Southern Teacake Bars Dipped in Milk Chocolate with Pecans


Cajun Week Day 3!


Hey everyone, guess what, it's Days 3 of Cajun Week, and Peter from Feed Your Soul Too, and I are just getting warmed up!

In honor of the last day to enter the Sucre Macaron Giveaway (entry below), I decided to create something sweet today! I am taking my Southern Tea Cakes to a whole new level people! Yes...and it includes the use of Chocolate and Pecans...it's a southern thang!


I am not sure if I informed you when I made my Lemon Glazed Teacakes a while back, how my teacakes came to be...well it all started with my mother!

We had a teacake-off, and I won...yes, she can bake pretty much any and everything...but she couldn't understand why my teacakes were perfect...my words...not hers...lol.

The secret people...yes it's a secret...use two kinds of sugar...and chill the dough...overnight if you have time.

Then allow the dough to sit out on the counter for about 20 minutes before you roll it out...Oh...and the use of a biscuit cutter for that perfect look!

 
This time you want need a biscuit cutter, because we're turning our Teacakes into yummy bars.  That's it...now get to baking people.


They turned out perfect...


All that's missing is a glass of sweet southern tea, or in my case a large glass of ice cold organic milk.


Look at this beautiful Cajun Gumbo Pot Pie that Peter at Feed Your Soul Too Created.

Southern Teacake Bars Dipped in Milk Chocolate with Pecans

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes plus chilling time
Servings: 8-12 bars

Ingredients:

2 sticks butter, unsalted, room temperature
3 1/2 cup all purpose flour, plus extra to roll out dough
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 eggs, room temperature
2 cups chocolate chips, melted
2 cups pecans, chopped

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, salt and baking soda. Mix well and set aside.

In an electric mixer beat butter for about 3-5 minutes are until nice and creamy. Add sugar and beat for 3 minutes more. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating for about 20 seconds between each addition.

Add vanilla and almond and beat for 20 more seconds. Add flour mixture in 4 batches and beat for about 20 seconds after each addition. Scape the sides of the bowl and make sure flour is mixed well. Transfer mixture to saran wrap.

Place in refrigerator for about 1-2 hours are overnight if desired. Allow to sit out for about 20 minutes to make dough more pliable.

Place dough into a greased 13X9 inch pan, pressing with the tips of your fingers to spread out evenly. 

Bake for about 20-25 minutes until nice and golden brown. Remove from oven, allow to cool completely.

Melt chocolate chips in the microwave, stir every 20 seconds, this should take less than a minute. 

Transfer to cooling rack and allow teacakes to cool completely about 30 minutes before glazing.

Melt chocolate in a microwave proof bowl, stirring every 20 seconds until completely melted. 

Remove teacakes from pan, place on a cookie sheet, spread hot chocolate over the top and immediately top with chopped pecans. Allow to set up completely before cutting.

For the perfect cut, use a serrated knife, cut off rough edges and save those for a snack. Wipe knife clean after each cut and cut into bars.





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