Halfway cookies (also known as Mud Hens) are really bars. Even though I haven't figured out the origin of the name,I like the theory that they’re “halfway to being cake” .
Recipes Vary
Halfway Cookies start with a base layer of dough. That gets sprinkled with a layer of chocolate chips, then topped with egg whites and brown sugar. Bake it all up and you get bars with a flaky, crispy meringue on top. Recipes vary. Some have more butter in the dough, different leavenings, and ratios for egg whites and sugar. I found very few recipes that were exactly the same. Plus sometimes Halfway Cookies are called Mud Hen Bars. The only difference is the name
Halfway Cookies and Variations
A few years ago, I tried my first batch of Halfway Cookies. It was a Pritzker family recipe, and they called them "Donnie Cookies" named after Donald. That recipe was great. The dough called for 1 cup butter, ½ cup sugar, ½ cup brown sugar, 2 egg yolks, flavoring, leavenings, plus 3 whites on top mixed with only 1 cup brown sugar.
The Kitchn Version
Today I found a new recipe on The Kitchn. Unlike the Donnie Cookies and many other Halfway Cookies that call for 1 cup butter, this recipe only calls for ½ cup. It also includes fewer egg whites, yet more brown sugar in the meringue. I was skeptical and figured this recipe would be too sweet without the butter to buffer the missing fat, but I tried it anyway and the bars are excellent. The dough is less rich. This makes the bars' texture less dense and more cakey than shortbread. And in a good way. Also, these bars aren't too sweet. The sweetness is balanced.
Kitchn's recipe was great, but to be fair I'm going to have to re-test the Donnie Cookies. I think I'll also give the Kingwood version a try, since it's almost identical to the Kitchn recipe but with the full cup of butter. Despite the fact the bars from today were still good, part of me wonders if maybe the Kitchn recipe evolved from a recipe with a typo that took the recipe from 1 cup of butter to ½ cup of butter. Or maybe some old recipes were just less rich.
Comparisons of Different Recipes
Here's a quick comparison chart in case you got lost in my rambling. I did. All of these were baked in a 13x9 inch pan.
| Kitchn recipe (today's) | Donnie Cookies | Kingwood Recipes |
| ½ unsalted butter ½ cup sugar ½ cup packed brown sugar 2 egg yolks 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 tablespoons water 2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon salt ¼ teaspoon baking soda 12 ounces chocolate chips Topping: 2 egg whites 1 cup packed brown sugar | 1 cup butter ½ cup sugar ½ cup packed brown sugar 2 egg yolks 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (no water) 2 cups all-purpose flour (no baking powder) ½ teaspoon baking salt 1 teaspoon baking soda 9 ounces chocolate chips Topping: 3 egg whites 1 cup packed brown sugar ½ tsps vanilla | 1 cup butter ½ cup sugar ½ cup packed brown sugar 2 egg yolks 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (no water) 2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder ¼ teaspoon salt ¼ teaspoon baking soda 12 ounces chocolate chips Topping: 2 egg whites 1 cup packed brown sugar |
The full recipe for today's cookies can be found on The Kitchn. Below is an 8-inch pan half batch recipe.
Recipe
Halfway Cookies
Ingredients
Base:
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, softened (56 grams)
- ¼ cup granulated sugar (50 grams)
- ¼ cup packed light brown sugar (50 grams)
- 1 large legg yolk
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ tablespoon water
- 1 cup all-purpose flour (127 grams)
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ⅛ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt, use a scant teaspoon (omit if using salted butter or margarine)
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips 6 oz
Topping:
- 1 large egg white
- ½ cup packed brown sugar
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla optional -- my add-in
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8 inch pan with nonstick foil.
- Cream butter and both sugars. Beat in the egg yolk and vanilla and water; mix well.
- Combine the next four ingredients (flour, soda, powder and salt); gradually add to creamed mixture. Spread in pan. Sprinkle with chips and pat them lightly into the dough.
- Prepare topping: Beat egg white in a mixing bowl just until stiff peaks begin to form. Gradually add brown sugar beating on high until stiff peaks form. Beat in vanilla if using. Spread evenly over chips.
- Bake at 350 degrees F for 25- minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely on a wire rack. Cut into bars. Store in the refrigerator or freeze. The meringue will not get rock hard, but the freezer should keep them fresh.
Suzanne says
When we made these, we baked the bottom layer after sprinkling the chocolate chips on. Then added the meringue on top, afyer the chips were soft. The topping may be called meringue, but it's really just like a crunchy topping. It doesn't have the texture of a meringue on top of a pie. the recipe is exactly the same as the Kingwood but with one tablespoon of water added into the bottom layer.
I grew up having these all the time. my mother was from north Alabama, but i dint know where she got the recipe from. I've never known anyone outside my family to make them but ran across the vegan version a few years ago. I was so surprised. The woman that developed that recipe had relatives in Mississippi so we wondered if it was a deep south thing.
Beth K. S. says
I haven't made these but wanted to comment. Late this afternoon, I made "Nancy Reagan's Chocolate Vienna bars". Re. the bars I made, I found them far too sweet. The recipe is online, and it was said to have come from a fair Nancy Reagan attended many yrs. ago. (this has nothing to do with politics, but I was just in the mood to bake.
