Wednesday, December 21, 2016

Butter Pecan Turtles from the Land O Lakes Butter Box aka Caramel 'N Chocolate Pecan Bars

One of my favorite candies is Pecan Turtles whether they come prepackaged like these
 or in one of those lovely boxes of Sees chocolates - these are called Pecan Buds.



My neighbor always brings me Sees as a thank you for taking care of her cats when she is away. Nice kitties. Even nicer neighbor!!!


So one of our very favorite holiday treats has always been the Butter Pecan Turtles recipe I got off the Land O Lakes butter box many years ago. I saved that battered old piece of cardboard for a very long time before it just disappeared (or possibly disintegrated).

Fortunately, there is Google. I found the recipe.

https://www.landolakes.com/recipe/17409/caramel-n-chocolate-pecan-bars/

(The site was really slow to load for me, so I'm giving you the recipe here.)

When I told my daughter I was doing it for this post, she remarked, "Oh, you mean those incredible bars I used to eat way too many of until I felt sick?"

Um, yeah. How's that for a ringing endorsement?

So, here you go -

There are two parts to the recipe. First you make the shortbread cookie part.

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1cup firmly packed brown sugar
  • ½cup Land O Lakes Sweet Cream Butter, softened (I always used salted)




    Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a 3-quart bowl combine crust ingredients. Mix at medium speed, scraping sides of bowl often, 2-3 minutes or until well mixed and particles are fine. Pat firmly into ungreased 13 x 9 x 2" pan.

    *** Now you need 1cup whole pecan halves (not chopped) ***


    Then you have the caramel layer.
  • ⅔ cups Land O Lakes Sweet Cream Butter(again, I used salted)
  • ½cup firmly packed brown sugar
  • 1cup milk chocolate chips


    Caramel Layer: In a heavy 1-quart saucepan combine brown sugar and butter. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until entire surface of mixture begins to boil. Boil 1/2 to 1 minute, stirring constantly.


    Now it's time to assemble:

    Sprinkle the pecans over the unbaked crust.  I know it says to use them whole, not chopped, but I liked them broken up. It seemed to allow the gooey caramel to cover them more.

    Pour the caramel evenly over the pecans and crust.

    Bake at 350 degrees  for 18-22 minutes, or until entire caramel layer is bubbly and crust is light golden brown. Remove from oven.

    This part is fun. Immediately sprinkle the chips over the hot bars. Allow the chips to melt slightly (2-3 minutes).  Then slightly swirl the chips as they melt; leave some whole for a marbled effect.

    Cool completely; cut into 3-4 dozen bars.

    Just try to wait until they're cool to eat them!

    A cookie that masquerades as candy! Can't beat that.



    GIVEAWAY -

    I have another copy of Christmas in Hiding to give away.

     

14 comments:

  1. Oh my goodness, these sound amazing!! Some of my very favorite ingredients and treats (shortbread cookies are a fav as well as anything caramel!). :) Thanks for sharing!

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    1. I know, right? There's a reason these have stayed in the front of my mind.

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  2. Your brought back memories of eating Turtles in the past. It was one of my father's favorite candies. I haven't had one for a while, but this has reminded me of them once again. Maybe I'll just make some for the family. Thank you for sharing the recipe. Have a blessed Christmas.

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    1. Wishing you a blessed Christmas as well, Marilyn. I'm glad I was able to bring back a nice memory. I hope your family enjoys them.

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  3. Oh yum...but what a load of butter. Mind you, at Christmas calories do not count, right? Oh, and love the daughter endorsement. LOL Happy Christmas, Cate!!!!!

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    1. Very true on the butter, Kav. Note there was no current picture. Daughter became a vegan and there's no one else around to help me eat them so baking them yesterday would have been very dangerous!

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  4. We love Turtles and pecans and anything with pecan and caramel has to be good! I just finished a double batch of Mindy's thumbprints (which came out PERFECTLY, thank you, Mind-O!!!)

    And now I'm doing a one hour writing sprint... and then back to getting things ready for daycare celebration this afternoon. The one thing great about a kids' celebration... they will not care or notice if everything isn't in place when they arrive. NO PRESSURE, LOL! They're used to me and my slap-dash housekeeping skill set.

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  5. You had me at "first you make the shortbread cookie part"!

    I sent in revisions for my August LIH book late last night, so today I'm playing catch up...and then tomorrow is last-minute baking day! I have a long list of things I want to make with all the treats that have been shared here at the Cafe, and these turtle bars are going on the list!

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    1. Congrats on getting the revisions done, Jan. This 12 days of treats was a great idea, but oh, so many good recipes.

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  6. Chocolate, pecans, shortbread... What's not to like, Mary Cate? I absolutely LOVE turtles. Which reminds me, I need to pick up a box for my mother. Shh, don't tell.

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    1. Will you share???

      There's nothing not to like, Mindy, except for how addictive they are.

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  7. These have to be great with some of my favorite ingredients combined! I pinned it to my pinterest board.

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  8. I am snatching that recipe, mmm mmm! Thank you for all the wonderful posts and recipes and giveaways! Merry Christmas!

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