Pecan Pie Squares
Forgive me! My mind is not entirely here today. I have just spent a marvelous 2 nights/3 days aboard a 1930s vintage railcar with some amazing people. We travelled from New York City to Williamsberg, VA. We dined off of fine china, we sipped martinis, we played 21st century parlor games, and we slept in elegant train berths. This fabulous weekend was made possible by my dear friend David, who wanted to celebrate his 40th birthday in a very special way. David’s best friend Matthew and his lovely wife Robbi have a great blog post about the weekend. Click here to read it. I couldn’t go on this trip empty handed. Along with David’s birthday present, and clothes for the weekend, I packed fake mustaches (wouldn’t you?), a copy of Fifty Shades Of Grey (I’ve become obsessed), and these yummy, decadent pecan pie squares.
My two favorite desserts are pecan pie and shortbread cookies. I decided to marry the two by making pecan pie squares with a pate sablee crust. Pate Sablee is a shortbread crust that is used primarily for tarts. It is a delicate and very rich crust, because of the high fat percentage. Pate sablee works well as the base for these squares, and they are also very delicious on their own.
I made the pate sablee (shortbread dough) in the food processor.
Like pie dough, the pate sablee should resemble breadcrumbs.
Press the dough into a greased baking pan.
Bake until lightly golden brown (about 20 minutes).
In a saucepan, make the pecan pie filling, or topping in this case.
Pour topping over the golden crust, and bake until bubbling (about 30 minutes).
Once cooled, cut into squares.
- 3 1/2 cups (366 g) Pecans, coarsely chopped
- 2 cups (250 g) All-Purpose Flour
- 2/3 cup (80 g) Powdered Sugar
- 3/4 cup (168 g) Unsalted Butter, cubed
- 1/2 tsp. Salt
- 1 Egg Yolk
- 1/2 cup (99 g) Brown Sugar, firmly packed
- 1/2 cup (150 ml) Honey
- 2/3 cup (156 g) Butter
- 3 TBS Whipping Cream
- Sea Salt
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9"x13" baking pan.
- Arrange pecans in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake for 5 to 7 minutes or until lightly toasted. Cool on a wire rack 15 minutes, or until completely cool.
- Pulse flour, powdered sugar, egg yolk, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and 3/4 cup butter in a food processor 5 to 6 times, or until mixture resembles coarse meal. Pat mixture evenly on bottom and up sides of baking pan.
- Bake at 350 degrees F. for 20 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes.
- Bring brown sugar, honey, 2/3 cup butter, and whipping cream to a boil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in toasted pecans.
- Spoon hot filling/topping onto cooled crust. Sprinkle top with a little sea salt.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes in a 350 degree F oven. The topping should be bubbling when ready.
- Cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes, or until completely cool before cutting into squares.
- Large baking sheet
- 9x13 inch greased baking pan
- food processor
