Bourbon Pecan Bars

People, it's Thanksgiving time. Turkey and mashed potatoes and yams galore, brussels sprouts and cranberry sauce, and of course, you can never have enough pie.

Except you know what? I'll beg to differ. I'm a pie lover like the best of 'em, but at a certain point, I need a break. I want a crumble, a crisp, perhaps some bars. Thanksgiving may be about tradition, but it needn't resist a change of pace, right?

Look, we can split the difference. These pecan bars are basically pecan pie, in rectangle form. They have crust, they have gooey chewy topping. Did I mention they have bourbon? You will like them. Your guests will love them. And if you want to push things over the top, dunk'em in chocolate. That'll bring the swoons. No one will miss pecan pie. And if they do? Well, there's always apple, and pumpkin, pumpkin-caramel, and apple-cranberry, and...

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With the big day under a month away, I know you're all on the hunt for the best Thanksgiving recipes. As it turns out, we're off to the in-laws, so I won't be cooking. Don't worry, though - I won't be leaving you stranded. Y'all know there's that crazy part of me that can't bear the thought of missing Thanksgiving prep - it's a weird sort of FOMO reserved for food bloggers. So here I am, with not an ounce of turkey to cook and not a pie to bake, still coming at you with recipes and menus to make your holiday memorable. First up are these bourbon pecan bars. But I've got more up my sleeve, so stay tuned.

Bourbon Pecan Barsadapted from Martha Stewart Makes 48 bars*

*Note: Martha says this recipe makes 24 bars. She has you bake them in an 8x8. But I tend to like a thinner bar, with a texture more like shortbread, so I spread the recipe out in a 9x13. If you like thicker bars, bake in an 8x8 or double the recipe.

1 1/2 cups flour 1/4 cup sugar 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter 1 egg

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into chunks 3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar 1/4 cup light corn syrup 3 tablespoons bourbon 1/4 cup heavy cream 1/4 teaspoon salt 8 ounces (about 2 cups) coarsely chopped pecans

Make crust: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a 9x13-inch baking pan with foil. In a food processor, pulse flour, sugar, and salt to combine. Add butter; pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add egg; pulse just until a dough forms.

Transfer dough to prepared pan; with floured fingers and/or an offset spatula, press firmly into bottom of the pan in a single, uniform layer. Freeze until firm, about 15 minutes.

Prick bottom of dough; bake until lightly golden, 22 to 25 minutes. Let cool while preparing filling.

Make the filling: In a large saucepan, bring butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup to a boil over high heat, whisking constantly, until smooth; continue boiling, without stirring, until slightly darkened, about 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat. Whisk in cream, bourbon, and salt; mix in pecans.

Assemble and bake: Spoon hot filling evenly over crust, using spoon to arrange and press in nuts so they fit snugly (create as flat a surface as possible). Bake until bubbling and amber-colored, 18 to 22 minutes. Cool completely in pan.

Using foil, lift cake from pan; peel off foil. With a sharp knife, trim edges (if desired). Cut crosswise into 8 even strips; cut each strip into 6 even rectangles to make 48 bars.

Ginger Brownies

Brownie perfection is in the eye of the beholder. Some like a moist, chewy brownie. (Others inexplicably prefer the cakey kind, but I'm not judging.) Katherine Hepburn liked brownies so chocolatey, they were black - but I've also met strange folks who don't want to be hit over the head by the chocolate. (Again, not judging. Kinda.)

The brownie debate extends quite far: even Duncan Hines lists two options on their packaged brownie mix - one egg for chewy brownies, two for cake-like brownies.

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Me, I like a brownie that's moist and chewy - but it's important to me that they hold to hold their shape when sliced. Mushy brownies have a time and a place - midnight or later, straight out of the pan, eaten alone or with someone I like a whole lot. For the more civilized occasions, give me a brownie that slices up nicely.

In the past, I've looked to Alice Medrich and Dorie Greenspan, who have developed recipes for truly bittersweet, moist brownies. Neither of my standby favorites have any additions, which can disrupt the otherwise smooth texture of good brownies.

