Bourbon Pecan Squares
This rich kissing cousin to lemon squares combines two famed
Southern baking traditions in one sumptuous mouthful:
Southern-style shortbread, laced with a little cornmeal for
texture, and a brown sugar, bourbon and pecan topping reminiscent
of those delectable little Southern confections, pecan tassies.
Best of all, they are even easier than tassies to make—and
dangerously irresistible.
Makes about 2 dozen
2 cups whole pecan halves
10 ounces (about 2 cups) Southern soft wheat or all-purpose
flour, plus 1 tablespoon
2 tablespoons extra-fine white cornmeal
1 cup granulated sugar
Salt
10 ounces (1-1/4 cups or 2-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
3 large eggs
1/2 cup (tightly packed) light brown sugar
2 tablespoons bourbon
- Position a rack in the center of
the oven and preheat the oven to 375° F. Spread the pecans on a
baking sheet and place them in the center of the oven. Toast
until beginning to color, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the
pecans from the oven, cool, and roughly chop them. Reduce the
oven temperature to 350° F.
- Sift together 2 cups flour,
cornmeal, 1/2 cup sugar, and a small pinch salt. Add 8 ounces (1
cup, or 2 sticks) of the butter and work it into the flour until
it forms a smooth dough. You may do the first part of this step
in a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Put in the flour,
meal, sugar, and salt and pulse several times to sift. Add the
butter and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Turn
it out into a mixing bowl and finish blending the dough by hand.
Wrap and chill for 30 minutes, or until manageable.
- Press the dough in a 9 X 13-inch
sheet cake pan in a uniform layer over the entire surface and
press slightly up sides. Lightly prick it with a fork and place
it in the center of the oven. Bake for 20 minutes, until it is
beginning to color, then remove it from the oven and let it cool
slightly.
- Melt the remaining butter and let
it cool slightly. Beat together the butter, eggs, remaining
granulated sugar, brown sugar, and a small pinch of salt. Stir
in the bourbon and pecans. Sift the remaining tablespoon of
flour into mixture and stir it in until smooth. Spread the
mixture over the shortbread crust and smooth it with a spatula.
- Bake until the topping is golden
and set, about 25 minutes. Cool in the pan on a wire rack and
cut into 24 squares.
From Damon Lee Fowler’s New
Southern Baking by Damon Lee Fowler (Simon & Schuster)
|
