Chocolate Fudge Soufflé Bars

As promised, here is another delicious baked item! This time it's chocolate fudge soufflé bars. I wasn't sure quite what to expect but the blurb before the recipe described it as "a chocolate fudge filling sandwiched between a crunchy brown sugar crust and a thin, crisp chocolate top". I just couldn't resist.

Since I used an 8x8 pan instead of 9x9, my bar ended up half crust and half chocolate fudge souffle, which was okay with me because I really love crust. The crust part was like shortbread, and the chocolate part was very soft and fudgey, with the promised slightly crisp top. Quite a delicious little bar that's something a bit different!

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Andes Chocolate Mint Cookies
Chocolate Pots de Crème
Chocolate Orbit Cake
Cream Cheese Brownies

Chocolate Fudge Soufflé Bars
Adapted from 125 Cookies to Bake, Nibble, and Savor

Makes 12 to 16 bars

Crust
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces

Topping (Fudge Soufflé)
3 tbsp unsalted butter, cut in pieces
5 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 large eggs, separated
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
3 tbsp sugar
1 tsp instant coffee dissolved in 1 tsp hot water
1 tbsp unbleached all-purpose flour

Make the crust: Butter the bottom and sides of an 8 or 9 inch square baking pan. Put the flour and packed light brown sugar and the salt in the bowl of an electric mixer and mix on low speed just to blend the ingredients, about 10 seconds. Add the butter. Increase the speed to medium and mix until fine crumbs form, about 1 minute. (Some large crumbs, about 1/4 inch in size, will remain.) Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan and press it evenly over the bottom.

Preheat the oven to 350F. Bake the crust until the top is golden, 20 to 25 minutes.

Make the fudge souffle: Put the butter and chocolate in a heatproof container and place it over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir until melted and smooth. Pour the chocolate mixture into a medium bowl and set aside.

Put the egg whites and cream of tartar in the large bowl of an electric mixer and beat on low speed until foamy. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until soft peaks form. Reduce the speed to medium and slowly beat in the sugar, 1 tablespoon every 30 seconds.

Whisk the egg yolks, dissolved coffee, and flour into the chocolate mixture until blended thoroughly. Fold in half of the beaten egg whites, then fold in the rest of the egg whites. Spread the filling evenly over the baked crust.

Bake just until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few crumbs clinging to it, and the top looks firm, about 15-20 minutes. Cool thoroughly in the pan on a wire rack. Use a sharp knife to cut into 12 to 16 individual bars.