Easy Pecan Bars

Pecan Bars
An adapted recipe selected from one of my favorite cook books: Food for Friends by Sally Pasley Vargas

Recipe is divided into two layers.
Bottom Layer:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.



Add the following ingredients into a food processor:
1 ½ cups of all-purpose flour
6 tablespoons of brown sugar
Salt to taste
1 stick of butter
1 teaspoon of vanilla

Pulse until a powdery substance.

Prepare your baking dish a 9 by 13 works fine. Line with parchment paper. Cut and fold to the pan.

Pour the mixture into the pan.

Use your clean hands to pat to evenly compact the bottom layer.

Bake in the oven for about 10-12 minutes. Remove from the oven when done.



Top layer:

Grab a thick bottom small saucepan. Add in the following ingredients:
1 stick of butter
½ cup of brown sugar
½ cup of dark corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla

1 tablespoon of heavy cream

(My substitute: 1 tablespoon of powder milk and 1 tablespoon of butter)



Stir over medium heat to melt butter.
Continue to stir as you turn up the heat to bring to a boil.

Let it boil for 1 minute without stirring.

Pour over the baked bottom layer.

Sprinkle about 2 cups of pecans over the top of the top caramel mixture layer.

Place back into the oven for about 20-25 minutes or until the topping is uniformly bubbly.


*Please use caution when you remove this dessert from the oven. It will be very hot.*

Remove and aside to cool. Let the caramel topping cool and solidify to touch prior to cutting into bars. It takes about 15-20 minutes to cool.

Your Taste Buds Will Adapt

In reflection while cooking a stir fry today, I realized that I've started to enjoy kale, chard, and collard greens. Prior to receiving a produce box, I hadn't really thought to purchase kale, chard, collard greens, or even butternut squash on a regular basis at least not twice a month. This sums up the fact the more you give it a try then better chance that you might like eating it.

So here are my salutes to new vegetables creeping into my life and my family eating habits. My first recipe is to make saute greens.

Saute Greens

Grab about a 3-4 leaves of kale and 3-4 of chard.
Remove the stem down the middle of the leaf. This is really tough and will not make for pleasant eating.

Next roll up the leaves. Slice the into thin strips. Soak the greens in a bowl with water. Rinse. Set aside.
Slice up an onion.
Grab out a nonstick saute pan with a lid. Heat on medium heat. Add olive oil. First caramelize your onions. Remove them.
Drain the oil back into the pan. Make sure the pan is nicely warm.
Remove the greens from the bowl of water and place into the saute pan.
Cover and let it steam until the leaves wilt.
Stir.
Season with a little salt and pepper to taste.
Remove the lid and let it simmer off the access liquid.
Add back in the caramelized onions.
Stir.
Get ready for delicious greens and pair up with a meatloaf muffins, tater tots, and a fruit salad to make a great family dinner.



My recipes have transformed to incorporate these greens into my menu.