I don’t mean healthy or anything, but the opposite of “messy cooking”; the way I usually cook. I think I am a great cook. My family had to suffer through some interesting dinners when I was in high school, but by the time I was on my own, I could make just about anything with a recipe and I had some killer go to recipes. Good or bad, down-home or gourmet, my cooking style is messy. I use every pot/pan, knife, utensil, cutting board, anything I can get my hands on. Now that our home is for sale, I need to adjust my cooking style. Yesterday I went through the Chick-fil-A dive-thru three times. My kitchen stayed clean, but I don’t think that fast-food is a solution to any problem. Unless you are too skinny and have too much money. So…Today I made a pot-roast. Definitely not fancy, but I pretty much used one knife, one cutting board and my crock pot. The only problem was the smell of onion cooking all day. If you are showing your house, onions are not the first smell you want hitting people when they walk through the door. Luckily I have been wasting time on Pinterest looking for bar cookies. Why do cookies have to be messy and time-consuming? These bars have all the sweet cinnamon-y goodness of Snickerdoodles, but they are so much easier. Snickerdoodle is a good smell for prospective buyers. And while the pan was in the oven I washed the mixing bowl and measuring cups/spoons. After the bars cooled I cut them all and put them in an airtight container and then I washed the pan! I had cookies AND a clean kitchen. Amazing.

Chewy Snickerdoodle Bars
Adapted from The Domesticated Redhead, adapted from Frugal Antics

Ingredients:
1 cup shortening
1½ cups sugar
2 eggs
1/3 cup unsweetened coconut milk yogurt
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 tsp vanilla
⅓ cup sugar
1 Tbsp cinnamon

1. Cream shortening and sugar.
2. Add eggs, one at a time, scraping down the bowl between eggs.
3. Mix in yogurt.
4. Combine flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, baking powder and salt.
5. Mix into shortening/sugar mixture.
6. In a separate, small bowl, combine ⅓ cup sugar and cinnamon.
7. Sprinkle half the cinnamon sugar mix into a 9X13 pan.
8. Spread batter on top.
9. Top with remaining sugar mixture.
10. Bake 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.
11. You don’t want this too much like cake, so opt for less time if you need.

I didn’t think it looked like enough batter for a 9×13 pan, but it raised beautifully. I don’t know why I need to confess this, but I ate three bars last night after dinner. They tasted so good I couldn’t stop. And then I felt sick. Perhaps today I will only eat one at a time. Shouldn’t I have learned that lesson?