Caramel Pecan Bars

Who likes caramel and pecans?  Yes!  I can envision the hands in the air.  Combine that with a buttery crust and you have a wonderful bar that will make you do back flips with each and every bite.

These bars remind me of pecan pie...sort of,  but just not quite.
This is a nice alternative to pecan pie for those of you who break out in a sweat at the thought of having to bake a pie or make pie crust.  Fear no more.  The crust for these bars does not require a rolling pin.  You pat the crust into the pan with your fingers.  How simple is that! 

I have gotta warn you though, you will need to bust out your stretchy waistband pants or loosen your belt a notch because these babies will blow you diet!  They are loaded with butter, brown sugar, cream....you get the picture. Do not skimp on the ingredients, use real butter and real cream.  You'll be glad you did. 

Although I didn't try it, I believe that the topping mixture would be amazing served warm over vanilla bean ice cream. Yup, I sampled it. I admit it.  I intentionally left a little in the pan so I could indulge....hey, quality control right?

These bar cookies travel well and would be great for a Thanksgiving or Christmas gathering, a Cookie Exchange or to take to work for Goodie Day.  If you have new neighbors, they would make a great housewarming gift.  I'll likely whip of a batch of these this winter for the neighbor who clears my driveway with his snow blower (please oh, please let there be that much snow this year)!

Pecan Pie Muffins

I don't recall where I learned about this recipe but have seen it several times on various blogs and it is so simple and so good that I wanted to pass it along to you.

This recipe stirs up  quickly with only five simple ingredients that I bet you have in your pantry right now.  While they are baking your house smells delectable.

If you love pecan pie or know someone who does, give this recipe a try and wait for the compliments to come your way!

I've made these for my neighbor who came over unsolicited with his snow blower this winter to clear my driveway and have a batch in the oven right now to send to my brother for his birthday!

Pecan Pie Muffins

Ingredients:

1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 cup chopped pecans
2/3 cup butter, softened
2 eggs

Directions:

Oven Ready

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 C).

1. Liberally coat mini-muffin tins with non-stick spray.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together the brown sugar, flour and chopped pecans.
3. In a separate bowl, beat the softened butter and eggs until smooth.
4. Stir egg and butter mixture into the dry ingredients and mix well.
5. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling to 3/4 full.
6. Bake at 350 degrees (175 C) for 20-24 minutes.
7. Cool on wire racks when done.

Wait until the muffins are completely cool before trying to remove them from the muffin pan.  Run a knife around the edges of the muffin pan to make removal easier.  The muffins have a tendency to stick.  That's okay though....the baker needs to sample them for recipe quality control! 

Yield:  24 mini muffins.

Warm from the Oven