I love cinnamon so much that I usually at least double the amount called for in most recipes.
And all that cinnamon is just perfect with white chocolate.
If you’re a cinnamon aficionado, you’re going to love these easy, no-mixer bars that are ready in 30 minutes.
They’re extra soft, tender, supple, and packed with cinnamon flavor.
There’s one full tablespoon of cinnamon stirred into the easy no-mixer-required batter, along with over a cup of cinnamon chips added to the batter.
After baking and spreading a layer of melted white chocolate on top, I sprinkled it with more cinnamon chips. The more, the merrier.
Even though that sounds like a ton of cinnamon, and it is, although the cinnamon flavor is bold and robust, it’s not overwhelming. However, if you’re not as much of a cinnamon lover, I suggest decreasing the amount of cinnamon added to the batter, to taste.
The bars are made exclusively with brown sugar, no granulated, and the brown sugar caramelizes while baking, adding caramely undertones amidst the dominant cinnamon.
If there’s something I enjoy as much as cinnamon, it’s white chocolate. It’s not technically chocolate, but it’s technically good.
I love to make Cinnamon Chip and White Chocolate Peanut Butter, combine the two into one drippy, smooth spread. Talk about a hide-the-spoons situation.
White chocolate is notoriously hard to melt and scorches easily and I recommend either Candy Melts or Dips (what I used), Vanilla Candiquik, or a good quality White Chocolate Bar.
White chocolate chips are the worst because of the stabilizers in them. You don’t want the white chocolate chips in your cookies melting into puddles, so chips have stabilizers added to resist melting, the opposite of what you want here.
Which is a nice, smooth, flat layer that’s perfect for sprinkling on all those cinnamon chips. They add a bit of texture to the otherwise buttery soft, very moist, rich, and dense bars.
If you’re not a white chocolate fan, you can omit it or use regular chocolate. However, the more delicate flavor of white chocolate, coupled with the bright pop of sweetness it lends, makes it a perfect complement to the spicier cinnamon and cinnamon chips.
Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, allspice, molasses, pumpkin. I love all the flavors of fall even though I don’t love that the weather is going to be getting cooler. I wish the weather stayed in the 80s year round.
But I’m a pushover for melt-in-your-mouth soft bars and can get behind these fall-flavored little numbers.
Very happily.
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White Chocolate-Topped Cinnamon Chip Cinnamon Bars
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter, 1 stick, melted
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon, or to taste
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- one 10-ounce bag cinnamon chips
- 8 ounces White Candy Melts, Vanilla Candiquik, or White Chocolate Bar, melted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Line an 8-by-8-inch baking pan with aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray; set aside.
- In a large, microwave-safe bowl melt the butter, about 1 minute on high power.
- Wait momentarily before adding the egg so you don’t scramble it. Add the egg, brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and whisk until smooth.
- Add the flour and stir until just combined, don’t overmix.
- Stir in 1 1/4 cups cinnamon chips.
- Turn batter out into prepared pan, smoothing the top lightly with a spatula.
- Bake for about 18 to 20 minutes, or until done. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean, or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter. Allow bars to cool in pan while you melt the white chocolate topping.
- In a small microwave-safe bowl, melt the white chocolate according to package directions. I melt it in short bursts of about 15 seconds each, stirring after each burst. To melt 8 ounces takes about 1 minute in my microwave. Don’t overcook the chocolate, noting that white chocolate scorches and will seize up very easily. If that happens, there’s no way to save it and you have to discard and start over.
- Smooth the white chocolate over the bars in an even flat layer.
- Sprinkle with 1/3 cup cinnamon chips or whatever remains in bag.
- Allow white chocolate layer to set up fully before slicing and serving. Bars will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 1 week, or in the freezer for up to 6 months.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Thanks for the entries in the Fall Cooking Giveaway for KitchenAid Stand Mixer, 10-Piece Cookware Set and More! Giveaway
Are you a cinnamon fanatic? White chocolate?
These look so insanely good… and the cinnamon chip cookies do too! I’m fairly certain you can’t buy them anywhere in the UK, but I reckon it would be worth the cost of flights to the US to stock up…
Yes hop on a flight! Or I’m sure you can order online – but a trip sounds more fun! :)
Have you thought about using cinnamon extract instead of vanilla? Also I can get the chips at just about every store in my area. Not trying to rub it in, just wanted to say how lucky I am. I have used these chips to make cinnamon fudge in the past. It is amazing, especially when it is slightly warm. I also add them to the pumpkin cheesecake I make at Thanksgiving.
Cinn fudge sounds incredible and I love adding them to pumpkin-ish flavors or anything that’s full of ginger, nutmeg, cloves, etc. as well.
Cinn extract – would be another way to bump up the cinn flavor and if you have it on hand, can’t hurt!
Those bars look amazing!
Oooh, that’s really good! I can definitely smell cinnamon! Believe it, a few years back I wasn’t a big fa of cinnamon, but after reading your blog for a while I started to use it: a little, then a little more, than a little more… And now I can say that I love cinnamon (in sweets only, haven’t gotten the taste of cinnamon is savory dishes just yet). :)
I am a dark chocolate person, but I would try this recipe: with holidays’ parties coming I’ll be baking more. So far each recipe I’ve made came out perfect (even when I add less sugar).
Thanks Averie!
glad to hear you’ve come along with your use of cinnamon (and baking!) and yes, although semisweet or darker chocolate is good and can never go wrong, with the cinnamon, the white choc is really so nice in these!
I know, and it’s pretty with white chocolate too!
I wish I could find cinnamon chips up here in Canada!
Gosh these look incredible Averie! I love the combo of cinnamon and white chocolate!
I’ve never used cinnamon chips before, but now I’m intrigued. It seems like I may have been missing out all these years! And the combo of creamy white chocolate and spicy cinnamon sounds just perfect to me!
creamy white chocolate and spicy cinnamon is such a great contrast – you’ll love it!
We really are alike. Double the cinnamon, double the vanilla. I have had cinnamon chips in my pantry forever. What a travesty! MUST USE THEM.
Double, double – yes indeed! And use those babies up in some bars or something!
You had me at cinnamon chips! I love that you doubled the cinnamon in this recipe. These bars look scrumptious. Pinned!
thanks for pinning Jennie!
I need these bars! Cinnamon is one of those spices I can not get enough of. I want to serve these with a huge scoop of vanilla ice cream…. It is too hot here in Australia for hot chocolate right now.
LOVE everything about these fall flavored bars! Check out the new Chocolate Adventure Contest ~ the theme is bars ~ details on my blog :)
I love cinnamon anything, especially this time of year! These look so yummy and perfect. :)
Cinnamon and white chocolate are definitely a great combo! These look delicious, Averie!
You can NEVER had enough cinnamon…at least in my book ;)
I love this simple recipe! Nothing getting in the way of the cinnamon flavor – that’s rate lately. Everyone seems to be adding a little of this and that and that and that….and then in the end it is just too much flavor at once. (I’m guilty of this for sure.)
White chocolate is such a great compliment to cinnamon, too. Chocolate is too much in my opinion, but the simple sweet and light flavor white chocolate is PERFECT. I want these!!
I think you would love these. Just really clean and pure flavors – bold cinnamon & pop of white choc. Nothing else. So you can really appreciate the cinnamon! And as much as I enjoy pumpkin, it’s not in here either. Just cinnamon :)
I need to find some cinnamon chips and bake these ASAP!
Find them! You’ll love them!