Maple Pecan Bars

Today I offer you decadence and pure indulgence…real flavor…and a taste of things to come with Thanksgiving around the corner.

You see, I’ve been on the couch with a bug for the past few days eating canned soup.

Today I rose from the dead…

and reached for the butter…

and real cream…

and maple syrup…

and brown sugar…

and pecans…

and danced in my kitchen with pure  JOY!

Tomorrow is the neighborhood poker party and it’s our turn to host it. Good food is a necessity. The luck of the draw is on them.

My daughter e-mailed me a few weeks back encouraging me to try this bar recipe from a Williams Sonoma Cookbook I gave her a few years back. She said it was easy and indulgent. She cautioned me on the sweetness and suggested an addition of salt to counter it.

So here it is…our version of Maple Pecan bars.

Maple Pecan Bars
(adapted from the Williams Sonoma Essentials of Baking cookbook)

Crust
1/ 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt (more if you’re using unsalted butter)
1/2 cup cold salted butter, cut into chunks (salted butter is recommended to cut the sweetness of the recipe)

Filling:

6 tbs. unsalted butter
1/3 cup pure maple syrup
2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2/3 cup heavy cream
2 cups coarsely chopped pecans
1 tsp. coarse sea salt

Combine the flour, brown sugar and salt in a food processor and pulse for 2-3 minutes to blend. Add the butter and pulse 8 to 10 times until the mixture is crumbly or the size of small peas. Press the crumb mixture into the bottom of a 9 x 9 pan lined with foil with edges out of the pan for handles. (Lightly spray the pan with baking spray.)

Press the crumb mixture into the bottom of the pan and bake until the edges are slightly brown and the top feels firm when touched. (about 12 – 17 minutes – **make sure the crust is done well enough to be able to take the juices of the filling without getting soggy!)

Set aside.

Make the filling in a saucepan over medium heat by combining the butter, maple syrup and brown sugar. Stir together and bring to a boil for 1 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in cream and pecans.

Pour the hot filling into the baked crust spreading evenly with a spatula. Sprinkle top with coarse sea salt.

Bake at 350 degrees until the filling is set when you give it a gentle shake in the pan (about 22 – 25 minutes).

Remove from oven and let cool in pan for 1 and 1/2 hours. (At this point, you will want to eat them. I know by experience…but don’t rush the cooling process or the filling will run.) Using the ends of the foil, lift the square from the pan onto a cutting board and cut accordingly.

Deal ‘em boys….she’s baaaaack!
Printable recipe here.