When Marianne called me the other day to start some holiday baking I thought “What!?! Already!?! It’s too early!” But Marianne is a woman who knows what she’s about in the kitchen; she will have a full house on Thanksgiving and has no time to mess around.
Even though it seemed like madness, I knew there had to be a method behind it.
And of course there was. Like I said, Marianne doesn’t mess about.
These Walnut Toffee Triangles were pretty easy to make (we did two batches in the oven at the same time; one tray for me and one for her), have a taste and texture reminiscent of baklava without the gooiness or Spanish turrón without the jaw-breaking stickiness. One batch gives you 4 dozen pretty and sophisticated little cookies AND they freeze beautifully, so if you pack them right, you can just pull a few out of the freezer anytime you need a rich dessert. And they are rich, just one or two will satisfy that need for a little something naughty with your coffee (or in my case, tea)!
So, if you are a busy, busy person (and who isn’t these days?), these triangles give you a lot of return for the time investment. And when you bake with friends, well, it’s that much better, isn’t it? Bring on the holidays!!!!
(you need an electric mixer for this one)
Crust
½ Cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
½ Cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg yolk
1.5 Cups unsifted all-purpose flour
Topping
1 Cup packed light brown sugar
½ Cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
¼ Cup honey
½ Cup light cream
4 cups chopped walnuts
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Line bottom and sides of a 13x9x2 baking pan with aluminum foil, extending the ends of the foil beyond the two short pan sides.
Crust: In a medium bowl, with electric mixer on medium speed, beat butter until smooth and creamy. Beat in sugar and egg yolk until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. With mixer on low speed, beat in flour until mixture is smooth. (We didn’t find much difference between a worked dough and a less worked dough, so it’s up to you). Press mixture evenly into bottom of prepared baking pan. Bake 12-15 minutes.
Topping: While crust is baking, in medium saucepan over medium-high heat, combine sugar, butter and honey; heat until butter is melted. Bring to boil; let boil three minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in light cream and walnuts. Pour mixture evenly over prepared crust. Return to oven. Continue to bake for 19-21 minutes or until top is bubbling.
Cool completely in pan over wire rack. Lift foil by short sides and transfer bar to cutting board. Invert onto wire rack; carefully remove foil. Reinvert bar onto cutting board. Cut crosswise into ten equal strips. Cut each strip crosswise diagonally into five equal triangles (4 dozen cookies).
These look amazing! Do you think they would work with pecans? Or a combination of pecans and walnuts?
I absolutely think they would work wonderfully with pecans. If you try it, please let me know!
Thank you for the response! 🙂 One more question- do you think maple syrup could replace the honey?
Sure! There might be viscosity differences, but no two honeys are quite the same either…
Ok- I am going to give it a go! *fingers crossed*! Will let you know, and if I post about it will be sure to credit you and refer back to your blog via links if you like 🙂 Thanks again x
Absolutely! And I will start following your blog…NOW!
🙂
They are in the oven as I type this! So far so good :)! So exciting!
Holy Speed Demon! You don’t waste any time, do you? Can’t wait to see the results…
Done and dusted 😉 Have mentioned your fab recipe and blog here:
http://missmarzipan.com/2012/11/20/maple-pecan-walnut-bar-cookies/ Thanks again!! xx
Thanks! I think I’ll do a quick re-blog if you don’t mind!
I know that these will be part of my dessert table for my Christmas party. Thank you for the recipe.
You are most welcome!
these look and sound divine and i love the choice of triangle shapes.. very cool.. c
teeny, tiny triangles! a little goes a loooong way!
Those look wonderful!
Thanks! I am still salivating over that chocolate bourbon pecan pie of sin of yours!