Pecan Diamond Cookies

The cookie baking season has begun and if you love pecans, you’ll love these cookies. I do love pecans, and you’d think I’d love pecan pie. But whenever I give pecan pie a try, I’m usually disappointed, because below the tempting pecans on top, it’s frequently filled with a gluey, gloppy layer of corn syrup below. And biting into a forkful of corn syrup is not my idea of good eating. If you’re like me then, these pecan diamond cookies are for you.

These cookies have a buttery, shortbread-type cookie below, and caramel-y, sticky pecans on top — no corn syrup involved! The recipe is one I used to make decades ago and came from an issue of Family Circle Magazine in December, 1979, before a lot of you readers probably were even born. But I’ve got lots of recipes I cut out and saved from the magazine, which stopped publishing in 2019.

If you can resist eating them all, they keep for a long time in a sealed tin, making them perfect for shipping to favorite folks for the holidays. You can freeze them too, and have them ready as your secret stash for when you get the munchies.

But don’t say I didn’t warn you when you can’t stop at one or two.

P.S. To those of you who are on my mailing list, sorry for any glitches recently. I’m updating my email feed, since Feedburner is no longer available and there have been a few “growing pains” resulting in duplicate emails. Hopefully, that’s straightened out now. And if you’re not on my email list, please sign up in the box at right where it says “subscribe to the blog.” Grazie mille.

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Pecan Diamond Cookies

printable recipe here

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup butter
• 1/4 cup sugaar
• 1 egg
• 1 1/4 cups unsifted all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) buttter
• 1/3 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1/3 cup honey
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream
• 6 ounces pecans, coarsely chopped

Instructions

1. Beat 1/3 cup butter with 1/4 cup sugar in a small bowl witth electric mixer until light and fluffy.
2. Beat in egg.
3. Stir in flour, mixing well, until a soft dough forms.
4. Spread evenly into a lightly greased 9 x 9 x 2 inch baking pan.
5. Dough will be thin.
6. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 12 minutes or until dough begins to firm up but is not fully cooked.
7. Remove pan to wire rrack.
8. Lower temperature to 350 degrees.
9. Meanwhile, melt rrremaining 1/2 cup butter in aa medium size saucepan.
10. Add brown sugar, the 3 tablespoons sugar and honey.
11. Bring to boiling; boil raapidly 2 1/2 minutes.
12. It will be caramel colored and thick.
13. Carefully add the creaam and bring back to boiling.
14. Remove from heat.
15. Stir in the pecaans.
16. Spread mixture evenly over cookie dough.
17. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until pecan mixture is bubbly and begins to set.
18. Remove to wire rack
19. Cool completely
20. Pecan topping will become firm upon cooking.
21. Cut into 8 lengthwise strips and 9 diagonal strrips to make diamond-shaped cookies.

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