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Caramel Pecan Shortbread Recipe

Caramel Pecan Shortbread Recipe photo by Taste of Home

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My grandchildren look for Grandma's "candy bar cookies" every Christmas. I recommend doubling the recipe for these sweet treats because they go so fast. —Dorothy Buiter, Worth, Illinois

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Caramel Pecan Shortbread Recipe

Prep: 30 min. + chilling Bake: 15 min./batch + cooling

Yield: 24 Servings

30 15 45

Ingredients

3/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons evaporated milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
FILLING:
28 caramels
6 tablespoons evaporated milk
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
3/4 cup finely chopped pecans
ICING:
1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
3 tablespoons evaporated milk
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pecan halves

Directions

In a large bowl, cream butter and confectioners' sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in milk and vanilla. Combine flour and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or until easy to handle.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to 1/4-in. thickness. Cut into 2-in. x 1-in. strips. Place 1 in. apart on greased baking sheets.
Bake at 325° for 12-14 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to wire racks to cool.
For filling, combine caramels and milk in a large saucepan. Cook and stir over medium-low heat until caramels are melted and smooth. Remove from the heat; stir in the butter, sugar and pecans. Cool for 5 minutes. Spread 1 teaspoon over each cookie.
For icing, in a microwave-safe bowl, melt chips and milk; stir until smooth. Stir in the butter, sugar and vanilla. Cool for 5 minutes.
Spread 1 teaspoon icing on each cookie; top each with a pecan half. Let stand until set. Store in an airtight container. Yield: about 4 dozen.

Nutritional Facts 1 serving (2 each) equals 260 calories, 14 g fat (7 g saturated fat), 23 mg cholesterol, 136 mg sodium, 34 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 3 g protein.

Originally published as Caramel Pecan Shortbread in Country Woman Christmas Annual 2002, p35

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Reviews for Caramel Pecan Shortbread

Caramel Pecan Shortbread

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Reviewed on Dec. 26, 2010 by Leanie12

Very messy but tastes great and the recipe makes quite a lot!

Reviewed on Dec. 22, 2010 by skb cooking

a new found christmas time treat. shortbread tastes better if slightly brown, don't under-bake

Reviewed on Dec. 18, 2010 by sheinemann

I really didn't like these. They're very putzy to make, which is fine when the end result is worth it. These weren't. The caramel mixture was thin and messy, and the chocolate icing was... well... bad. And the cookie overall just wasn't anything to get excited about. Not worth the time, the mess, or the calories!

Reviewed on Dec. 13, 2010 by FACSteacher

These are good but very time consuming to make, if you follow the recipe. I think they are worth it for special occasions but not a quick treat. I used caramel from the TOH Caramel Marshmallow Treat recipe b/c I had it leftover and really liked it. Not sure what the caramel from this one is like but the other is so smooth. The combination of caramel, shortbread, pecans, and chocolate is fabulous! I added chopped pecans to the caramel as the recipe says but also just put plain caramel on some to see the difference. I preferred it without the pecans in the caramel and with just one on top of the bar. Hoping my company will like them for dessert this week!

Reviewed on Dec. 13, 2010 by schaumann1

This is an excellent cookie and caramel recipe, but I should've taken others advice regarding the chocolate. Don't bother using the chocolate recipe provided! It seems extremely greasy and overpowering for the shortbread. I would definitely make these cookies again but use a simple chocolate glaze.

Reviewed on Dec. 09, 2010 by lindawenger

I made these yesterday and was disappointed with the chocolate frosting. Mine turned sludgy, and the butter would not incorporate. I tossed it out and made a chocolate glaze out of just some choclate chips and milk with a drop or two of vanilla. Fewer calories and a nice glossy appearance. The cookies tasted good, and I will make them again.

Just a note: I had a little bit of the carmel mixture left over and we ate it with some apple slices. It makes a yummy apple dip.

Reviewed on Dec. 07, 2010 by debstub

I see there are quite a few others who don't want to mess with individual cookies but would rather make it in a pan. I did that (and used the buttered foil suggestion) but found that my 10x13 was a little too big for me to be able to spread the dough out to the corner edges. I would make 1 1/2 the recipe or maybe 1 1/4. I had plenty of the filling and icing so I wouldn't make any extra of that but they are delicious!!

Reviewed on Dec. 06, 2010 by texarkanalady

I haven't tried these yet but they sound wonderful. I too would like to make a pan of them. Would anyone guess how long they would need to bake? I am assuming they would fill 9X13 pan?

Reviewed on Dec. 05, 2010 by happy2day

I made these yesterday, and the kids ate them all up already. Next time, I will try making one big batch on a pan, instead of making all the little ones, one at a time.

Reviewed on Dec. 04, 2010 by wombatt

what size paqn are you useing???????

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