Macadamia Nut Bars

For the most part, I don’t consider myself a baker. I don’t particularly enjoy baking, and I tend not to do it all that often. One has to wonder, then, why I subscribe to Bake from Scratch magazine. Honestly, I couldn’t tell you. It’s just one of life’s puzzles. But when a new issue arrives, I do page through and place markers in amongst the pages to remind me of the recipes that I would like to try.

Over the weekend I actually did try one of the recipes (that I honestly find quite cumbersomely written) for a delicious looking nut bar. This recipe employed the use of honey. If you like honey, then use it; don’t divide it up, as I did, by using honey, and both light and dark Karo syrups. I find honey to be cloying, and despite its use in most of the pecan pie bar cookie recipes that I’ve seen, it doesn’t belong there. You will never find honey in a pecan pie. It’s just wrong! So, what you will find below is my version of their recipe. Because I didn’t need a huge pan of these, or have the desire to take out a home loan in order to buy the macadamias, I cut their recipe in half and baked it in an 8” x 8” pan. These little rascals are addicting!

Macadamia Nut Bars
Adapted from Bake from Scratch

Crust:
½ c. +1 T. unsalted butter, softened
¼ c. + 1 T. firmly packed light brown sugar
¼ t. fine sea salt
1½ c. all-purpose flour

Topping:
½ c. unsalted butter, softened
½ c. firmly packed light brown sugar
1/8 c. honey*
1/8 c. light Karo syrup*
1/8 c. dark Karo syrup*
1/8 c. granulated sugar
1/8 c. heavy whipping cream
½ t. fine sea salt
1½  c. macadamia nuts
1 c. pecan halves
½ t. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375°F. Spray an 8” x 8” pan with PAM. Line pan with parchment paper leaving a 2-inch overhang on either end; set aside.

Beat together butter, sugar, and salt until creamy, 3 to 4 minutes. Slowly add flour and beat until the dough comes together and forms large clumps. Press into the bottom of prepared pan (a tart tamper works well for this). Using a fork, prick the dough all over.

Bake 15 to 20 minutes until edges are light brown. Let cool until it is warm to the touch.

Reduce oven temperature to 325° F.

Topping: In a large saucepan bring butter, brown sugar, honey, both syrups, granulated sugar, cream, and salt to a boil over high heat stirring constantly. Cook until an instant read thermometer registers 243° F. Remove from heat and stir in macadamia nuts, pecans, and vanilla. Pour onto prepared crust.

Bake until topping is bubbly and nuts around edges are mahogany colored, 15 to 20 minutes, rotating pan halfway through. Let cool completely in pan on a wire rack.

Remove from pan, cut into bars. Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to a week.

 *Get yourself a set of these.

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