A rocky start to a new year

Good lord, it's been a while. I apologize for the lack of posting. If I could go back and start 2011 over again, believe me, I would. And what's great when your new year sucks? Cookies. Lots and lots of cookies.

I saw this recipe awhile back on many different websites (homesick texan and smitten kitchen to name a few). Since I had several bags of coconut and 2 pounds of pecans leftover from holiday baking, I bookmarked it for January use. So, here we go~

Hello Dolly Bars, adapted from everywhere

1 1/2 cups crushed cinnamon graham crackers (about 8 graham crackers)
2 cups of chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups of shredded coconut
1 1/2 cups of chopped pecans
1 14 oz. can of sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup of butter

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees (or you know, whatever I can get my stupid oven to get to these days. Can I move yet?).
Melt your butter and pour it directly into an 8x8 cake pan. Sprinkle graham cracker crumbs into pan, and mix well with melted butter to form a crust. Layer on chocolate chips -


- then coconut -


- then pecans.


Pour the can of condensed milk over everything.


Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the top turns brown.


Let cool in pan for at least half an hour, cut into bars and serve.


Aren't the layers pretty? These were super easy. I thought I wasn't wild about them at first, but then I ate the whole pan over a few days time. They have a nice down home taste that was simple enough to make and was really satisfying. I recommend cutting them into small squares - otherwise they can be overwhelming.

More to come soon, I promise!

I can't stop eating these

When I got a brand new oven, one of the first things I thought was "Score! Now I can make those candied pecans that Bryn makes for me!" I love these things. They are addictive. I just keep popping them in my mouth, but you can also use them in a salad (Bryn uses them in salad with blue cheese, pear, avocado, green onion and an oil and vinaigrette dressing - which is great).

Candied Pecans - adapted from Bryn Kahn


Ingredients:

1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 lb whole pecan halves
1 egg white, room temperature
1 tablespoon water

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
2. In a bowl, mix together sugar, salt and cinnamon and set aside (normally in baking, I skip this step. But I did it this time because it's important to get the sweet/savory taste correct).
3. Beat egg white and water together until just frothy, not stiff (I just used a whisk and beat it a few times by hand. It's easy - don't let it scare you). Add pecans and stir until well coated. Add sugar mixture, mixing pecans until well coated.
4. Spread evenly onto a foil-lined cookie sheet. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and separate pecans as they cool. Store in a tightly closed container.

Eat until your mouth feels weird from eating too many nuts. That is an unintentionally dirty sentence. My subconscious mind is in the gutter.