But I'm not a total purist. I've always been a fan of peppermint brownies, and just as curious about the supporting role other flavors might be able to play. So yesterday, I pulled a stack of cookbooks off the shelf and began looking for inspiration: I wanted to make ginger brownies.

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That expedition ended with a thud. I couldn't find anything I was excited to make. So I turned to the interwebs, and quickly found myself a Martha recipe that looked mighty promising. Spiced with ground ginger, nutmeg, and cloves, they suggested prominent fall flavor but didn't look too overpowering.

And here I am, blogging abut the recipe, so yes, friends. They were every bit as good as I'd hoped. The texture of these brownies comes pretty close to perfect, for me at least. Chewy and moist, but firm enough to stand up to a knife. I topped them with some of the lovely ginger salt I received from Marx Foods a while back for some sort of contest (I forget the context, but I'm pretty sure it was open to everyone, and they're certainly not paying me to discuss it here). I was enamored enough of the topping that I'm encouraging you to do something similar below. It's simple, really: combine ground ginger with coarse salt. Alternatively, snag the ginger salt from Marx Foods. It's - er - worth its salt.

Ginger Browniesadapted from Martha Stewart makes 9 large brownies or 12 smaller brownies (1 8x8 pan)

Note: The ginger salt is out of stock, but equally wonderful is the espresso salt. Try it! If you don't have fancy flavored salt, just take 1/2 teaspoon of flaky salt in a bowl, add a pinch of ground ginger, and stir until combined. Sprinkle sparingly over the brownies. If you're not keen on that fuss, just use regular flaky salt.

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for baking dish 3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped 1 cup sugar 2/3 cup all-purpose flour 1/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder 2 large eggs 1 teaspoon grated peeled fresh ginger 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt, plus 1/2 teaspoon for sprinkling 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter an 8-inch square baking dish. Line bottom with parchment paper, allowing 2 inches to hang over 2 sides. Butter parchment.

Melt butter and chocolate together in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients and spices. Stir to combine fully. Add eggs, vanilla, and cooled chocolate mixture, and stir to fully combine.

Pour batter into prepared dish and smooth top with a rubber spatula. Sprinkle sparingly with either ginger salt or regular flaky salt. Bake until a cake tester inserted into center comes out with moist crumbs, 30 to 35 minutes. Let cool in pan on a wire rack 15 minutes. Lift out, and let cool completely on rack. Cut into 8 squares or 12 rectangles. Brownies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 4 days.

How to Use (Up) Zucchini

Friends, the zucchini glut is nearly over. Those plants have practically exhausted themselves these past few months. Before you know it, we'll be talking apple pie. But we've still got a week or two more of zucchini overflow, and I thought I'd share a couple delicious ways to put zucchini excess to good use.

These are recipes I've been making all summer, and you should certainly take the opportunity to make them while zucchini plants are still producing. Lest you think we're only talking about stir fry or gratin, I've got you covered for brunch and snacktime, too.

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Zucchini Boats

Enter the world's easiest dinner. You can have it on the table in under half an hour, and coupled with a side salad and maybe a slice of baguette, it's the perfect summer meal. We're talking about zucchini halves, hollowed out and filled with a mixture of chopped zucchini innards, ricotta and feta cheese, lemon, and herbs, then broiled till bubbling and brown. While I've got a recipe for you here, this is the sort of thing you should feel free - nay, compelled - to improvise. If you only have ricotta, skip the feta. If you have mozzarella, use it in place of the parmesan; just as good. And while I use mint and basil, any other herb would work here. (Thyme would be especially nice.)

Zucchini Boatsserves 4

2 pounds zucchini or summer squash of any size 1 cup ricotta 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese 1/4 cup mixed chopped herbs (basil, mint, dill, thyme, marjoram, all great) zest and juice of 1/2 a lemon 1 egg, beaten 1/4 teaspoon salt freshly cracked pepper

Preheat the broiler.

Halve the squash, and use a small spoon to slowly scrape away the flesh of each squash half, leaving about 1/2-inch-squash shell intact. Chop removed flesh into bits, and place chopped squash in a medium mixing bowl.

