Butterscotch Pecan Shortbread Food

BUTTERSCOTCH PIE WITH PECAN-SHORTBREAD CRUST

Steps:

• Crust: Preheat oven to 375°F. Toast pecans on a rimmed baking sheet until fragrant and golden, 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool 15 minutes, then finely grind in a food processor. Add flour and salt to food processor and pulse just to combine.
• In a bowl, stir together butter and granulated sugar; stir in egg yolk. Add flour-pecan mixture and stir until mixture has the texture of fine crumbs and holds together when pressed between two fingers. Press evenly into bottom and up sides of an 8 1/4-by-11-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom.
• Freeze pan 15 minutes, then transfer to oven and bake until set and deep golden brown, about 25 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack; let cool 15 minutes.
• Filling: Meanwhile, in a saucepan, whisk together brown sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Whisk in egg yolks, then milk. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 1 minute. Remove from heat and whisk in butter. Pour filling into crust and let cool 15 minutes. Press plastic wrap directly onto surface of filling and refrigerate until set, at least 4 hours and up to 2 days.
• Pecans: Reduce oven temperature to 350°F. In a small bowl, stir together pecans, sugar, salt, and egg white. Spread mixture into an even layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake, stirring once, until golden brown and crunchy, about 15 minutes. Separate clumped nuts with a fork; let cool completely. Pecans can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 1 week.
• To serve pie, remove plastic wrap, then sides of pan; transfer pie to a platter. Decorate with sugared pecans, cut into squares, and serve.

BUTTERSCOTCH PECAN SHORTBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 300F degrees.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer using the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light colored in fluffy, about 3 minutes. Use the butter wrapper to grease the inside of a 9-inch square baking dish. (I have used a 9-inch square Spring form pan, but you can also use a regular 9-inch square pan.)
• Add vanilla, reduce speed to low, and slowly add flour and salt, beating until just combined. Scrape down the paddle, and mix in butterscotch chips and pecans by hand (so they don't disintegrate).
• Scrape dough into the prepared dish, and using an offset spatula, spread the dough evenly.
• Bake for 50 minutes, until firm and slightly golden brown around the edges. Remove from oven and, using a sharp-edged metal spatula, immediately cut through the cookies to make 42 squares; do not remove cookies from pan. Allow cookies to cool completely in pan, for about 1 hour. (If you don't cut them immediately after baking, they won't cut evenly but are more likely to crumble.)
• Remove cookies from pan and store in an airtight container on the counter. They can also be frozen, airtight.
• Makes 42 cookies.

BUTTERSCOTCH SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and confectioners' sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla. Combine flour, cornstarch and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Fold in butterscotch chips and toffee bits. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour or until easy to handle., Preheat oven to 350°. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/4-in. thickness. Cut with a floured 2-in. fluted round cookie cutter. Place 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. , Bake 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to wire racks. ,

BUTTER PECAN SHORTBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or silicon mat.
• In a large bowl with an electric mixer or a food processor, beat together butter and brown sugar until creamy.
• Add flour, ground pecans, vanilla and salt and beat just until it forms a smooth dough.
• Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour to allow it to firm up just enough to shape.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (160 degrees C).
• By hand, roll dough into 1-inch balls.
• Place them on the prepared cookie sheet and flatten very slightly (to about 1/2-inch thickness) with the bottom of a glass that has been dipped in flour to prevent the dough from sticking to the glass (If you have a cookie stamp, you can use it to flatten the cookies instead of the glass).
• Place in the oven and bake for 12 minutes or until set and very lightly browned on the bottom.
• Remove from pan and let cool on a rack.

BUTTERSCOTCH PECAN SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°F and spray a 9-inch square baking pan with nonstick cooking spray; set aside. Combine flour, sugar and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer over low speed.
• 2. Add butter and mix until combined (mixture will be crumbly). Stir in chips and pecans and press firmly into prepared pan.
• 3. Bake for 35 minutes or until lightly browned. Let cool for 15 minutes, then cut into 16 squares while still warm. Allow to cool completely before removing from pan.

HONEY BUTTERSCOTCH FONDUE WITH SALTED PECAN COOKIES

Steps:

• For the shortbread: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment.
• In a food processor, pulse together the pecans and sugar just until sandy--do not overpulse, as you don't want a paste. Add the flour and salt; pulse until combined. Cut butter into small cubes and add to the food processor. Pulse until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the water and pulse quickly, until a rough dough forms.
• Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface and press into a cohesive dough. Roll to a 1/4-inch thickness. Using a knife or a rectangular cookie cutter, cut into 1-by-3-inch rectangles, about 24 total; re-roll scraps if necessary.
• Sprinkle the tops of the cookies lightly with sea salt. Transfer to the prepared baking sheets and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Bake until golden brown at the edges, 14 to 17 minutes.
• Let the cookies cool to room temperature.
• For the fondue: Combine the sugar, water and honey in a large saucepan and bring to a boil. Cook until the mixture is a deep-amber caramel color, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Carefully pour in the cream--stand back as the mixture will bubble and splatter. Once the bubbling subsides, turn off the heat and whisk the caramel until smooth.
• Whisk in the whiskey, butter, salt and vanilla.
• Pour the sauce into the fondue pots and keep warm.
• Serve the fondue with the cookies.

PECAN SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix together the butter and sugar until they are just combined. Add the vanilla and almond extracts. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and salt, then add them to the butter/sugar mixture. Add the pecans and mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Dump onto a surface dusted with flour and shape into a flat disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.
• Roll the dough 1/2-inch thick and cut into 2 1/2-inch squares with a plain or fluted cutter (or cut into any shape you like). Place the cookies on an ungreased baking sheet.
• Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the edges begin to brown. Allow to cool to room temperature and serve.

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.

BUTTERSCOTCH SHORTBREAD BARS

Steps:

• Line a 9-inch square baking pan with foil, extending foil over edges of pan.
• Butter foil; set pan aside.
• In a bowl, combine flour, 3 tablespoons brown sugar, and baking powder; use a pastry blender and cut in ½ cup butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
• Press mixture into bottom of prepared pan; bake at 350° for about 25 minutes or until golden brown.
• In a saucepan, melt the remaining ¼ cup butter; stir in sugar, brown sugar, corn syrup, water, and salt.
• Stir in cashews; bring mixture to boiling over med-high heat, stirring constantly.
• Boil, uncovered, for 5 minutes, stirring often.
• Remove pan from heat; stir in whipping cream and vanilla.
• Spread butterscotch mixture evenly over baked crust.
• Bake 12-15 minutes more or until most of the surface is bubbly.
• Cool completely in pan on a wire rack.
• Using foil, lift bars out of pan; carefully peel foil from sides of bars; cut into bars.
• To store: place in layers separated by waxed paper in an airtight container; cover; store at room temperature up to 3 days or freeze up to 3 months.