Mouths to Feed: Holiday Stars

December is a sweet, strange land, full of unforeseen temptations. It’s wise to approach the month with a strategy in mind. Otherwise, you could wind up wandering from cookie to candy to brownie to bar, from eggnog to toddy to glogg and back again, and find yourself lightheaded before you’re halfway to the big jamboree.

Yesterday, while contemplating my own need for a plan, I remembered the Michelin Guides. They have been helping people to plot courses through unfamiliar regions, and to plan and prioritize what to eat while there, for more than 100 years.

These days, I hardly pay attention to Michelin’s restaurant stars. The older I’ve gotten, the more I’ve realized that delicious, beautifully made food is just one small part of what makes a meal great — and that dining in certain high-end restaurants simply isn’t very fun.

I do, however, love the way that the Michelin system rates things according to whether they are worth it. “Worth a trip,” “worth a detour” and “worth a stop” are their descriptors for their three-, two- and one-star ratings. Should you book a trip to Kyoto just to eat in a certain restaurant? Yes, absolutely in the case of a three-star recipient, they claim. But, for the two-star joints, only if you’re already in Osaka, and only if you happen to be down the block, for the one-stars.

“Worth” is a wonderful yardstick, more relevant to how we humans actually value things than price. It acknowledges that the same thing can be a rip-off or a bargain depending on context; that $2 is too much to pay for a dud while $100 can be a steal for something that will make you happy for decades to come.

When it comes to navigating holiday food, perhaps the secret is to follow our inner Michelin star system. But instead of rating dishes in terms of trips and detours, we consider things like: Is it worth the calories and/or regret? Is it worth the time and care to cook it? Is it worth the effort if no one raves? And — for some of us, when it comes to certain ingredients — is it worth the subsequent tummy ache?

This week’s recipe has already proved its three-star worthiness on all counts. It has been one of my mother’s go-to autumn and winter holiday recipes for nearly four decades, and it’s the thing my husband, kids and in-laws ask after most when they know she’ll be coming to a gathering: “Will she be bringing her pecan bars?” They disappear first at dessert-time, usually soundtracked by a chorus of I-really-shouldn’ts, as folks help themselves to seconds and thirds before cutting the bars in half for their fourths and fifths. Clearly, they showed up at the cookie plate without a strategy.

December may be a tricky month when it comes to eating wisely, but it’s also full of guiding stars, of all kinds.

Pecan Bars

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• ⅔ cup confectioner’s sugar
• 3 sticks plus 3 tablespoons butter, at room temperature, divided
• ¼ cup maple syrup
• ¼ cup honey
• ½ cup brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons heavy cream
• 3½ cups pecans, roughly chopped

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter an 8×12-inch brownie pan, line the bottom with parchment paper, then butter the parchment.

Sift together the flour and confectioner’s sugar, transfer to the bowl of a food processor and pulse to blend. Cut two sticks of butter into pieces, add to the food processor and blend about 10 seconds, until crumbly.

Turn the mixture into the prepared pan (don’t worry; it will look dry) and press gently into place. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, then remove from oven.

Meanwhile, prepare the topping: In a medium-large saucepan, melt the remaining 11 tablespoons butter. Add the maple syrup, honey, brown sugar and cream and whisk until evenly blended. Heat the mixture over medium-low until it is hot, though not bubbling, about 3 minutes. Add the chopped pecans and stir until well coated.

When the crust is pre-baked, spread the pecan mixture over the surface. Return to the oven and bake an additional 25 minutes. Cool completely in the pan before cutting into bars.