Add to bowl all remaining ingredients except Parmigiano cheese and stir to combine. Spoon mixture into squash shells, transfer to foil-lined broiler-safe baking dish, and broil about 15 minutes, until zucchini are soft hot, and brown on top. Serve warm.

zucchini frittata

Zucchini Frittata

One of my favorite discoveries this summer was the fact that squash blossoms are delicious in other forms than fried. Go figure. My health-conscious friends will likely appreciate this post, since squash blossoms are among summer's treats, and there are ways to cook them that do not involve copious amounts of oil.

The starting point for this recipe came from Food52 founder and all-around awesome lady Amanda Hesser, who created a frittata using squash blossoms and garlic scapes. I added thinly sliced zucchini and halved cherry tomatoes, and finished the whole thing with some lumps of fresh chevre. Amanda's frittata came out perfectly yellow. Aiming to discredit suspicions of food snobbery at my house, I'll admit that I like my frittatas slightly overcooked. There, I said it. Mine come out golden brown, and I'm quite happy that way. Feel free to treat your frittata-ed eggs more gently.

Zucchini Frittataserves 4-6 as one course of several

8 large eggs, lightly beaten Salt and freshly cracked pepper 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 tablespoon unsalted butter 5 garlic scapes, thinly sliced, or 2 garlic cloves, smashed and chopped 8 zucchini blossoms, stems trimmed to 1 inch 1/2 a large zucchini, sliced very thinly (on a mandoline, if possible) a handful of cherry tomatoes, rinsed and halved 3 ounces fresh chevre or goat cheese

Heat the oven to 325 degrees. Place zucchini in a strainer, sprinkle with salt, and let strain for 20 minutes. The zucchini will start to emit liquid. After 20 minutes, transfer zucchini to a kitchen towel and press to remove excess liquid and salt.

Season the eggs with salt and pepper. Add sliced tomatoes and zucchini to egg mixture. Place a 12-inch non-stick pan over medium heat. Add the olive oil and butter and when the butter is foamy, add the garlic scapes, spreading them around the pan. Cook for 1 minute. Lay the zucchini blossoms in an even layer in the base of the pan. Cook for about 1 minute, then turn and wilt the other side, another 30 seconds. Slowly pour the egg mixture into the pan. Dot the top of the egg mixture with blobs of chevre. Transfer the pan to the oven, and bake until the frittata is just set, 6 to 8 minutes (more if you're crazy like I am). Remove from the oven. Lay a large plate on top of the pan, and invert the frittata onto it. Serve warm or at room temperature, cut into wedges.

zucchini bread

Zucchini Bread

Ok, I don't know how to break this news any other way...I have made 6 loaves of zucchini bread in the past three weeks. I'll happily blame the apparent fixation on a slew of recent housewarming and condolence gifts I gave. But really, I can't resist the way my kitchen smells when this zucchini bread is in the oven.

The recipe is from Deb, and having made it three times, I can tell you, there is no way to improve this recipe. It is absolutely perfect. This is the time to make this bread: zucchini is everywhere, but the weather is cool enough to turn on the oven. Don't waste a moment. You know what? Make a double batch. Freeze a few loaves. Thank me later.

Zucchini Breadmakes 2 loaves

3 eggs 1 cup olive or vegetable oil 1 3/4 cups sugar 2 cups grated zucchini 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 3 cups all-purpose flour 3 teaspoons cinnamon 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional - I'm not a nuts-in-bread fan so I skip) 1 cup dried cranberries, raisins or chocolate chips or a combination thereof (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease and flour two 8×4 inch loaf pans.

In a large bowl, beat eggs. Mix in oil and sugar, then zucchini and vanilla.

Combine flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, baking powder and salt, as well as nuts (if using), chocolate chips and/or dried fruit, if using.

Stir dry mixture into the egg mixture. Divide batter into prepared pans.

Bake loaves for 60 minutes, plus or minus ten, or until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean.

So there we have it. A few great recipes for the most prolific summer vegetable there is.

Now...a question. What are your favorite zucchini recipes?

