Maple Pecan Butter Thins Recipes

MAPLE-PECAN BUTTER THINS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°.
• Place pecans on an ungreased baking sheet and toast them until they turn slightly darker and fragrant, about 7 minutes; set aside.
• Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone liners, or generously grease with butter or cooking spray.
• Using an electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar in a big bowl on med-high speed until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes.
• Beat in the egg yolks and maple syrup.
• Add the flour, salt, and vanilla and beat on low speed until just incorporated.
• Stir in the toasted pecans; the dough will be soft and somewhat sticky.
• Divide the dough into 2 clumps.
• Set each on a long sheet of plastic wrap or waxed paper, shape the dough into 2 even logs, and wrap tightly.
• Refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours or overnight.
• If you're really in a hurry, freeze the dough for about 20 minutes, just until they retain their shape when sliced.
• When ready to bake, unwrap the log of dough and cut it into 1/8-inch thick slices; place them on the prepared cookie sheet and bake until they turn golden around the edges, 10-12 minutes.

BUTTERSCOTCH PECAN THINS

Steps:

• In a bowl with an electric mixer cream the butter with the brown sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy and beat in the egg and the vanilla. Into the bowl sift together the flour, the baking powder, and the salt, beat the dough until it is firm enough to handle. Halve the dough and on a piece of wax paper form each half into a 6-inch log, using the wax paper as a guide. Chill the logs, wrapped in the wax paper, for at least 4 hours or overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Cut the logs into 1/4-inch-thick slices with a sharp knife, arrange the slices 3 inches apart on lightly buttered baking sheets, and press a pecan half onto each cookie. Bake the cookies in batches in the middle of the oven for 10 to 12 minutes, or until they are golden, and let them cool on the baking sheets for 1 minute. Transfer the cookies to racks and let them cool completely.

MAPLE PECAN BUTTER

Steps:

• Sauté shallots in one tablespoon of the butter until caramelized and almost crisp, and allow to cool.
• Fold all ingredients together and chill.
• When almost firm, place flavored butter onto wax paper and roll into a log.
• Seal in plastic wrap and refrigerate or freeze until needed (can cut off portions of the roll and keep the rest frozen).
• Let butter soften before using for best flavor.

MAPLE-PECAN BUTTER THINS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place the pecans on an ungreased baking sheet and toast them until they turn slightly darker and fragrant, about 7 minutes; set aside. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone liners, or generously grease with butter or cooking spray. Using an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Beat in the egg yolks and maple syrup. Add the flour, salt, and vanilla and beat on low speed until just incorporated. Stir in the toasted pecans. The dough will be soft and somewhat sticky. Divide the dough into 2 clumps. Set each on a long sheet of plastic wrap or waxed paper, shape the dough into 2 even logs, and wrap tightly. (I like the look of a square cookie, so I lightly press the logs on 4 sides to flatten.) Refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours or overnight. If you're really in a hurry, freeze the dough for about 20 minutes, just until they retain their shape when sliced.
• When ready to bake, unwrap a log of dough and cut it into 1/8-inch-thick slices. Place them on the prepared cookie sheet and bake until they turn golden around the edges, 10 to 12 minutes.
• The cookie dough can be made and rolled into logs up to 1 month in advance and frozen, or up to 1 week in advance and refrigerated. To prepare frozen dough for baking, remove it from the freezer and set it at room temperature 1 hour before baking; or simply transfer the dough from freezer to fridge the night before baking. Refrigerated dough can be sliced and baked straight from the refrigerator. The baked cookies will keep in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
• To make rectangular cookies as pictured opposite, form the dough into 1 rectangular-shaped loaf, wrap and refrigerate as directed above, cut into slices lengthwise, and bake.

MAPLE-PECAN STICKY BUNS

Steps:

• Make the dough: Combine the yeast, buttermilk and 1 tablespoon sugar, and let sit until foamy, about 5 minutes.
• To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, add the flour, salt and remaining 1 tablespoon sugar. Stir to combine, then add the butter and toss to coat in the flour. Add the eggs and buttermilk mixture, then mix on low to combine, about 1 or 2 minutes.
• Increase speed to medium, and mix the dough until it is soft, billowy and clearing the sides of the bowl, but still sticking to the bottom, 8 to 10 minutes. If the dough seems very, very soft and still sticks to the sides of the bowl, add more flour, a tablespoon at a time (up to about 4 tablespoons).
• Lightly grease a separate large bowl with butter and transfer the dough to it. Turn the dough to coat with butter, then cover the bowl with a kitchen towel. Let the dough rise in a warm spot until almost doubled in size, about 1 hour, then refrigerate the dough for 1 hour more. (Alternately, refrigerate the dough for up to 24 hours after the first rise, then proceed with the recipe as written.)
• When you are ready to bake the rolls, make the topping: In a medium saucepan (to prevent boiling over), combine the maple syrup, brown sugar, butter and salt. Bring to a boil over medium and cook for 1 minute. The mixture will thicken slightly. Pour the mixture into a metal 9-by-13-inch baking pan and tilt the pan to evenly cover the bottom with the syrup. Sprinkle the pecans evenly over the top, and set aside.
• Make the filling: In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, cardamom and salt.
• Assemble the rolls: Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and pat or roll it into a 12-by-16-inch rectangle that's 1/4-inch thick. Gently spread the softened butter over the dough, leaving about 1 inch of unbuttered dough on the long edge furthest from you. Sprinkle the sugar mixture evenly over the top of the butter. From the long end closest to you, roll the dough into a tight log. With the seam side down, use a serrated knife or length of floss to cut the log into 12 even pieces.
• Place the rolls spiral side up into the prepared pan, cover and let rise until puffy but not quite doubled in size, about 45 minutes. (This may take a little longer if you refrigerated the dough for longer than 1 hour after the first rise.) If you'd like to bake them later, you can refrigerate the rolls in the pan before this second rise for up to 24 hours. Let the rolls rise at room temperature until almost doubled in size before baking. They will take longer to rise after chilling, depending on the ambient temperature.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees and bake rolls for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the rolls are golden brown and the caramel is bubbling a bit around the edges. Carefully run an offset spatula or thin knife around the edges of the pan. Let the rolls cool in the pan on a rack for about 5 minutes, then flip them out onto a serving tray or sheet pan. Let cool for a minute or two, then enjoy warm.

GOLDEN RAISIN AND PECAN THINS

Steps:

• Place a baking sheet on center rack of oven and heat to 350 degrees. Butter three 5 3/4- by 2 1/4-inch or four 4 1/4- by 2 1/2-inch mini loaf pans. Line the bottoms with parchment paper and butter the paper.
• In a large bowl, whisk both flours, sugar, tarragon or fennel seeds, baking soda and salt Add buttermilk and stir until smooth. Fold in pecans and raisins until evenly distributed. Divide among prepared pans, filling 1/4-inch from the top (batter will rise slightly in the oven), and smooth tops.
• Place pans on baking sheet and bake until loaves are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of one comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Slide a thin-bladed knife around the pan edges. Carefully invert the loaves onto a wire rack, and discard the parchment. Cool completely, right side up on the rack.
• Freeze loaves on a pan until very firm, at least 1 hour or up to 5 days.
• Heat oven to 300 degrees. Line two half-sheet pans with parchment paper.
• Working with one frozen loaf at a time, cut 1/8-inch-thick slices with a sharp serrated bread knife. Arrange slices on prepared pan, spacing them 1/4-inch apart. Bake one pan at a time until crackers are browned and crisp, about 20 minutes. Use a metal spatula to transfer crackers to wire racks and let cool completely.