Pecan Cheesies – Going, Going, Gone

BigBlank.jpgYou’ll notice there’s no photo with today’s recipe. Partly my fault. Partly Andrew’s.

I’ve been saving this post for a cold, snowy, winter evening, thinking you’d enjoy a nice savory nibble with a glass of wine or sherry by the fire with friends. Sounds tempting?

Well, you’ll just have to do it without knowing what the final product looks like. I made a double batch of these cheddary morsels for Christmas and foolishly didn’t take a photo at the time. No problem. I’ll snap a few when I blog. After all, I made six dozen of the decadent little puppies and only half got consumed by guests – on a snowy evening with the fire.

The other half? By Andrew. Unbeknownst to me. Sometime over the course of the holidays. In his office. All alone. Hence no photo.

While I welcome any occasion where I can use the word “unbeknownst”, this was enough to make we pull out my Facebook Shakespearean Insult Generator. I just might have to call Andrew a fobbing, full-gorged pignut. I’m not entirely sure what it means, but it gets the point across.

Pecan Cheesies
Printable recipe

Makes 2 – 3 dozen

Ingredients

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • generous pinch cayenne pepper
  • 1/2 tsp dry mustard
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 1/2 pound finely shredded old cheddar cheese
  • 1/2 cup pecans, chopped

Instructions

  1. Sift dry ingredients together.
  2. Cream butter until soft. Gradually blend in cheese and pecans.
  3. Add flour in portions, working in well after each portion. You might have to blend with your hand to form a doughy ball.
  4. Form into logs about 2” in diameter. Wrap in waxed paper. Chill until firm.
  5. Cut into 1/4″ slices and arrange slightly apart on a grease cookie sheet. Bake in preheated 400F oven for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from pan at once and cool on wire rack.
  6. Store in covered tin with a lock. Give the combination only to those you can trust. Note: These cookies freeze well only if you can keep family members at bay.