Shortbread Bars

I am a huge fan of shortbread treats. Cookies or bars, they are all delicious in my opinion. I got the idea for this recipe from the Magnolia cookbook I have. The recipe in the book is actually for Coconut Pecan Shortbread Squares. I'm not a big fan of coconut so I thought about what else goes well with pecans and decided I'd remove the coconut from the recipe and added dried cranberries, apricots, and chocolate chips. It turned out great! I also altered the dough ingredients a bit to make it a little sweeter. I'll definitely be making these again!

Crust
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened and cut into smaller pieces.
2 cups all purpose flour
3 tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Topping
2 cups chopped and toasted pecans (see note)
1/3 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup dried apricots
One 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk

Note: To toast the pecans, place on a baking sheet in a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes or until lightly browned and fragrant

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

To make the crust, in a large bowl, on the medium speed with an electric mixer, beat together the butter and flour until crumbly and well combined. Add in the sugar and vanilla, mix for about another minute. Transfer the mixture to an un-greased 13x9 pan. Using your hands, pat the crust firmly and evenly into the pan.

Sprinkle the pecans, chocolate chips, dried cranberries, and apricots over the crust. Pour the can of sweetened condensed milk on top to completely cover the toppings. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until lightly golden.

Coll to room temperature, cover tightly with plastic wrap and allow to set overnight before cutting.