Pecan Date Butter Food

BUTTERY PECAN DATE SPREAD

Steps:

• in small mixer bowl combine the cream cheese, beat at med speed, scraping bowl often until well mixed.
• by hand stir in remaining ingredients.
• serve with crackers or nut bread.
• store refrigerated.

PECAN DATE BUTTER

Steps:

• Place pecans in a dry saute pan and over medium heat toast until browned. Toss often (every ten seconds or so) so they don't burn. As soon as they are toasted, pour out of the hot pan onto a plate or small sheet tray to cool. Let cool completely to room temperature.
• Check to make that all of the dates are in fact pitted. I found out the hard way that sometimes a few unpitted dates get mixed in.
• Place the dates in the bowl of a food processor along with the oil and puree until smooth. With my high-speed food processor, it took about a minute or two to get the dates to a gummy consistency.
• Remove the pureed date mixture to a small bowl.
• In the same food processor bowl, add the now cooled pecans. Process in 15 second blasts, removing the cover for a second to release heat. I found out through trial and error that if you just let it go, the heat from friction and the food processor motor will heat the nuts and separate the oil from the nut solids. Once that happens, there is nothing you can do to correct it and you must start over.
• Keep pulsing for 15 seconds and eventually the nuts will go from pieces to ground, to a fine ground and finally to a smooth creamy consistency. To get mine to a smooth creamy consistency took about 2-3 minutes, stopping every 15 seconds to make sure the mixture did not heat up too much.
• Once the nuts are creamy, add the pureed dates back in along with the salt and pulse just to combine.
• Taste and add more salt as needed.

DATE PECAN BARS

Steps:

• To prepare filling, mix together dates, sugar and water in saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened (about 10 minutes). Allow to cool. Add pecans.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cream butter and brown sugar. Combine remaining ingredients and stir into butter mixture until well blended. Press half of the filling into a 9x13-inch glass baking dish. Spread with cooled filling. Cover with remaining filling mixture, patting lightly. Bake until lightly browned (approximately 25 to 30 minutes). Cool and cut into bars.

PECAN BUTTER TARTS

Steps:

• Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• For Tart Shells:.
• In a food processor, combine the flour, salt, and sugar. Add the butter and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal (about 15 seconds). Slowly pour 1/8 cup water in through the feed tube until the dough just holds together when pinched. If necessary, add more water to a maximum of 1/4 cup. Do not process more than 30 seconds.
• Turn dough onto work surface and gather into a ball. Flatten into a disk, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for about one hour.
• After the dough has chilled sufficiently, roll out the dough and cut into 12 - 4 inch rounds. It may be easier to roll the dough between two pieces of plastic wrap, instead of on a floured surface. Gently place the rounds into a 12-cup muffin tin. You may need to coax the rounds into the tin, leaving a fluted edge. Place in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes to firm up.
• While dough is chilling, toast and chop the pecans. Reserve 12 pecan halves, which will be used to top the tarts.
• For Filling:.
• In a medium sized saucepan lightly whisk the eggs. Add the butter, sugar, and cream. Place on medium heat, bring this mixture just to a boil - stir constantly to prevent scorching. Immediately remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract. (For a runnier filling, remove when filling starts to thicken but has not reached a boil.).
• Place a teaspoon of chopped pecans into the bottom of each tart shell and then fill the unbaked shells with the filling. Top each tart with a whole pecan. Bake for about 15 - 20 minutes or until the pastry is nicely browned and filling is set.
• Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

HOMEMADE PECAN BUTTER

Steps:

• If roasting pecans, place on a greased cookie sheet in preheated 350 degree oven. Spread them out in a thin layer to roast evenly.
• Roast for 5 minutes, stir, then roast for another 5 minutes until you can smell them. Take care not to scorch them!
• As soon as they come out of the oven, place them on a flat plate or piece of parchment paper to cool.
• Add cooled pecans to food processor and blend on HIGH until finely ground, 2-3 minutes.
• Add vegetable oil 1/2 tbs at a time and continue to blend until butter reaches desired consistency.
• Add salt to taste.
• Place in an airtight container and store in the fridge. Usually, this will keep 1 to 2 months if you used fresh nuts. Storing at room temperature will accelerate rancidification.