TWD Café Volcano Cookie failure & Turtle Shortbread Bars

I don't know what went wrong with these but they are my first (and hopefully my last) Dorie recipe failure. They didn't stick together and they stuck badly to the pan. Judging from other TWD bloggers they were quite tasty! Maybe I will try them again the next time I'm feeling adventurous.

To make up for my Café volcano cookie failure, I made these decadent turtle shortbread bars. They have a shortbread base covered in a sticky yet soft caramel and topped with pecans and chocolate. They look fabulous on a cookie tray and they cut beautifully (after they have cooled fully). To make them even more tempting, they are super easy and quick to make. The recipe is from one of Robert Rose's publications. It is called Bars and Squares by Jill Snider and is surprisingly full of great recipes that use ordinary ingredients without reliance on cake mixes or pre-made doughs (although a few recipes in the book do use these convenience items). Lately I've been really into Robert Rose books as they are often specific to a type of method or item such as "125 Best Cheesecake Recipes" by George Greary or "250 Best Muffin Recipes" by Esther Brody. Both the aforementioned books have some real gems in them.

Turtle Shortbread Bars
Makes 9 x 13 inch pan

1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, slightly softened

1 1/3 cup pecans, chopped
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter

1 1/3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350F. In a food processor or mixer, combine flour, brown sugar and butter mixing until it is crumbly. Press into the bottom of a greased 9x13" pan. (I like the glass ones for more even baking and removal of bars). Bake for 10-15 until it begins to brown slightly. Remove from oven and sprinkle evenly with pecans.
2. While base is baking, melt together butter and brown sugar in a saucepan, stirring frequently. Bring to a boil, bubbles should appear all over the surface. It will be quite a thin/runny consistency. That's OK! Pour it evenly over the pecans in the baking pan. Return to oven for 10-15 minutes, until it looks almost set.
3. When done, remove from oven and sprinkle immediately with chocolate chips. Let stand for 3 minutes then gently drag the tip of a knife over the chocolate to swirl slightly. Leave the majority of chocolate chips whole/unswirled. Cool fully in pan before cutting.