Slice of Heaven.

As far as I'm concerned, s'mores = summer. They have since my childhood. There is nothing better than a toasty marshmallow on a melty-chocolate graham. Yum. I don't think I've ever turned one down. But then again, I don't think I've ever turned dessert down in my life either.

Imagine a s'more-less existence. And then you realize that is the life of every Australian. No marshmallows (that I could find on the continent, at least, besides these pink berry-flavored puff things). No graham crackers. Only the finest quality of thick, Cadbury chocolate bars. It's no wonder that as hard as we tried to explain a "s'more", they just couldn't wrap their minds around the notion. You may want to take a brief moment and reflect on how thankful you are that you were born in the good ol' US of A.

So last summer, I experienced my first s'more bar, or the goodness of s'mores in the form of a gooey, delicious bar. My mom made them first, although I believe she received the recipe from my aunt, who got it from somewhere. I'm not quite sure. Wherever it came from, it is good. Really good. In fact, I might even be bold enough to say it's better than a s'more. Just ever so slightly.

Layered S'more Bars

18 whole graham crackers

2 c. rice krispies

1 c. light corn syrup

1/2 c. brown sugar

2 T. butter

1/2 t. soda

1/2 t. vanilla

9 milk chocolate bars

10 oz. bag mini marshmallows

1/3 c. chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Crush graham crackers. I place them inside a ziplock bag and roll away...

Add the rice krispies, mix well, and set aside.

In a medium saucepan, combine corn syrup and brown sugar. Cook 4-5 minutes until mixture just comes to a boil, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and stir in butter, soda, and vanilla.

Pour syrup over crumbs and mix well! Press firmly into a well greased 9 x 13 pan.

Place chocolate bars in a layer on top of graham mixture.

Sprinkle with marshmallows and bake for 8-10 minutes, or until marshmallows turn golden brown. Sprinkle with chocolate chips and return to oven for one more minute.

Cool to room temperature, then place them in the fridge for an hour or so. The last time I made the recipe I actually refrigerated them overnight. The most important part is that you wait to cut them until the hersheys chocolate layer has cooled and hardened. Cut them and serve. And watch them disappear, like this...

I know, I know. Summer is nearly over. The weather is turning and we're grasping for our last few days before the fall routine begins (it actually began for me this last week with volleyball try-outs - and it may have for you too). So think about making yourself one last summer treat. A last hurrah in honor of good ol' summer. I don't think you'll be disappointed.