The first thing I thought when I saw the recipe was that it was related to an Apricot Mud Hen recipe I'd found many months ago -- something I'd had intended to make, but have never had done yet. These receipts all involve the egg white (meringue) being whipped. The Vienna bar recipe had finely chopped pecans.
While I have never heard of Half Way Bars either (I'm from PA originally and a grandmother), I would venture to say that the "Mud Hen" recipe is reported to be rather old by one recipe poster. She thought 100 yrs. old. Why such a recipe would be called that I can't say any more than I know about Half Way Cookies. Out East, we'd call these "bars" and not cookies. Bars are cut. Cookies are not. These bars don't resemble anything I'd ever seen before, but one article I read said that "mud hens" were coots and the Mud Hens bore a resemblance to young chicks. I can't say I agree.. I'm a bird-watcher and they don't look like coots to me - at all. American Coots are black with white bills. At any rate,
I decided to email you bec. I'd made the Vienna bars tonight. I find them too rich. Probably, I should have made the Apricot mud hens (apricot jam) and the eggs whites also have nuts. The introduction of chocolate with the jam was too much for me. I live in Virginia now, and have been here over 20 yrs. I have never seen or heard of Mud Hens or Half Way Cookies or Vienna Bars. I just wanted to pass along the fact that I noticed the extremely strong resemblance and am certain the two items are related, but the Mud Hen recipe was said to be possibly as old as 100 yrs. I have no opinion on the age of these, but the Vienna bars apparently date at least to the the 1980s, or possibly earlier. None of these seem like depression era or World War II era recipes to me because there's a good amount of butter in the Vienna bars. Butter would likely have been rationed then. Curious names, in any event.
pam says
My grandmother and then my mother made these all the time. They were a family favorite. I cannot find my grandmothers recipe so I searched and found yours. Looks just about right. And they were always known as HALF WAY COOKIES at church potlucks and family gatherings. (In Minnesota)
thelittleloaf says
I saw these for the first time on The Kitchn website and am making them this weekend so will let you know how I get on! 🙂
Ashley says
I made a half batch of the Kitchn version of these yesterday. I had never heard of them til then, but they are great! Thanks so much, Anna.
Beth says
I grew up with my grandmother making a recipe very similar to this! We just called them chocolate chip squares. Her recipe included chopped walnuts in the crust.
Maureen says
Anna -
Thanks!!
You are the best for posting this halfway bar analysis!!!
Trying them all.
Mackenzie@The Caramel Cookie says
I have never heard of halfway cookies and they sound delicious! Let us know which recipe is your favorite--I'll have to try it!
Louise says
I don't know where we've all been to miss these. I've never heard of them either. I think I'd like chopped walnuts added to the meringue topping.
CC in St. Paul says
I love how you provide half recipes. Such a nice way to indulge and treat a family or one or two, but not have too much leftover to go to waste (or overindulge in!) Thanks for your great recipes--they're true treats!
Anna says
I'm looking forward to more opinions on the recipe. Now I have to make a fresh batch of one of the other two recipes so I can compare back-to-back.
Lisa, if you're okay with dry and crisp meringue, you may like these even if you don't care for regular meringue.
Betty, I amy dying to try those Mud Hen Bars. I found Mud Hen bars while researching Halfway cookies and love the fact they have marshmallows. As for the butter, they have 1/2 cup too, but they also have less flour, more egg, plus a good bit of yolk in the crust so it must be a little richer than this crust which is 1/2 cup butter to 1 cup flour.
Debbie says
I have never heard of these and love trying recipes that are different. They look great!
Lisa Ernst says
This looks like a great concept for a bar/cookie. They are completely new to me as well. The drawback for me is the meringue, which I don't care for. I can't really think of a substitute though I'm sure there would be some creative alternatives.
Janet says
Oh yum! Hadn't heard of Halfway Cookies either but they look like they are halfway to heaven cookies! Thanks, Anna!
Betsy Craig says
I am on the team that says they cant wait to try. Tomorrow I have friends coming for dinner I will make this during the day and serve for dessert. Looks awesome and I can hardly wait. In fact I would make now but it is a little too late.
Betsy
Betty @ scrambled hen fruit says
These look delicious! I've never heard of Halfway Cookies, but they look basically the same as a bar cookie I made earlier this year called Aunt Eva's Mud Hen Bars. They had 1/2 c. butter in the crust and contained nuts and marshmallows in addition to the chocolate chips. I was intrigued because I had never seen a bar with a meringue topping like it before. I wonder if there are more variations!
http://scrambledhenfruit.blogspot.com/2010/05/aunt-evas-mud-hen-bars.html
Bakericious says
oh this is the 1st time I heard about half way cookies, looks good too
Cakelaw says
I have never heard of these before, but they sound fabulous - how could meringue on chocolate on dough be anything but?
Fallon says
I've never heard about these cookies before but they look awesome!! I love meringue. Can't wait to try these.
Anna says
Amy, thanks! 12 oz is the standard amount. I must have been thinking in half batches because I actually made a half batch as you can see by the pan size.
Brenda, these were great. After I chilled them I put them in the refrigerator and they firmed up and developed slightly chewy centers. They really do have a marvelous texture.
Brenda says
Anna, I just love these cookies/bars. I made them a few months ago and we all just scarfed them down. I had never had them before or even heard of them until I saw them on someone's blog. They're great!
Amy says
Hey Anna, a little typo to tidy up: the kitchn recipe calls for 12 oz of chocolate