Maple Pecan Squares

Last weekend I celebrated Thanksgiving with my family, which, for people who don't know me, is quite the occasion. Our Thanksgiving consists of my whole family coming together (we're talking aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, boyfriends, etc.) for an evening filled with appreciation for having each other and, of course, appreciation for wonderful food! The one thing that every member of my family can agree on, is that every holiday should be centered around delicious food! So for every holiday that we celebrate, we all come together, with each of us contributing to the meal in some way, to feast!

This year I offered to make a dessert. I wanted to make something with familiar Thanksgiving flavours, with a bit of a twist, that was easy to transport. This lead me to discovering William Sonoma's recipe for Maple Pecan Squares. Maple Pecan Squares are the perfect Thanksgiving treat filled with sweet and sticky maple syrup and brown sugar, a flaky crust, and crunchy pecans. The individual squares are like little handheld bites of pecan pie, making them less messy and easy to transport to your Thanksgiving festivities.

Ingredients:

Crust

1 1/4 cups flour

1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/4 tsp salt

8 tbsp (1 stick) cold butter

2 cups pecans, coarsely chopped

Filling

6 tbsp butter

1/3 cup pure maple syrup

2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/3 cup heavy cream

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350º. Carefully line a 9-inch square baking pan with aluminum foil, letting the foil extend up the sides and over the edges of the pan. Grease the foil liner.

2. In a food processor (or by hand), combine the fry crust ingredients: flour, brown sugar, and salt and pulse 2-3 times to blend. Add the butter and pulse until large, coarse crumbs form.

3. Evening press the crumb mixture into the bottom of the prepares pan.

4. Bake the crust for 12 - 17 minutes or until edges are lightly browned and firm to the touch. Set aside.

5. To make filling, in a saucepan over medium heat, combine the butter, maple syrup, and brown sugar and stir together until the butter melts and the brown sugar has dissolved.

6. Bring mixture to a boil for 1 minute and remove from heat. Immediately stir in the cream and pecans.

7. Pour the hot filling over the partially baked crust, spreading evenly.

8. Bake for 22-25 minutes, or until filling has set. Allow to cool for about 1 1/2 hours.

9. Using the ends of the foil liner, carefully lift the large square out of the pan. Remove foil from edges and cut the large square into desired sized individual squares. Store in an airtight container.