Brown Sugar Pecan Bread Food

BROWN SUGAR PECAN BEARS

Steps:

• Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl. Beat the brown sugar and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in the egg, then the vanilla until completely combined, scraping the bowl as necessary. Add the flour mixture and mix on medium-low speed until completely incorporated, about 1 minute. Divide the dough in half, then pat or roll each piece into 1/4-inch thick sheets between pieces of plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour and up to overnight.
• Position 2 oven racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Working with 1 piece of dough at a time, remove the plastic wrap and transfer the dough to a piece of parchment paper. Place a second piece of parchment on top and roll out the dough between the parchment to 1/8-inch thick, being sure to smooth out any creases. Cut out 20 to 22 bears by pressing a 2 3/8-inch bear cookie cutter into the dough, sliding a small offset spatula underneath the cutter and dough and lifting to release from the paper. Place the bears on one of the prepared baking sheets about 1 inch apart. (If the dough becomes too soft, put it in the freezer to firm up a little so it is easier to work with.) Reserve the dough scraps wrapped in plastic at room temperature.)
• Place a pecan between the arms of each bear and fold the arms up around the pecan to make it look like the bear is hugging the nut (the arms may crack at the shoulder; that's okay as long as they sit on the nut). Put the baking sheet in the freezer to firm up, 10 minutes. Repeat with the second piece of dough, adding the scraps to the reserved scraps to roll later. After 10 minutes, take the first baking sheet out of the freezer to bake it and put the second baking sheet in to chill.
• Bake, 1 baking sheet at a time, rotating it 180 degrees halfway through, until the cookies are beginning to become golden at the edges but are still slightly soft to the touch, 14 to16 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets until firm enough to transfer to a wire rack to cool completely, about 10 minutes. The cookies will firm as they cool.
• Knead together the reserved scraps and reroll, chilling if necessary; repeat the forming, chilling and baking process until all the dough has been used.
• Melt the milk chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl in the microwave at 30-second intervals, stirring between each interval, about 2 minutes total. Use a toothpick to draw chocolate eyes, noses, ears and feet on the bears. Alternatively, put the melted chocolate in a resealable plastic bag, snip off a corner and pipe the features onto to cookies. Let the chocolate set completely before serving, about 30 minutes.

BROWN SUGAR POUND CAKE I

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and flour a 10 inch tube pan. Mix together the flour and baking powder; set aside.
• In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar and white sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the milk, mixing just until incorporated. Sir in the chopped pecans. Pour batter into prepared pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 60 to 75 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.

BROWN SUGAR PECAN CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. Grease and flour a 10-in. fluted tube pan., In a large bowl, cream butter, brown sugar and sugar until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. In another bowl, whisk flour and baking powder; add to creamed mixture alternately with sour cream, beating well after each addition. Fold in pecans., Transfer batter to prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 70-80 minutes. Cool in pan 30 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with confectioners' sugar. If desired, serve with ice cream and drizzle with topping.

BROWN SUGAR PECAN BRITTLE

Steps:

• Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook and stir brown sugar in hot butter until dissolved. Add cinnamon and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute.
• Stir vanilla into brown sugar mixture; cook and stir until vanilla stops sizzling, about 30 seconds. Add pecans; cook and stir until pecans are fragrant and lightly toasted, about 1 minute. Pour pecan mixture out in a layer on parchment paper. Let cool to room temperature before breaking into pieces, about 20 minutes.

BROWN BUTTER PECAN SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Grind pecans in processor until coarse meal forms. Melt 1/2 cup butter in small skillet over medium heat. Cook until dark amber, stirring often, about 6 minutes (do not burn). Pour through fine strainer into small bowl. Chill just until firm, about 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 300°F. Whisk flour and salt to blend. Using electric mixer, beat brown butter, 1/2 cup butter, and sugar in large bowl until creamy. Beat in vanilla, then nuts. Gradually beat in flour mixture on low speed just to blend.
• Transfer dough to sheet of parchment paper. Form dough into rectangle. Place second sheet of parchment paper over dough. Press or roll dough into 12x8- inch rectangle. Remove top sheet of parchment. Transfer dough on parchment to baking sheet. Using fork, pierce dough all over, spacing 1 inch apart.
• Bake shortbread until golden brown and firm to touch, about 55 minutes. Leaving shortbread on baking sheet, cut lengthwise into 8 strips. Cut each strip crosswise into quarters. Cool 10 minutes on sheet on rack. Transfer cookies to rack to cool completely. DO AHEAD: Can be made 3 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.

MOIST BANANA PECAN BREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325. Grease a 9" x 5" loaf pan.
• In a large mixing bowl, beat together butter and brown sugar until creamed. Beat in eggs, mashed bananas, and vanilla until creamy.
• In a seperate bowl, combine flour, salt, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg. Gradually add this dry mixture into creamed mixture and mix well. Batter will get thick.
• Stir in chopped pecans.
• Pour into greased loaf pan. Bake at 325 for 70-80 minutes.
• Makes 1 loaf.

BROWN SUGAR-PECAN SHORTBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• Sift together the flour, cornstarch, salt and clove.
• Using a mixer fitted with a paddle, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Stop the mixer to scrape down the sides. Add the dry ingredients and mix on low speed just until incorporated. Add the pecans and mix just until combined.
• Place the dough on a sheet of plastic wrap. Cover with another sheet of plastic and shape into a square. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Roll the dough between the plastic to 1/4-inch thick, and into a 9 1/2 x 11-inch rectangle. Refrigerate for at least 1 1/2 hours, or up to 2 days.
• Position two oven racks so they divide the oven into thirds. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Discard the plastic sheets from the dough. Trim the edges to form a 9 x 10.5/2-inch rectangle, then cut the dough into 1 1/2-inch squares. Place the squares on the baking sheets, then, with a fork, pierce each cookie twice all the way through. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, rotating the sheets from top to bottom and front to back after 9 minutes. If desired, dust the cookies with confectioners' sugar while still hot. Transfer to a rack to cool.