Pecan Pie Bars ~ recipe

The dessert menu for our Thanksgiving dinner is most often traditional Pumpkin, Apple  and Pecan Pies however, I usually like to try something new as well.

This year my youngest sister and her husband were hosting Thanksgiving and I offered to make the pumpkin pies. A week or so went by when I remembered that she had mentioned she was making a Pumpkin Cheesecake Dessert which seemed just a little too similar to pumpkin pie. Since I knew nobody had signed up for Pecan Pie I told her I would be glad to make that instead. Then a few days ago I changed my mind once again. It was only a slight change this time but instead of pie I decided to make Pecan Pie Bars. The shortbread crust is so good and they are easy to make. A nice compliment to her Pumpkin Cheesecake Dessert.

I am excited to share the recipe below in case you want to try these quick and easy dessert bars. They would be great to take to a cookie exchange, give as a hostess gift or even serve at the end of a 

Christmas meal. 

print recipe

Pecan Pie Bars

by http://thegrandsurprise.blogspot.com

by Jennifer Stull

Ingredients

• 1-3/4 cups flour
• 3/4 cup butter
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup chopped pecans
• 2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 6 Tablespoons flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1-1/2 cups dark corn syrup
• 4 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/8 teaspoons almond extract
• 2 cups roughly chopped pecans

Instructions

CRUST: Combine 1-3/4 C flour and 1/3 C sugar. Cut in 3/4 butter until coarse crumbs. Stir in 1/3 cup pecans. Press into an ungreased 9 x 13 inch pan and bake in 350 degree oven for 18-22 minutes until edges are light brown. FILLING: While crust is baking mix together brown sugar, remaining flour and salt. Add in corn syrup, eggs,vanilla and almond extracts and mix well. Stir in remaining pecans. Spread over hot baked crust and return to oven. Bake additional 30-35 minutes or until filling is set. 

Yield: 24 squares

*Recipe adapted from Land of Lakes ~ Classic Pecan Pie Bars*

Happy Baking!

Thanksgiving Appetizer Variety Plate

Simple but festive appetizers were on my Thanksgiving Day food list this year. 

These pumpkin deviled eggs were easy to make with the addition of a scoop of Red Pepper Spread which turned them orange and gave them extra flavor. I used the tops of some green onions for the stems, snipped some parsley from the garden to use as leaves and used a toothpick to make the lines in the pumpkins. The eggs were finished and plated however the middle of my serving plate still needed a little something. 

Then I remembered I had a variety of tortillas and wraps which I thought would make great fall cut ~ out dippers. 

I already had the small acorn and leaf shaped cutters that I used last year for the crust of my Pumpkin Pie so it didn't take long to cut them out and pop them in the oven.

They turned out nice and crisp.

Just right for scooping the roasted red pepper artichoke dip that I like to make because it is quick and I usually have the ingredients on hand.  

Festive and flavorful appetizers. 

Happy Friday!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Let our lives be full of both Thanks & Giving!

Fun in Austin

It is hard to believe it has been almost two weeks already since we were in Austin visiting one of our boys. We had never been to Austin, or Texas for that matter, so there was a lot to explore. 

The first morning we were on our own so we decided to visit the Zoo. When we arrived we were surprised at how small it was until we learned that it is a non profit rescue and rehabilitation zoo with over 300 animals. It was really nice and family friendly with lots of exhibits, a picnic area and special events. As luck would have it, we got there right at feeding time so the animals were up close and personal. 

That evening we went to the The Oasis on Lake Travis to see the famous sunset.

It was a fun place with lots of shopping, restaurants and live music.

We arrived early to try and snag a good table for viewing on one of the higher balconies. 

There was seating available on multiple levels and most areas were full but we were able to find a good for viewing.

Finally the sun started setting and it was absolutely beautiful. Everyone rushed to the rail, as would be expected, so it was difficult to get an unobstructed view for pictures however the view from our table was perfect.  

I took a lot of photos of course so it was hard to choose just one to post. 

There were beautiful estates nestled on hilltops and the sky all around was spectacular. It was a great evening! 

