Toffee Pecan Bars

Tammy: Our winner this month is Rhea from Bakersfield, CA with her recipe for Toffee Pecan Bars. Perfect for guests, as well as gift-giving!

I was surprised at how quick this recipe went together… 10 or 15 minutes, plus baking time. You can’t say that for most desserts! Rhea’s directions said to let it cool overnight before cutting. Of course I was too impatient to wait that long! I waited till it was cool, but not overnight. However, we decided we liked the flavor better the next day. We also liked it better chilled than at room temperature.

Rhea also said she preferred to use only half of the bag of toffee chips, because it was too sweet for her otherwise. I used the whole bag when I tried the recipe, and it wasn’t too sweet for us. So you’ll have to use your personal preference there!

For a nice touch, cut the bars into triangles or diamonds instead of squares or rectangles. Cut wide squares in half corner-to-corner for triangles. For diamonds, cut the bars straight the length of the pan. Then instead of cutting straight across the width, cut diagonally from top corner to bottom corner. Make diagonal cuts out from there, 1-1/2″ to 2″ wide. You will have a few odd shaped pieces leftover if you cut diamonds, but not with triangles.
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Assembly Directions:
For the crust, mix together the flour and confectioners sugar in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Cut in the chilled butter, using a pastry blender or a fork, until crumbly. Press mixture evenly in the bottom of an un-greased 9”x13” pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, in a medium mixing bowl, beat together the sweetened condensed milk, egg and vanilla until smooth. Stir in the pecans and the toffee chips. Spread over hot crust. Bake at 350 degrees for an additional 25 minutes. Cool overnight and then cut into bars.

Freezing Directions:
Put bars into a freezer bag or rigid container, separating layers with waxed paper. Seal, label and freeze.

Serving Directions:
Remove from freezer and allow to thaw in the refrigerator. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Rhea’s Comments:
Toffee chips are usually located in the baking aisle with the chocolate chips. I usually use only about half a bag of toffee chips because the full bag makes them too sweet for me. Once the bag is open, the chips do have a tendency to clump. Just whack the bag a couple of times and the chips will separate again.

Tammy’s Comments:
These bars are so quick to put together… 10 minutes, plus baking time. You can cut and eat them when they’ve cooled, but my tasters agreed they liked them better the next day, and chilled in the refrigerator too. They weren’t too sweet for us when I used the whole bag of toffee chips, so you’ll have to decide that one for yourself! I might even add a handful of mini-chocolate chips the next time I make them!

Nutritional Info: per piece
Per Serving: 255 Calories; 16g Fat (54.1% calories from fat); 4g Protein; 26g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 36mg Cholesterol; 139mg Sodium.
Exchanges: 1/2 Grain (Starch); 2-1/2 Fat; 1-1/2 Other Carbohydrates.