Honey Nut Cookie Bars - a super easy and versatile recipe that can use whatever nuts you like to combine with chewy honey caramel on a shortbread base. Delicious!
Ingredients
FOR THE BOTTOM LAYER
1 cup butter
⅔ cup lightly packed brown sugar
2⅔ cups flour
FOR THE TOP LAYER
½ cup butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
⅓ cup honey
2 tbsp whipping cream
1 cup roughly chopped almonds
1 cup roughly chopped pecans
½ cup melted chocolate chips optional
Instructions
FOR THE BOTTOM LAYER
Cream together the butter and brown sugar.
Mix in the flour until fully incorporated.
Press into the bottom of a 9×13 inch, parchment paper lined baking pan.
Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes.
FOR THE TOP LAYER
In a medium sized saucepan combine the butter brown sugar honey and whipping cream.
Bring to a gentle boil and simmer for only a minute or two before stirring in the almonds and pecans.
As soon as the bottom has baked for 20 minutes, pull it out of the oven and spread the topping evenly over the base and return to the oven for an additional 20 minutes. Careful not to over bake these or the caramel top will go brittle and not chewy. If you have a candy thermometer you can test the top layer to ensure that it is somewhere between 245 to 250 degrees F when fully baked.
Cool completely the pan on a wire rack.
Drizzle the tops with the melted chocolate if you choose. These are exceptionally good without the chocolate too.
Notes
Note: this particular version used almonds and pecans but you can use 2 cups of nuts in practically any combination you like for this recipe. Sometimes I cut cookie bars like these in larger squares, then cut them in half diagonally to make little triangle cookies as pictured.
A perfect sweet and salty snack to make at home, especially while you may be cooped up. Peanut Butter Honey Truffles with Coconut - a simple, unprocessed, healthy snack for a burst of sweet protein between meals. Kosher, pareve.
Ingredients
¼ cup oats
½ cup natural unsweetened peanut butter
¼ cup honey (you can use 3 tbsp for a less sweet flavor)
½ tsp vanilla
Pinch salt (if your peanut butter already has salt, skip this)
2-3 tbsp dried shredded coconut
Instructions
Pulse the oats in a blender for 30-45 seconds till they become a powdery flour.
Oats ground to flour in a blender.
In a mixing bowl, stir together peanut butter, honey, vanilla, salt and oat flour.
Peanut butter truffle filling in a bowl.
Roll the peanut butter mixture into 1-inch balls.
Peanut butter honey truffle balls on wax paper.
Roll each ball in dried coconut to coat.
Rolling truffle centers in coconut.
Place truffles in the refrigerator. Chill for at least 30 minutes.
Both kids and adults will enjoy stretching the honey into taffy, and the longer you stretch the honey, the easier and more pliable the taffy becomes. To avoid a sticky situation, make sure any surface you set the taffy on is thinly coated with cooking spray. You can also wear latex gloves (coated with canola oil) to make the pulling a little easier.
Ingredients
Cooking spray
1 pound honey (about 1½ cups)
Instructions
Step 1
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; lightly coat with cooking spray.
Step 2
Place honey in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, uncovered, until honey begins to boil (about 8 minutes). Continue cooking until a candy thermometer registers 280°, about 10 minutes. Quickly pour mixture onto prepared pan, spreading evenly. Cool 20 minutes.
Step 3
Lightly spray your hands with cooking spray. Using your hands, fold the honey over itself to form a ball. Stretch honey into a long strand (about 2 feet long). Double strand back onto itself twice, pressing ends together. Continue pulling and folding honey for about 5 minutes or until the color changes from dark amber to a soft tan. Wrap in plastic wrap coated with cooking spray, and chill for 10 minutes.
Step 4
Coat a knife with cooking spray, and cut the taffy into 4 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a 12-inch log. Cut each log into 6 pieces. Roll each piece into a log, and wrap each piece in confectionary paper, cellophane wrappers, or wax paper.
