About Texas Nut Shellers

Toasted Butter Pecan Cake

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Toasted Butter Pecan Cake
If you like butter pecan ice cream, you’ll love this cake. Loads of nuts are folded into the batter, and more are sprinkled over the delectable frosting.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons butter, softened, divided
  • 2-2/3 cups chopped pecans
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 4 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup 2% milk

FROSTING:

  • 2 packages (one 8 ounces, one 3 ounces) cream cheese, softened
  • 2/3 cup butter, softened
  • 6-1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons 2% milk

Directions

  1. In a small heavy skillet, melt 2 tablespoons butter. Add pecans; cook over medium heat until toasted, about 4 minutes. Set aside to cool.
  2. In a large bowl, cream sugar and remaining butter until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with milk. Beat just until combined. Fold in 2 cups reserved pecans.
  3. Spread evenly into three greased and waxed paper-lined 9-in. round baking pans. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely.
  4. For frosting, in a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter, confectioners’ sugar and vanilla until smooth. Beat in enough milk to achieve spreading consistency. Spread frosting between layers and over top and sides of cake. Sprinkle with remaining pecans. Store in the refrigerator. Yield: 12-16 servings.

Pecan Meltaways

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Pecan Meltaways
These sugared nut-filled balls are a tradition of ours at Christmastime. They make an attractive addition to a plate of holiday cookies…and they melt in your mouth!

Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup chopped pecans
  • Additional confectioners’ sugar

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. In a large bowl, cream butter and confectioners’ sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla. Combine flour and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Stir in pecans. Refrigerate until chilled.
  2. Preheat oven to 350°. Roll into 1-in. balls and place on ungreased baking sheets. Bake 10-12 minutes or until set. Roll warm cookies in additional confectioners’ sugar; cool completely on wire racks. Roll cooled cookies again in confectioners’ sugar.

Yield: 4 dozen.

Chocolate-Dipped Strawberries

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Chocolate-Dipped StrawberriesMelt chocolate in your microwave, give strawberries a quick dip, and then add a Southern touch by rolling them in chopped pecans.

Ingredients

  • 2 quarts fresh strawberries
  • 2 cups (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate morsels
  • 1/4 cup whipping cream

Preparation

  1. Rinse strawberries, and pat completely dry with paper towels (chocolate will not stick to wet strawberries). Set aside.
  2. Microwave chocolate morsels and whipping cream in a 1-quart microwave-safe bowl at MEDIUM (50% power) 3 1/2 minutes. Stir until smooth.
  3. Grasp strawberries by the stem, and dip into melted chocolate, allowing excess to drip. Place on wax paper, and let stand until chocolate hardens.

Mocha-Pecan Mud Pie

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Mocha-Pecan-Mud-Pie
Round out your meal with a slice of decadent mocha-pecan mud pie. This dessert is so rich, your guests will never know it was lightened.

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans
  • Vegetable cooking spray
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 pint light coffee ice cream, softened
  • 1 pint light chocolate ice cream, softened
  • 1 cup coarsely chopped reduced-fat cream-filled chocolate sandwich cookies, divided (about 10 cookies)
  • 1 (6-ounce) ready-made chocolate crumb piecrust
  • 2 tablespoons light chocolate syrup

Preparation

  1. Place pecans in a single layer on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray; sprinkle evenly with sugar.
  2. Bake at 350° for 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly toasted. Cool.
  3. Stir together ice cream, 3/4 cup cookie chunks, and 1/3 cup pecans; spoon into piecrust. Freeze 10 minutes. Press remaining cookie chunks and pecans evenly on top. Cover with plastic wrap, and freeze 8 hours. Drizzle individual slices evenly with chocolate syrup.

Note: For testing purposes only, we used Keebler Chocolate Ready Crust, Häagen-Dazs Light Coffee Ice Cream, and Häagen-Dazs Light Dutch Chocolate Ice Cream.

Salted Caramel-Chocolate Pecan Pie

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Salted Caramel-Chocolate Pecan Pie
A cross between a fudge pie and pecan pie, this is all the more stunning if you arrange the pecans from the center in a spiral pattern.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 3/4 cup butter, melted
  • 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/3 cup 100% cacao unsweetened cocoa
  • 1 tablespoon light corn syrup
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 cup toasted chopped pecans
  • 1 (9-inch) unbaked deep-dish piecrust shell
  • 1 recipe
  • Salted Caramel Topping

Preparation

  1. Prepare Filling: Preheat oven to 350°. Stir together first 6 ingredients in a large bowl. Add eggs, stirring until well blended. Fold in chopped pecans. Pour mixture into pie shell.
  2. Bake at 350° for 35 minutes. (Filling will be loose but will set as it cools.) Remove from oven to a wire rack.
  3. Arrange pecan halves on pie. Top with warm caramel. Cool 15 minutes; sprinkle with sea salt.

Note: We tested with Hershey’s 100% Cacao Special Dark Cocoa and Maldon Sea Salt Flakes.

Salted Caramel Topping

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • 1/3 cup heavy cream
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 1/4 teaspoon table salt
  • 2 cups toasted pecan halves
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Preparation

  1. Bring sugar, lemon juice and cup water to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. (Do not stir.)
  2. Boil, swirling occasionally after sugar begins to change color, 8 minutes or until dark amber. (Do not walk away from the pan, as the sugar could burn quickly once it begins to change color.)
    Remove from heat; add cream and butter.
  3. Stir constantly until bubbling stops and butter is incorporated (about 1 minute).
  4. Stir in table salt.

Grilled Fillets with Pecans and Green Bean Ravioli

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Grilled-Fillets-with-Pecans-and-Green-Bean-Ravioli

Ingredients

  • 4 4-ounce beef tenderloin fillets
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
  • 1 20-ounce package refrigerated cheese-filled ravioli
  • 1 8-ounce package fresh small green beans
  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
  • 1/2 cup (2 ounce) shredded Parmesan cheese

Preparation

  1. Preheat grill to 350° to 400° (medium-high) heat. Sprinkle fillets with salt and pepper. Grill, covered with grill lid, 5 to 8 minutes on each side or until a meat thermometer inserted into thickest portion registers 155°. Let stand 10 minutes.
  2. Cook ravioli and green beans in boiling water to cover in a Dutch oven 4 to 5 minutes or until green beans are crisp-tender. Drain.
  3. Heat pecans in a large nonstick skillet over medium-low heat, stirring often, 2 to 3 minutes or until toasted and fragrant. Remove from skillet; wipe skillet clean. Melt butter in skillet over medium heat. Add garlic, and sauté 5 to 7 minutes or until garlic is caramel-colored and butter begins to brown. Remove from heat, and stir in sage, hot pasta mixture, and pecans. Sprinkle with cheese. Serve immediately with fillets.