Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie

Happy Pi Day! For those of you unfamiliar with Pi day, it is the celebration of Pi (3.14) that takes place every year on March 14^th (3/14). I absolutely love to make different types of pie every year for Pi day, and this year is no exception. Check out last year’s savory pie: White Cheddar Macaroni Pie!This year’s pie is a chocolate bourbon pecan pie. Even though bourbon is an American spirit, I wanted to start paying tribute to St Patrick’s Day a little early.  There isn’t very much bourbon in this recipe so it mostly just provides a slight flavor to contrast the pecans and chocolate.I don’t typically make homemade pie crusts for any of my pies. This recipe is no different. It calls for a premade pie crust as the base. However, you can make your own if that is something you prefer to do. I just don’t really feel like I get enough of a taste payoff for the amount of effort a handmade pie crust takes.[amd-yrecipe-recipe:179]Source: Food and Wine

Pecan Pralines

I made these a couple of weeks ago to use as topping for my Butter Pecan Cupcakes. They are a fantastic compliment to these cupcakes and would also be great by themselves! Anyone you serve them to will be highly impressed with your candy making abilities.You will absolutely need a candy thermometer for this recipe. It is possible to make them without one. However, you will make it 10x’s harder on yourself. You will have to constantly test the candy to see when it is right to take it off. However, if you have a candy thermometer you can simply bring the mixture to the correct temperature and voila! There you have it, perfect candy![amd-yrecipe-recipe:140]

Maple Toasted Pecan Crème Pie

I think at this point I can call myself an accomplished baker. I’ve posted over 200 recipes in the last year, and that’s only what I’ve made in the last year. However, this was one of the most difficult recipes I have ever made. The first time I made this recipe it turned into a pile of sticky goo so I had to make it a second time! I have no idea why since I followed the directions to the letter, but it just didn’t work the first time around. The second time it was fine but I still don’t know what I did differently.This was a SUPER yummy pie! I’m planning to revise the directions/ingredients in the future to make it more user friendly. However, if you’re feeling adventurous you might want to try this recipe. Make sure you have extra Maple syrup on hand in case you need to make this more than once.I used Trader Joe’s Bourbon Barrel Aged Maple Syrup for this recipe. It provides the finished product with a light, yet super maply flavor. It pairs perfectly with toasted pecans sprinkled throughout the pie and all over the top. The finishing touch is the fresh whipped cream, it is the perfect light compliment to the rest of the pie.[amd-yrecipe-recipe:138]Source: Adapted from – Food Network Magazine, November 2015

Hummingbird Cupcakes

These cupcakes are not the “normal” type of cupcakes I make. They are a combination of pineapple, banana, coconut and pecans. However, when I was looking for a unique type of cupcake to make for some friends who watched Pond for a day, I decided on these.Hummingbird cake is a southern staple. It was created in Jamaica in the late 1960’s. It is named after the hummingbirds that grace the island. The cake was brought to US popularity when a woman submitted the recipe to Southern Living in the late 1970’s. Ever since then it has been a staple cake among southern bakers. If you don’t live in the south, it is likely you’ve never heard of this cake or ever enjoyed a slice. I know I certainly hadn’t ever heard of it before a few years ago.I received so many compliments on these cupcakes. This cake is not overly sweet. It really relies on the tropical flavors to carry the cake rather than your typical sugary cake flavor. Since this was the first time our friends had ever had this cake they were very surprised by its tropical flavor combinations. However, they absolutely loved it and I’m certain you will too!For this recipe I used a SUPER ripe banana that my mother had given me a couple months prior. The longer you leave bananas out the more pronounced the flavor will be. You really want to make certain the flavor shows through in these. If you don’t have a several months old banana to use just make sure that your banana is very, very brown. If you don’t like pecans you can simply leave them out of the recipe. They provide a fantastic crunch, but I know not everyone is a fan.I topped these cupcakes with a vanilla cream cheese frosting. I wanted something simple that would really showcase the flavor of the cupcakes. I then put a dried banana slice, candied pineapple and chopped pecans on top. I thought about adding some toasted coconut around the sides but decided against it for the sake of time. You can certainly add it if you prefer. Annie-Eats also has a tutorial on making pineapple flowers that look absolutely beautiful on these type of cupcakes.[amd-yrecipe-recipe:74]

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Source: Cake adapted from Annies-Eats

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Dulce De Leche Cookie Bars

I ran across these bars in the March edition of the the Food Network Magazine. I just knew I had to try making them. Alex really loves caramel and pecans together so I thought he’d really enjoy these cookie bars.We had friends over for dinner one night and I thought that would be the perfect excuse to make these bars. They were a hit! Everyone who tried them thought they were the perfect combination of caramel, chocolate and pecan.

This recipe will also work if you have a 9x9 pan. I do not so I’ve adapted everything to work in my 8x8. If you have the larger pan simply adjust your baking times down by a few minutes. If you are really worried about it make sure to pay attention the last 10ish minutes of baking and take them out when they look done.Originally I thought I had a can of dulce de leche on hand, but I remembered that I’d used it on a previous recipe.  I then chose to make my own for the recipe. I’ve posted instructions if you would like to make your own. You can find the recipe HERE.

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Dulce De Leche Cookie Bars:2 Cups + 1 Tablespoon Flour12 Tablespoons Butter (diced)1/3 Cup Powdered Sugar1 Tablespoon Vanilla½ Teaspoon Kosher Salt1 Cup Dulce De Leche¼ Cup Heavy Cream2 Egg Yolks¾ Cup Chocolate Chips¾ Cup Pecans (chopped)

Preheat the oven to 350. Line an 8x8 baking dish with tin foil leaving a few inches of overhang on each side. Spray the foil with cooking spray.

Pulse 2 cups flour, the butter, sugar, 1 teaspoon of vanilla and the salt in a food processor until it begins to clump together.

Press firmly and evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan, and ¼ inch up the sides. Bake until firm and lightly brown about 30-35 minutes.

While the crust is baking combine the dulce de leche, cream, egg yolks, remaining 1 tablespoon of flour and 2 teaspoons of vanilla in a medium bowl. Whisk until smooth.

When the crust has finished baking pour the mixture over the top of the crust and sprinkle with chocolate chips and pecans.

Return to the oven and bake until slightly jiggly, about 25-30 minutes.

Remove from the oven and let cool on a cooling rack. Once the bars are completely cool, remove from the pan using the tin foil overhang. Remove the foil and cut into pieces.

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Source: adapted from Food Network Magazine, March 2015

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