Recipe: Hessie Rae's Chocolate Pecan Tart Cookies

HESSIE RAE'S CHOCOLATE PECAN TART COOKIES


FOR THE TART COOKIE DOUGH:
1/2 pound (1 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, cut into l-ounce pieces, softened
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
FOR THE CHOCOLATE PECAN FILLING:
1 1/2 cups pecans*
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
1 cup tightly packed dark brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

TO MAKE THE TART COOKIE DOUGH:
Place the butter and cream cheese in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle. Beat on medium for 1 minute. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl, then beat on medium for 1 more minute until smooth. Scrape down the bowl once again. Operate the mixer on low while gradually adding the flour until a loose dough is formed (the dough will be slightly crumbly), about 45 seconds.

Remove the dough from the mixer and form it into a smooth round ball, then divide it into 36 tablespoon-size pieces (approximately 3/4 ounce per piece) onto a large piece of wax paper. Place a portion into each miniature muffin tin cup. Use your thumb to individually press each dough portion first into the bottom and then onto the sides of each cup (the dough should extend above the rim of the cup by about 1/4 inch). Set aside at room temperature while making the filling.

TO MAKE THE CHOCOLATE PECAN FILLING:
Toast the pecans on a baking sheet in the preheated oven for 10 minutes. Cool the nuts to room temperature.

Process the pecans in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade for 10 seconds, until finely chopped.

Heat 1 inch of water in the bottom half of a double boiler over medium heat. With the heat on, place the semisweet chocolate in the top half of the double boiler. Use a rubber spatula to stir the chocolate until completely melted and smooth, about 3 minutes. Transfer the melted chocolate to a 1-quart bowl and set aside until needed.

Place the dark brown sugar and the eggs in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a balloon whip. Whisk on medium for 1 minute. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the vanilla extract and the salt, and whisk on medium for 1 more minute. Stop the mixer and add the melted chocolate; whisk on low for 30 seconds.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and add the chopped pecans. Use a rubber spatula to finish mixing the filling until thoroughly combined. Place a level tablespoon of the filling into each tart shell.

TO BAKE THE CHOCOLATE PECAN TART COOKIES:
Place the muffin tins on baking sheets, then place on the top and center racks of the preheated oven and bake for 34 to 36 minutes until the crust turns lightly brown. Remove the cookies from the oven and allow to cool in the muffin tins for 10 minutes.

Remove the cookies from the muffin tins and allow to cool to room temperature before storing in a tightly sealed plastic container until ready to serve. Hessie Rae's Chocolate Pecan Tart Cookies will keep for 2 to 3 days at room temperature if stored in a tightly sealed plastic container. Refrigeration or freezing is not recommended, as it dramatically alters the texture of the filling.

*Depending on your pantry supply or budget you may use either pecan pieces or pecan halves for the filling recipe.

ABOUT THE RECIPE:
"Having five sisters myself, I can appreciate my assistant Jon Pierre's attachment to his older twin sisters, Stephanie Rae and Melanie Mae. Stephanie (or Hessie, as Jon calls her) had a particularly strong culinary influence on him in spite of the inevitable foil-wrapped tuna sandwiches she would pack in his lunch bucket. Next to the mushy tuna would appear crunchy sugar cookies, chewy brownies, or Hessie Rae's Chocolate Pecan Tart Cookies, Jon Pierre's favorite. Even today Jon Pierre looks forward to the Christmas package of her tart cookies, which arrive in checkbook boxes, eight perfect cookies to the box."

Makes 3 dozen (1 1/2-inch cookies)
Source: Death by Chocolate Cookies by Marcel Desaulniers