Turtle Squares

This recipe was adapted  from The Black Peppercorn. These were absolutely delish and a new found favorite! I love his pictures so make sure to stop by and check out his blog there are tons of yummy looking recipes to browse through!
 I had decided to make these as a treat for the night we had decorated our Christmas tree. I have always loved turtle candies and was excited when I had seen his post on turtle squares. I can't wait to make these again to pass out to the neighbors on the cookie trays!
Thanks again to Black Peppercorn!

Strolling through the tree's looking for a perfect tree for Dad to cut down. Carrying branch's found around from leftover tree's as swords, just in case.

Well the boy's found no monsters so they decided to sword fight instead! Boys will be boys.

Me and my honey! He is simply amazing! He's such a blessing to me!

We finally found our tree and it was a true Griswald family Christmas tree! My husband is 6'6" and you can see the tree towers over him! I love these guys, no better way to spend a day than with them!

 As you can see my husband had to remove the door off of the frame to fit the tree in. Tons of pushing and pulling then ensued!

I used a 9x13 glass pan, so I buttered mine well. The Black Peppercorns recipe does not call for this but I also noticed he used a metal pan, so I felt better safe then sorry!

I added all the crust ingredients to the food processor and pulsed until combined.

I chopped the butter in cubes and added. Then I pulsed until the mixture was very well blended  and crumbly almost like topping for apple crisp. I have a feeling this could also be done with a mixer and would turn out fine. I will let you know next go around.

Add crust mixture to the buttered pan and press down evenly.

Place in a preheated 350 degree oven for 15 minutes. It should be light brown and puffs up a bit.

When crust has  3 minutes until done combine: brown sugar, butter and cream. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil 1 minute.

Crust will look like these when done. Remove from the oven and set aside.

Once mixture boiled for 1 minute remove from heat.

I then added 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla. This was optional and not called for in the original recipe.

Spread toasted pecans over the top of the cookie crust.

Spread with the caramel mixture and place back into the 350 degree oven.

Bake 24-26 minutes until bubbles form and color darkens.

Spread with chocolate chips and spread evenly with a knife.

Enjoy!

Turtle Squares

Recipe by Serena Bakes Simply From Scratch Adapted From The Black Peppercorn

Turtle Squares made with brown sugar. A shortbread crust topped with a toffee and brown sugar filling and covered in chocolate. Recipe includes step by step photos and instructions.

Prep time: PT15M
Cook time: PT45M
Total time: PT1H
Yield: 16

Calories per serving: 484
Fat per serving: 33

Ingredients

For Cookie Crust:

• 1 cup Brown Sugar
• 1 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour
• 1/2 cup Whole Wheat Pastry Flour ( original recipe called for just all purpose flour)
• 3/4 cup Softened Butter, Cut into Cubes

For Caramel Filling:

• 1 cup Brown Sugar
• 1 cup Butter
• 4 tablespoons Cream
• 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla ( this was an addition not in original recipe)
• 1 1/2 cups Pecan Halves, Toasted
• 2 cups Chocolate Chips ( original used 1 1/2 cups but I love chocolate and just added the bag)

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degree's. Butter a 9 x 13 pan and set aside.
2. For Cookie Crust: Add brown sugar and flour to food processor and pulse until combined. Add all of the softened butter and process until crumbly and well incorporated. Place into buttered pan and press down evenly. Bake for 15 minutes or until starts to turn light brown and puffs up. Remove from oven and set aside.
3. For Caramel Filling: When there is about 3 minutes left on the crust mix brown sugar, butter and cream in a medium pan. Bring to a boil over medium heat and boil 1 minute. Remove from heat and add the vanilla.
4. Spread toasted pecans evenly over the top of the cookie crust. Cover with the caramel mixture and place back into 350 degree oven for 24-26 minutes until bubbles form and color darkens.
5. Remove from oven and sprinkle with chocolate chips. Allow to melt about 5 minutes and spread evenly over the top using a spatula.
6. Set bars aside and allow to cool completely until chocolate is set on top.