely trust you on this one!(afterall, I'm pretty sure you mentioned the consumption of cookie dough in your last post... you won me at that moment.)

Tanya said...

what are you supposed to do with the cream cheese and confectioners sugar????

Sissy said...

I have made these Goody Bars before here in North Carolina and am now excited to know they have an official name. LOL.

T said...

ahhhh Texas Stadium....I was there last sunday and got to see Romo but ahhh they will be tearing it down after this season...hmmm...haven't thought about it...will the new stadium still be called Texas Stadium?!?! Shall have to google now!! And go grocery shopping so I can make these!

Ashley said...

And the cream cheese is for wiping them in before eating???

I NEED to try these so tell me what to do with the CC.

Jessica said...

I'll have to tell Mike that's what they are called. My mom makes them and calls them, "Dream Bars." Somehow I think they'll be renamed now. They are sinful.

KimmyJ said...

Sounds delish - this will go on my grocery list today!

Tracy P. said...

If I made them per the instructions, I think I would call them Sleep Deprivation Bars. But since I have a real sweet tooth, I will wait until I find out how to include the cream cheese and all that yummy powdered sugar. Then I will call them Texas Gold Bars. In YOUR honor, Melissa! I'll be back!

G.B. said...

I so made these on Saturday Night for a fellowship with our church friends. They got rave reviews...my husbands favorite. I add toffee because Paula Deen tells me to, and because I am a sucker for anything with toffee in it!

Sara L said...

We call them "ooey gooey bars" - not sure on the exact spelling of ooey...:)

Lynn said...

I have had these and they are great.

T said...

Melissa you crack me up!! I promise I won't come after you with my raging hormones and butcher knife!! Just the crazy doctors who refuse services!! Hahaha!!! Now I am off to the grocery store for some of those yummies!! Now, you got get some sleep before your a crazy lady like me running around!!

Lynda said...

Mmm...any food with the word, "Texas" in it is Grrrrrrreat!

Jenny said...

I'm pretty sure I gained at least 2 pounds just reading about them so they have to be good.

Tracy P. said...

Oh good, now I can go to the grocery store! And still, I will call them Texas. Gold. Bars. Because I practically live in Texas, being on the north end of I-35 and all. I could just hop on and be there without one turn. (By tomorrow.) I think I'll bake these bars instead.

Rhonda said...

This looks like just the thing to satisfy a PMS induced sweet tooth!!!

Trish said...

fine, I won't hold my breath....it's to hard to talk when i'm holding my breath and we all know I like to talk (yell anyhow)

I understand you're playing the "new baby" card.......whatev. Maybe Lula will mail me her pumkin treat instead :-)

thanks for the update.

Wep said...

Sounds yummy to me :)

Lacey in the Sky said...

Whew! I'm glad you caught me when you did b/c I had these ingredients on my grocery list and was planning on making this tomorrow night for "family night"! Hahaha,I would have promptly placed one of these lovely brunch bars in the mail to you with a note attached that read... "Seriously?" Thanks for letting me know about the update! I will let you know how mine come out tomorrow night! :)

Stephanie said...

Ive never had these before, but I am super excited to try!! And my family is really excited for me to do this too! haha!

Rhea said...

I missed this post yesterday, which is probably a good thing, because they sound delicious. And I'm in Texas, and I love Texas, so I love the name.

Raise Them Up said...

Mom always made these when it was her turn to bring refreshments to our Bible Study. I won't tell you what we always called them, but I will have you know that I just printed out your recipe, and they will wear the name you've dubbed them throughout history in my recipe box!

Unknown said...

GIRLFRIEND....

I burned down our kitchen... 8th grade... it was cheese curds... I was playing hookey... I shall post about it someday... it was quite a comedy of errors.

Anonymous said...

Melissa, I hate to be the bearer of bad news but...this is "officially" known as Gooey Butter Cake. The cake was first made by accident in the 1930s by a St. Louis-area German American baker who was trying to make regular cake batter but reversed the proportions of sugar and flour.
So I'm sorry, but Texas can NOT take credit for our delicious legacy. Check it out on Wikipedia.

A faithful St. Louis reader