Pecan slice - recipe

OK, so I HAVE to post this recipe - because, out of everything I made for thanksgiving - this was the MOST delicious!!

I didn't want to make a second pie, so I looked at the ingredients for Pecan Pie, and googled Pecan slice - and came up with this.....  expensive to make, naughty, but VERY VERY delicious.  This is why I say - hide it from the kids! hehe

Pecan Slice

Ingredients:
185g butter
1/2 c castor sugar
1 egg yolk
1 1/4 cups plain flour
1/2 t baking powder
2 T custard powder
1/2 c brown sugar
2 T golden syrup
395g sweetened condensed milk
125g pecans, halved lengthwise

Method:
Preheat oven to 180 degrees.  Grease a 3cm deep lamington pan/sponge roll tin (16cm x 25cm ish)


Using an electric mixer, cream 125g of the butter and castor sugar until pale.  Beat in the egg yolk.  Sift flour, baking powder & custard powder over butter mixture.  Mix to form a soft dough.


Press dough into tin and bake for 15 minutes or until golden.


While base is cooking, cook brown sugar, golden syrup, condensed milk and remaining butter in a saucepan over a low heat - for 12 minutes, or until golden.  Stir through pecans.


Pour pecan mixture over hot base and bake for a further 15 minutes.  Cut when cool.

Honestly, this tastes like some form of russian fudge, nutty slice - it is YUM!  Go on, make it - you know you want to!

x

Pumpkin Pie - Recipe

So when I made pumpkin pie for thanksgiving - I googled and read a stack of recipes and chose the one I liked the best and that sounded the most delicious.....  I then customised it a bit for us.

It has a lot of ingredients but it is really easy to make - which is cool!!

Alas, here is the recipe for Arna's pumpkin pie:

Base:

• 1.5 cups flour
• 2 T sugar
• 1/2 t salt
• 2 T + 2 t of COLD vegetable shortening (kremelta)
• 1/3 cup COLD butter
• 1/4 cup COLD water

Put all ingredients in a food processor and blend until it resembles breadcrumbs.  Add the cold water and process to a dough.  Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.

Remove from fridge and either roll out on a floured surface, then press into greased pie dish OR just press it straight into greased pie dish.  (I didn't roll it out but smooshed it in with my fingers - all good)

The size of the dish needs to be quite large - I used a 25cm quiche dish, you could use a round cake tin or something like that if you don't have something big enough.

Bake blind at 180 for 15 minutes or until golden.

Filling:

• 1 cup of sugar
• 2 t cinnamon
• 1 t ground cloves
• 1.5 t ground allspice
• 1/2 t ground ginger
• 1/2 t salt
• 4 eggs
• 3 cups pumpkin puree
• 500ml evaporated milk, or cream, or make up milk powder to twice the concentrate
• 1/2 t vanilla extract
• zest of 1 lemon

Mix well with a hand blender of cake mixer.  Pour into cooked base.

Bake at 210 for 15 minutes, then turn down oven to 175 and bake for a futher 45-60 minutes.  A knife/skewer will come out clean from the centre when it is done.

Serve warm or cool - can be deep frozen.

I found that the filling makes more than you need so I gave some away.  You can freeze the uncooked filling.

How to describe the taste..... the filling comes out like a sweet, spicy, flavoursome custard.  It is moist, smooth and quite delicious.  The base is quite savoury and complements the filling.  It is quite rich & nice with vanilla icecream.... mmmm!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

So, you might remember from this post, that I've always wanted to celebrate thanksgiving.

In September I extended an invitation to two of our friends, to see if they wanted to join us in celebrating it together.  They were most obliging (I think it was knowing they would be partaking of a feast by my hands that won them over).

So we had either Monday 10th October - Canadian Thanksgiving, or Thurs 24 Nov - American Thanksgiving - to choose from.

I googled a traditional menu, and accustomed it a bit to suit us "Kiwi's" -

Menu:

• Stuffed, roasted chicken (instead of turkey)
• Roasted vegetables
• Green salad
• Green veges
• Pecan slice (instead of pie)
• Pumpkin pie
• Iced tea
• Wine

Let's just say, it was a load of cooking, but a most enjoyable evening!

The beautiful thing about it - was that none of us have had a fantastic year this year - but we all had plenty of deep things to be greatful for.  I mean, for each of us, the year has had many wonderful high points - but underlying these have been many difficulties and challenges.

Some of our thankful things.... life, our marriage partners, our children, our extended families, our church families, our friendship, our homes, where we have been taken this year - and so many other things.

I'm pretty sure we've settled that it's a tradition from now on.  Maybe next year I'll kiwi-fy it instead of going with the American feast!  You know, pavalova topped with fresh strawberries & chocolate - and all the rest!

And in the words of my friend as they left - there goes another 4 1/2 hours - just flying past.  Great company.

What things are you thankful for?