Category: Pecan

Skillet-Baked Pear and Apple Crisp

4/21/2020

I've been on a huge skillet kick lately, and this seemed like the perfect way to get my apple pie fix the quick-and-easy way. It's not quite easy-peasy, but easy enough with the right tools - a food processor and a 12" skillet, which might seem humongous for a single family dessert, but with all the fruit spread out, is mostly just a single layer thick, so quite manageable for two evenings' worth of enjoyment!

Topping

1 cup light brown sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup pecans
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 stick unsalted butter, cut into cubes

Filling

1 1/2 pounds Granny Smith apples—peeled, cored and thinly sliced
1 1/2 pounds firm Bartlett pears—peeled, cored and thinly sliced
3/4 cup dried currants
1/4 cup light brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/4 cup honey
2 tablespoons Cognac
Vanilla ice cream, for serving

Preheat the oven to 350° and butter a 12-inch cast-iron skillet.
In a food processor, combine the sugar with the flour, pecans and cinnamon. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture is fine. Transfer the topping to a bowl and press into clumps.
In a large bowl, combine the apples and pears with the currants, sugar, cinnamon, cardamom, honey and Cognac and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Spread the fruit in the skillet and scatter the topping over the fruit.
Bake the crisp in the center of the oven for about 45 minutes (for firmer fruit, start checking around 30 minutes), until the fruit is bubbling and the topping is browned. Let cool for 20 minutes before serving with ice cream.

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Pecan Pie / Tart

11/21/2015

My brother adores pecan pie, but they almost unilaterally call for corn syrup in their recipes, which is just ... bleh. This is one of the rare ones that does not ask for corn syrup - and from the way he devoured it on his birthday (in place of a cake), I'd say it did quite well without it.

(Though this is usually done in a pie crust, I have also substituted the pine nut tart crust for the usual pie crust. One note is that you can't just cook the tart crust first as usual; it may burn if you just put it into the oven with the rest of the filling for 30 minutes. I took the halfway road and cooked the crust for 10 minutes at 350 F, poured the filling in, covered the edges with foil, and then popped it back into the oven to finish.)

1 9" pie crust
1 egg wash (1 egg + 1 tsp water)
2 eggs
1/2 cup melted butter
1 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. To prevent the filling from making the bottom crust a soggy mess, I like to blind bake the pie crust partway and help seal the bottom with an egg wash. Line the bottom and sides of the crust with foil or parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dried beans - make sure to not only cover all over the bottom but up the sides also. Bake for 12 minutes. Remove the pie weights and lining, brush egg wash all over crust, put a heat shield on the edges of the crust, then return to the oven for another 3 minutes. Remove and set aside while you make the filling.
In a large bowl, beat eggs until foamy, and slowly stir in melted butter. Stir in the brown sugar, white sugar and the flour; mix well. Last add the milk, vanilla and nuts.
Pour into the pie shell. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes. (Depending on your oven, the nuts on top might get a little burnt-looking. You may wish to cover the entire pie with foil instead of just the crust edges as a heat shield at this time. Make sure you make slits in the top of the foil to allow steam to vent.) Then reduce temperature to 350 degrees and bake for 35 - 40 minutes. Let pie cool completely before serving.

Spiced Pecans

6/13/2015

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I got this recipe from a coworker of mine many years ago, and it's a great way to help spruce up pecans which, sadly, often become stale or soft really quickly, particularly if you get them from the bulk bins in grocery stores. While the original recipe had called for almost double all the spices and flavors, I found that cutting those down makes these more enjoyable by the handful.

1 egg white
1 tbsp vanilla
1/4 to 1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 tbsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp cloves
1 pound pecans

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
In a large bowl, whisk egg white until frothy, then whisk in vanilla.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, salt and spices.
Fold nuts into egg white, then stir in sugar/spice mixture.
Spread onto parchment-lined sheet pans and bake for 10 minutes. Turn the nuts over and then bake for another 10-15 minutes. When you take them out, they will feel tacky, but after they cool off, they will crisp up again.

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Rhubarb Buttermilk Muffins

4/9/2015

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This is a great way to mop up "rhubarb scraps" from other recipes, such as rhubarb pie, when you've got a bunch of stalks left over. These muffins passed the "dad test".

I have not yet tried the version with the topping - since my family tends to like things less sweet, I simply left that part out.

1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1/4 cup salad oil
1 egg
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
2 cups finely diced rhubarb
1 cup pecan pieces
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp salt

Topping:

1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp melted margarine

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease 24 medium-sized muffin cups.
Combine in large bowl: brown sugar, oil, egg, and vanilla. Beat until well mixed. Stir into mixture buttermilk, rhubarb, and pecans.
In another bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add this mixture all at once to rhubarb mixture and stir until all ingredients are moistened. Do not over mix.
Fill prepared muffin pan 3/4 full with batter.
Quickly combine topping ingredients and sprinkle on top of batter in each muffin cup.
Bake in preheated oven on center shelf 15 to 20 minutes.

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Butter Pecan Cookies

4/9/2015

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1 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped/minced pecans
1 1/2 cups pecan halves

Servings: who the heck knows (a million cookies depending on how big you make them)

In a large bowl, cream butter and brown sugar. Add the egg and vanilla, mix until well blended.
Sift together the flour and salt. Add these slowly to the liquid mix. Once everything is well blended, mix in the chopped pecans.
Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour (though it will be better if it can be left overnight).
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Roll one inch pieces of dough into balls and place 2 inches apart on cookie sheets. Flatten balls with the bottom of a glass dipped in flour or just using your fingers. Press a pecan into top of dough.
Bake about 9-10 minutes, until lightly golden.

There’s a bit of lore that cookie batter that’s been allowed to rest for a significant time in the refrigerator will bake into better tasting cookies. The longer the better - 24 hours, even 36 - 48 hours. While there is a page that claims a blind taste test supported this theory, I didn’t quite believe it until my father piped up after tasting one batch one day (left in the fridge for 1 hour) and tasted another batch 2 days later (this one left in the fridge for 30 hours). He noted without prompting that the second batch was better - the taste richer and more even. The handling of the second batch’s batter was a bit different though - it was far stickier and malleable once it reached warmer temperatures. They also took less time to burn - the first batch took 10 minutes, but I had to adjust it down to 9 for the second, so keep an eye on those cookies while they bake!

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ARCHIVE: Glazed Mango Pecan Muffin (from The Cypress B&B)

1/1/2015

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2 cups unbleached flour
3/4 cups sugar
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup whole milk
1 tsp vanilla
1_1/2 cups mango (skinned and diced)
2 tbsp lemon zest
1/2 cup chopped pecans
Topping:
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tbsp lemon juice (fresh)
1 tbsp dark rum or brandy

Servings: 12

Preheat oven to 375 F. In a large bowl mix butter and sugar, beat well.
Add eggs (beat in one at a time). Then add sour cream, milk, and vanilla. Mix well.
Stir in lemon zest and diced mango.
In another bowl, mix flour, baking powder, soda, and salt. Pour flour mix into liquids, stir until just combined.
Spoon batter into greased muffin pan. Sprinkle with chopped pecans.
Bake for 16-20 minutes. Cool muffins for 5 minutes.
Mix together glaze ingredients and drizzle over the top of each muffin and serve.

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Skillet-Baked Pear and Apple Crisp

Pecan Pie / Tart

Spiced Pecans

Rhubarb Buttermilk Muffins

Butter Pecan Cookies

ARCHIVE: Glazed Mango Pecan Muffin (from The Cypress B&B)

Sweet Enough

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