Kit Kat Brownies with Butterscotch

I'm sure many of us remember our very first day of school. I remember because of photographs of me waiting for the bus at my babysitters. I do remember my emotional state, which could easily be described as mixture of angst and excitement. I just wanted to get there and finally be able to say that I rode the bus and that I was in school. Oh, how the mighty aspirations were squashed over the years.

I remember nap time, which was probably one of the best ideas ever invented. Our classroom was something out of a children's story. We had a small couch, which was the perfect size for those of us under four feet. We had giant crayon pillows and a wooden play structure in the center of the room. Every day, when the teacher would tell us it was nap time, we'd all grab our beach towels (which were required) and we'd fight over the best spots. The couch, the crayon pillows, and under the structure were optimal territory. If you got one of those you were cool for the day. I learned quickly that if you wanted one of those that you needed to sit close to them during circle time. That way, when the teacher let you go, you were with in arms reach. 

Another higlight of my life in kindergarten was, of course, Hot Meal Day. For those of you deprived of this luxury, it was one day every week or two where you would get hot food that your parents paid for in advance. Unfortunately, as you went higher through the grades, the meals got worse and worse. Kindergarten started out with KFC, most notably popcorn chicken, and through the grades the idea of a hot meal quickly changed to a disgusting slice of pizza from the pizzeria across the street. I was only in grade 5, but the sauce made me want to... you know.

My four year old nephew is starting school this year and I have to admit that I'm probably freaking out more than his mother. The idea of the nephew I held as a baby starting school freaks me out. More than that, it reminds me that I'm getting older too with every passing year. Hopefully the Toy Story backpack with matching lunch bag will help coax him in to the uncertain, hair pulling world of kindergarten. Tomorrow he gets to ride a school bus for the very first time at an information session. I hated riding the bus. There were no seat belts and I always got in trouble for switching seats when I was sick of the person I was sitting with.

In grade 11 I was able to co-op in a kindergarten class which gave me this incredibly different perspective of four year old life. I'd discuss it further, but I'm already able to smell the construction paper and glue and the memories are giving me chills.

Thankfully I have these brownies to ease my "troubled life". These bad boys come straight from The Harrowsmith Country Life Baking Book, with a few alterations and add-ons.

Adapted from the Best-Ever Brownies (The Harrowsmith Country Life Baking Book)

Ingredients:

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup cocoa

1/3 cup butter, melted

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

Approx. 16 mini Kit Kat bars

1 cup butterscotch chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350'F. Grease 6x10-inch pan.

2. Sift flour and cocoa together, and set aside. In a medium size bowl, combine cooled melted butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla, mixing well. Stir in flour-and-cocoa mixture, and blend thoroughly.

3. Pour batter into greased pan. Place unwrapped mini Kit Kat bars on top of mixture, evenly spaced apart. Bake for approx 20-25 minutes or until brownies spring back when lightly touched. 

4. When brownies are relatively cool, melt butterscotch chips in the microwave and slowly pour over cooked brownies, spreading with a spatula as you go.

Yields: About a dozen bars.