Pecan Nut Squares Plays Brittle to No One

Chocolate Pecan Cookie Squares

 Firstly, we must apologize for our lengthy absence. However, we have had time to experiment with some different recipes and different ingredients. For our future recipes we will try to make gluten free or give some gluten free options. Again we apologize for our lack of post these past few months, but we have a great recipe to make up for that. We now introduce the delicious Chocolate Pecan Cookie Squares!

Close Up- Check out those pecans!

 We and our cousin Nicole stumbled upon this recipe during one of our baking days. These cookies pair fantastically with a cozy blanket and a couple late night movies!

Opps broke a piece off... Dibs!

Chocolate Pecan Cookie Squares

One could ask how a cookie can be both chewy and crunchy? The pecan topping gives the crunch while the almond flour and brown sugar crust make the cookie soft and irresistible.  It's hard to believe that these chewy, chocolaty and delicious cookies are gluten and dairy free! We decided to substitute the all-purpose flour with almond flour. If you have never tried almond flour, here is your chance. We believe it gives the dessert a chewy texture with a nutty taste and is a great flour substitute in dessert related crusts.  These squares are very versatile (another reason why we loved them) so we made some changes to the original recipe for our taste but we will add other options in brackets.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup margarine (butter, 2 sticks)

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 egg

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup almond meal/flour*

1 cup rice flour (replace 1 tablespoon of rice flour with 1 tablespoon of cornstarch to thicken)*

2 cups chocolate chips (we used a good quality dairy free dark chocolate bar and chopped it in chunks)

3/4 cups chopped roasted pecans (we prefer our pecans roasted but not roasted would be fine too)

pinch of salt (optional)


* If you do not have almond or rice flour feel free to use 2 cups of all purpose flour. Or if you would like to use the 1 cup of almond meal but no rice flour then you can substitute the rice flour with 1 cup all-purpose flour. Again this recipe is very versatile so feel free to make it your own.

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Cream margarine/butter and brown sugar until fluffy.

3. Add egg, vanilla, and flour(s) and mix until combined.

4. Spread on cookie sheet with spatula until thin. Bake for 15 minutes, or until golden.

5. Remove pan from oven and sprinkle on chocolate chips/chunks when melted spread chocolate thinly over the cookie layer (if chocolate doesn't melt on the cookie sheet put it in the oven for 1 minute then remove from oven then spread)

6. Sprinkle with chopped pecans, and a touch of salt. Cut into squares.
RECIPE ADAPTED FROM THE PIONEER WOMAN