Honey-Pecan-Dark-Chocolate-Shortbread
Ingredients

  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
  • 1/3 cup honey
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 1/2 cup white whole wheat flour
  • 3/4 cup chopped pecans, plus extra for topping
  • 6 oz dark chocolate (70% cocoa)

Preparation

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 inch tart pan with a removable bottom and set aside.
  2. Using an electric mixer, beat together the butter and honey until smooth. Add the vanilla extract. Stir until combined.
  3. Add the flour one cup at a time. Blending to combine after each addition. Once all the flour is combined, stir in the chopped pecans.
  4. Pour batter into prepared pan. Use a spatula to spread batter evenly around pan. Score with a knife and poke with a fork.
  5. Bake 35-40 minutes or until lightly golden around the edges. Let cook on a wire rack at least 10 minutes before attempting to remove from pan. Once cooled, cut into pre-scored portions.
  6. While shortbread is cooling, melt the chocolate in a heat-proof bowl in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring after each 30 second blast, until smooth.
  7. Place the cut wedges on a baking sheet lined with wax paper, drizzle with melted chocolate. Sprinkle chopped pecans on top. Place baking sheet in the refrigerator until chocolate is firm, roughly 15 minutes. Use a sharp knife to cut cookies free of any large chocolate drizzles. Store in an airtight container until serving.

Butter-Pecan-Shortbread
Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/3 cup firmly packed light or dark brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 & 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon chopped pecans, divided
  • 2-3 teaspoons coarse sugar (may substitute granulated sugar)

preparation

  1. Preheat oven to 350°. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with foil, leaving an overhang on 2 sides.
  2. Using an electric mixer at medium speed, beat butter and brown sugar until creamy. Add vanilla and combine. Reduce mixer speed to low and gradually add flour, beating until well-mixed. Stir in 1/4 cup pecans. Mixture will be crumbly.
  3. Press dough into bottom of prepared pan. Sprinkle top with 1 tablespoon pecans and coarse sugar.
  4. Bake until edges are lightly browned, about 25 minutes. Cool in pan for 10 minutes. Using foil, lift shortbread out of pan. Cut into bars.

Pecan-Dressing

Ingredients

  • 10 cups dried bread; we did half white bread and half (not sweet!) cornbread
  • 3 cups pecan pieces
  • 2 large sweet onions, minced
  • 3 teaspoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon pepper
  • 3 teaspoons dried sage
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 4 cups whole milk
  • 1 cup melted butter
  • 2 eggs, slightly beaten

Preparation

  1. Tear bread into small pieces.
  2. Add pecans, onions, and seasonings.
  3. Stir in remaining ingredients in the order given.
  4. Bake in a casserole dish (or two) at 325 degrees until crispy and brown around the edges, about an hour.

Pecan-Pie-Bars-for-a-Crowd
Ingredients

  • 6 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1-1/2 cups sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups cold butter, cubed
  • Pecan Pie Filling

Preparation

  1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar and salt.
  2. Cut in butter until crumbly. Press onto the bottom and up the sides of two greased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pans.
  3. Bake at 350° for 18-22 minutes or until crust edges are beginning to brown and bottom is set.
  4. Pour Pecan Pie Filling over crust.
  5. Bake 25-30 minutes longer or until edges are firm and center is almost set.
  6. Cool on wire racks. Cut into bars. Refrigerate until serving.

Yield: 6-8 dozen.

Pecan Pie Filling

  • 8 eggs
  • 3 cups sugar
  • 3 cups corn syrup
  • 1/2 cup butter, melted
  • 3 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 5 cups chopped pecans

Preparation

  1. Combine the eggs, sugar, corn syrup, butter and vanilla
    in a large bowl.
  2. Stir in pecans.

Pecan-Pie-Cookies
Ingredients

  • 1 prepared single pie crust
  • 2 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 1/2 cup pecans, chopped
  • 1/3 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup corn syrup
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
    Optional
  • 1/4 cup semi sweet or milk chocolate chip for decorating

