Friday, August 10, 2007

Chunky Chunks

Yep, straight to the hips... :)
I wanted something that could easily be dumped into one pan and therefore decided to try this recipe I found on Cookie Madness' blog. Although mine didn't look exactly like hers, they still tasted really really yummy. I reduced the sugar and it was still a little too sweet for me. Instead of AP flour, I used a combo of quinoa, oat, & brown rice + arrowroot...this resulted in a chunky crumb dessert instead of bars (brown rice & oat = crumbly results). I added about 1/8 teaspoon baking powder, but will consider omitting this next time
(rise & density was not an issue) unless using spelt. As a fun experiment, I want to continue playing around with different types of flours...maybe spelt next time. The edges were a crispy but chewy texture & the center was moist & rich with slightly flaky crisp tops...yummy! The ingredient combo in this recipe yielded a dessert that reminded me of peanut butter cookies & rich pecan pie...not sure if that's an accurate description. With reduced sugar, this would taste really good with vanilla ice cream, the molasses in the brown sugar + the rich flavorful butter reminds me of caramel - dulce de leche? The coconut was definitely an enjoyable bonus feature. My boyfriend & I want to give this another round using different filling combos.
~*~
Chunky Chunks
3/8 cup toasted pecans, roughly chopped
1/4 cup unsweetened flaked coconut

1 ener-g egg replacer (little less than 1 1/2 tsp, lil' less than 2 tblspn warm H2O)
3/8 cup brown sugar
(2/8 cup)
4 tblspn butter, melted & cooled (3 1/2 tblspn)
1 tsp vanilla extract (lil' less)

3/8 cup flour (2/8 oat & quinoa, 2 tsp arrowroot + 7 tsp brown rice)
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp baking powder
(omit)
1/8 tsp salt

1/2 cup white chocolate chips
  • Preheat oven to 325F. Prepare small square/rectangle pan by lining with parchment paper (I used my 6X9 glass pan).
  • Toast pecans and halfway through add coconut. Done when coconut has slightly brown edges and pecans smell fragrant. About 5 - 10 minutes total. Allow to cool completely.
  • In a medium bowl, whisk together "egg" & brown sugar. Add butter & vanilla, mix well.
  • In separate bowl, combine flour, soda, powder, salt & whisk together; stir into wet ingredients.
  • Incorporate pecans, coconut & chocolate chips into batter.
  • Spread evenly in pan & bake for about 30 minutes, till toothpick comes out with moist crumbs. Allow to cool completely on wire rack.
  • Makes 4 large squares/rectangles.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I tried these last night, and wow were they tasty!

After eating a couple of bites, I got addicted to the combination of the buttery flaky crust, the sweet crunchy nutty filling, and the accent of shredded coconut texture and flavor.

I finished off the whole batch and it went straight to my hips. *Sigh*

Joe said...

I love how you are incorporating all sorts of different flours into baked good - I've yet to experiment with quinoa or brown rice flours, but they are on my list of things to try after we get settled from the move!

Debra said...

Joe-
Thanks for your comment, playing with different flours is a risky thing, but I'm hoping to get it right after multiple tries. Cooking is especially fun when we take a risk & experiment with new things.
Happy Moving! :)