The next day was game day. We wanted to see what football was like in Texas so we got there early to explore the campus and get to the stadium.

We staked out a spot on BEVO BLVD since it seemed like the place to be. It turned out to be a good decision.

We were on the parade route when the cheerleaders, band and players arrived. That was fun to watch. 

We decided to wear our Oregon State t-shirts and in spite of the mass of people we just happened to find some other Oregon State fans. They were also sporting Oregon State gear so of course we noticed each other and stopped to talk. What a small world. Go Beavs! 

It is a beautiful campus nestled right in the heart of the city. Lots of stately buildings, manicured lawns, trees and wonderful sidewalks with electric scooters moving people from place to place. Game day was a great day to visit.

As you can guess I have more pictures from our trip to Austin so I will be back soon to share a few more highlights.

Happy Monday!

Pumpkin Cake ~ 2 ways

Since there won't be many more opportunities to bake pumpkin cake before the "pumpkin season" ends I decided to make it again for Sunday Supper.

I wanted to use my pumpkin cakelet pan again however it only makes 6 pumpkins. Since there were going to be 7 of us I decided that instead of cutting the recipe in half or washing the pan and making 6 more I would make a layer cake.

Unfortunately there are some in the family that do not care for cream cheese frosting so I made stabilized whipped cream because who doesn't like whipped cream?

I also made a pan of apple bars in case someone prefers those over pumpkin cake. I'm also trying to use up the apples from our tree.

To top off our pumpkin desserts I made some salted caramel drizzle. The cake was drizzled too just before serving.

It's hard to choose so I think we all had a helping of both the pumpkin and apple desserts. You can never have enough dessert, at least in my book! 

Happy Tuesday!

Airplane Activity Kit

It has been awhile since I posted so I thought I would share the little Airplane Activity Kit I made for myself recently.

We flew to Texas last week and I wasn't sure if I would be in the mood to read or stitch on the plane so I came prepared with choices. As you can see I took dental floss for cutting instead of scissors which worked out fine. Better safe than sorry. Then, during our layover I discovered I had lost my needle. That was disappointing. So, Mr. Wonderful and I began to search all the shops in the terminal for one of those little emergency sewing kits. It wasn't looking good and just when we were about to give up we finally found one. I was back in business. Since the second leg of our flight was in the evening most of the travelers were asleep so our plane was pretty dark, except for my little overhead light. It wasn't the best but it worked. I was hoping to complete my project however I ran out of time. Thankfully there isn't much left to do so it shouldn't take too long to finish it up.

Happy Saturday! 

DIY ~ Xbox Controller Birthday Card

Here is my latest card creation.

In the beginning it seemed like a quick and easy project. First I drew a picture of the controller and then chose paper and embellishments from my supply. After the colors were chosen and the controller cut out it was time to make decisions about the details. 

Initially I tried to include too much detail which made the process very frustrating. It was not working the way I imagined and I was starting to spend way too much time on it. Once I  finally put the project in perspective I decided to take a break.  

However, I could not quit thinking about it and after a day or so I came back to it and from that point on the card went together pretty quickly. 

I am happy to say that I finally finished the Xbox Controller Birthday Card and have given it to the Birthday Boy!

Have a happy day!

Halloween Dinner

This year for our Halloween dinner we had homemade chili with lots of toppings, as always, and Cornbread Pumpkin Muffins filled with honey butter. 

Since I ran out of time to make the dessert I had originally planned on I decided to fill cauldrons with pudding and top them with whipped  cream ghosts instead. It was quick and easy and I thought they looked pretty cute. 

The little muffins were a lot of fun to make. 

Since I always make cornbread to go with our chili I decided why not have a little pumpkin patch to go with our Halloween themed dinner instead of the standard squares.

I made my honey butter with a sprinkle of cinnamon to use for the filling and cinnamon sticks for the stems. I tried parley from our garden for the leaves however they wilted fairly quick. It looked really cute but unfortunately did not last long. 

A simple but festive dinner for 5!

Happy November!!