Last fall my aunt had ankle surgery and ended up spending some time in rehab. Her friend brought a dessert for her to enjoy and share with visitors. Of course, I had to try it. The bar cookies were really good. I wanted to know what they were. Mud Hens, my aunt replied. I figured either the pain medication was messing up her mind or I had totally misunderstood. I decided to be polite and not saying anything. Just in case.
After we left, I asked my Mother what she’d understood the dessert was called. She’d heard the same thing. Okay. So I started searching. Every recipe I found was basically the same. And no one knows where the name came from. Hey, I’ll have you know I am not the only one who has tried to find out.
I could just make something up. Really. I’m a writer. Fiction is fun. The chocolate chips could be the mud. The eggs -- hello -- come from hens. Or I could play off the brown sugar and egg whites. Maybe that’s where the name comes from.
But I won’t do that to you. I’ll just tell you the truth. I don’t know where the name comes from and nobody else seems to either. I just know that this is a wonderful dessert. Or snack. Or take-off-from-home dish. Whatever. Just sit down with the whole pan and refuse to share. Yeah. Yummy. Enjoy!
Mud Hens
¼ cup shortening
4 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 whole egg
2 eggs, separated (egg whites at room temperature)
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup mini marshmallows
½ cup semi-sweet chocolate morsels
1 cup packed light brown sugar
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Coat a 13 x 9-inch baking pan with cooking spray. If you’re a traditionalist you can use butter.
In a large bowl, cream the shortening, butter and sugar. Beat in the egg yolks and whole egg.
In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together.
Combine the flour mixture with the creamed mixture. Blend thoroughly.
Spread the batter into the baking pan. Sprinkle the nuts, marshmallows and chocolate chips over the batter.
In a large bowl, beat the two egg whites until stiff. I find this works best if the egg whites are room temperature. I hope you have a mixture with that whisk beater. Just turn the mixer on HIGH and watch those peaks form. Or, you could use a hand beater. Either way, when the egg whites are stiff, fold in the brown sugar. Spread this over the batter.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the top is lightly browned.
Cool completely before cutting. You’ll just be so much happier if you do.