Best Blackberry Pie

I do my best to keep up with the kids, to stay in the know about what's new. I caught wind of the microbrew trend a couple years back, and I even went so far as to buy a beer-of-the-month club subscription for D. (She loved it so much, she told me to never think again about birthday presents: it's beer club from here on out.) But every so often, a new tidbit of knowledge seems to sweep the food world by storm while skipping me completely, Passover-style. This time, it was tapioca flour, which has quickly supplanted corn starch as the best thickener, ever. Unlike corn starch, tapioca is undetectable in every way. It thickens up pies without any of that milky, gloopy, corn starch texture. It also doesn't threaten to leave a raw-flour taste if it doesn't cook completely. In short, it's basically foolproof. Cook a pie with tapioca, and you'll think there's no thickener in it at all - until you cut the first slice and see that there is no puddle of murky fruit liquid swamping your pie. It's an amazing feat. Your guests will ooh and ahh.

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So how did I miss the trend? I don't know. But I blame being late to the tapioca party for not sharing this amazing pie recipe until now. This, my friends, is the best blackberry pie. Ever.

Blackberries are in season right now. If you haven't had any over the past couple of weeks, carpe diem, people. They're tangy, sweet, and complex. They pair well with cinnamon and lemon, both of which are in this pie recipe. Oh, and butter. They go well with butter. We've got that here, too.

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If you've been following along, I recently settled on my ideal pie crust recipe. I used that here, and it's as good as I remember. But I'm also a sucker for a good crumb topping, and I usually find double crust pies to be a little too crusty. For this pie, I riffed on Deb's crumb topping for sour cherry pie, which calls for ground almonds and ground oats. It's got great flavor, and it pairs perfectly with blackberries. If you don't have oats or oat flour, you can substitute whole wheat or even white flour here.

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We had plenty of blackberries for this pie, and Elise's pie filling fit the bill just perfectly with only minor tweaks. If you'd like to mix blackberries with another summer berry, this pie is a great place to do that. Also, if you're not a cinnamon person (strange, I know, but there are such people), omit. And if you're the type who loves orange zest, blackberries, cinnamon, and orange are a trio made in heaven. Do it.

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Once you've made a pie with tapioca flour, you may never go back. And you know what? It's pretty good on this side of things.

Best Blackberry PieAdapted from recipes from Simply Recipes and Smitten Kitchen (thanks, Elise and Deb!)

1 recipe best all-butter pie crust

For the pie filling: 5-6 cups blackberries, rinsed, picked clean, and patted dry (if using frozen berries, defrost fully and drain) 1/2 cup sugar 1 teaspoon lemon juice 1 teaspoon lemon zest 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional, but it plays off the almond crumble really nicely) 3 Tbsp tapioca flour (I found it in the baking aisle of a natural foods store; Whole Foods and many supermarkets carry it, too)

For the topping: 2/3 cup whole oats, ground to a flour in a food processor (or, if you have it, 1/2 cup oat flour) 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 cup sugar 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (you might want to first read up on kosher salts) 3/4 cup unsalted whole almonds, coarsely ground in a food processor (or, if you have it, 1/2 cup almond meal) 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Prepare the crust: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Roll out the chilled pie dough into a 12-inch disk. Gently lower into a 9- or 9.5-inch pie dish. (I do this by gently folding the dough into quarters, lifting it into the dish, and then gently unfolding it, as pictured above.) Trim the edges of the crust, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang. Crimp the edges, line with foil or wax paper, fill with pie weights or rice/beans, and bake for 30 minutes, until lightly browned. Remove pie crust from the oven, remove weights and lining, and allow to cool completely. Meanwhile...

Prepare the filling: Put blackberries, sugar, lemon juice and zest, cinnamon, extracts, and tapioca flour into a large bowl. Toss gently to coat berries evenly, and leave to macerate for 20 minutes. While this is macerating...

Prepare the crumb topping: Combine flours, sugar, cinnamon, salt, and almond meal in a medium bowl. Add melted butter and stir until mixture resembles wet sand.

Make the pie: Spoon blackberries into bottom crust. Sprinkle crumb topping evenly over the top of the pie. Set the pie on a baking sheet (to catch any juices that drip, avoiding that whole smoking oven thing), and bake for 30 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees, and bake another 30-35 minutes, until juices are bubbling and crumb topping is browned. Let cool at least 30 minutes before eating.

Serve with vanilla ice cream, FTW.