Preparation

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  2. In a large non-stick pan, combine butter, pecans, brown sugar, corn syrup, salt and eggs. Cook on the stove top over medium-low heat just until thickened. (You don’t want it dry, just slightly thickened, about the consistency of pudding). Remove from heat and set aside.
  3. Unroll dough and using a 3″ cookie cutter, cut out circles. Gently fold about 1/8-1/4″ up on the edges.
  4. Spoon 1 tablespoon of the pecan mixture into each circle. Making-Pecan-Pie-Cookies
  5. Place on a parchment lined pan (it’s important to line it) and bake 8 minutes or until filling is just set. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.
  6. Place chocolate chips in a small Ziploc bag (use brand name, the store brands tend to leak). Microwave about 15 seconds or until mostly melted.
  7. Snip off a tiny corner of the baggie and drizzle chocolate over the cookies.
  8. Cool until set.

Apple-Pecan-Pie-Cronuts-with-Apple-Cider-Caramel-Drizzle
Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Follow this croissants dough recipe through step 7.
  2. Roll the dough out to about 1/3-inch thickness. Using a 3-inch cutter, cut as many rounds as you can, then roll out remaining dough and cut as much as you can, I got 8 cronuts. Place the cronuts on a floured baking sheet.
  3. Cover with large towel and place in a warm place in your kitchen. Allow doughnuts to sit for one hour.
  4. Or if using canned crescent dough, open the cans of dough and divide into sets of two triangles. Press the 2 triangles together to seal and form a rectangle, repeat with remaining triangles. Stack 2 rectangles on top of one another, press them together, and then fold widthwise. Press down. Repeat with remaining dough. Using a 3-inch cutter, cut as many rounds as you can, then roll out remaining dough and cut as much as you can, I got 8 cronuts. Place the cronuts on a floured baking sheet. Cover with large towel and place in a warm place in your kitchen. Allow doughnuts to sit for one hour.
  5. While the doughnuts rest make the caramel.
  6. Make the frosting,
  7. Make the apple pecan pie topping.
  8. Heat a pot of oil to 375 degrees. Fry the cronuts in the oil for about 30 seconds on each side, until golden brown.
  9. Place on a baking sheet lined with paper towels and allow to cool before frosting.
  10. Once cool, spread on to each cronut a good dollop of the frosting and then top with the apple and pecan pie topping. Drizzle with the apple cider caramel sauce.
  11. Eat! Like IMMEDIATELY! These are best the very same day they are made, but we still enjoyed ours for a couple of days afterwards. Especially heated up in the microwave.

Apple Cider Caramel

Ingredients

  • 2 cups apple cider
  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 1 cup dark brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup cream
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preparation

  1. Add the apple cider to a medium sauce pot and bring to a boil, boil for about 15 to 20 minutes or until the cider has reduced to about 1/3 cup and is thick and syrupy.
  2. Reduce the heat and add the brown sugar, butter, cream and cinnamon.
  3. Bring back to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for about 5 to 10 minutes or until the the caramel is thicken and dark in color.
  4. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla.
  5. Set aside to cool and thicken more.

Cronut Frosting

Ingredients

  • 1 stick butter, softened to room temperature
  • 2 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 1 2/3 cups powdered sugar
  • 2 tablespoons apple cider caramel sauce
  • 1 tablespoon milk

Preparation

  1. in the bowl of a stand mixer beat together the butter and cream cheese until smooth and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
  2. Add powdered sugar and caramel sauce and beat until smooth and combined.
  3. Beat in the milk.
  4. Set aside in a cool area.

Apple Pecan Pie Topping

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 1/2 cups honeycrips or pink lady apples, cored and chopped
  • 1/3 cup brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preparation

  1. Heat a medium size skillet over medium heat, add the butter.
  2. Add the apples, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt, cook, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes.
  3. Add the pecans and cook another 5 minutes or until the pecans are toasted and the apples are caramelized.
  4. During the last minute add the vanilla and cook another minute.
  5. Remove from heat and set aside, but keep just slightly warm.