Golden Coconut Bars

Golden Coconut Bars - made May 28, 2011 from King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion (book #116)

This is a beautiful baking book full of lots of different cookie recipes.  It's exactly the kind of cookbook I love to browse through, own and adorn my bookshelf with.  Unfortunately, it's also the type of cookbook where I'm confronted with so many choices on what to make that I sometimes freeze in indecision and end up not making anything from it at all.  Yeah, I'm trying to break myself of that habit.

Despite, or because of, all the choices, sometimes you just want a simple bar cookie.  And I love coconut so this was a no-brainer.  A shortbread crust with coconut topping - what could be better?  If you want to make it more tropical or summery, throw in some macadamia nuts instead of pecans.  I omitted the coconut flavor which I took to mean coconut extract.  Love coconut.  Don't love coconut extract.  Don't even like it.  So vanilla extract it is.

The directions say the crust will be stiff after you mix it.  Mine didn't even gather into a dough.  It was more like a shortbread crust where you cut the butter into the flour and it was more of a crumbly mixture than actual dough.  I didn't sweat it though since some of the best crusts start off as a crumbly mixture before you bake it. This turned out pretty well.  It's pretty basic: shortbread crust, coconut-brown-sugar-flavor topping and macadamia nuts.  If you like that combo, you'd like this cookie.  It's also good for traveling and picnics as summer approaches if you need something to bring on the go.

Crust

4 tablespoons (½ stick, 2 ounces) unsalted butter

¼ cup (2 ounces) brown sugar

Heaping ¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon baking powder

A few drops of coconut flavor (optional)

1 cup (4 ¼ ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour

Topping

1 cup (8 ounces) brown sugar

2 large eggs

Heaping ¼ teaspoon salt

1 ½ cups (4 ½ ounces) shredded sweetened coconut, lightly packed

3 tablespoons (¾ ounce) unbleached all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon vanilla extract or a few drops of coconut flavor

1 cup (4 ounces) chopped roasted salted pecans (I used macadamia nuts)

1.     Preheat oven to 350˚F.  Lightly grease a 9 x 9-inch or a 7 x 11-inch pan. (I used an 8 x 8" pan to get a thicker crust.)

2.     To make the crust: In a medium-sized mixing bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, salt, baking powder, and flavoring, if using.  Add the flour, beating to combine; the dough will be stiff.  Press the dough into the prepared pan.  Bake the crust for 10 to 15 minutes, until it’s a light golden brown.  Remove it from the oven.

3.     To make the topping: In a medium-sized mixing bowl, beat together the brown sugar, eggs, and salt, then stir in the coconut, flour and vanilla.  Spread the topping on the crust, smoothing it out the best you can.  Sprinkle with the pecans.

4.     Return the pan to the oven and bake the bars for 25 minutes, or until the topping starts to bubble along the edge.  Remove from the oven, cool slightly and cut into bars.

Nutrition info: 1 bar, 52 g: 215 calories, 10 g fat, 13 mg protein, 10 g carbs, 19 g sugar, 1 g fiber, 35 mg cholesterol, 145 mg sodium, 155 mg potassium