Pecan Pie Bars
These are the best ever Pecan Pie Bars. This dessert recipe tastes just like pecan pie but in easy-to-eat bar form! Great for Thanksgiving or anytime of the year. These bars have a shortbread crust, sweet filling topped with pecans.
PECAN PIE BARS
You know that feeling after Thanksgiving when you feel like you are going to explode? I feel that way right now.
We had a holiday dinner for the women in our church and we had a cookie exchange at the end (in addition to dessert already served).
You’re supposed to bring a dozen of your favorite cookies and then you take home a dozen assorted cookies from what other people brought. I made a plate and on the way home my mom and I had a bite of pretty much all of them.
Soooo sick. Good thing I made these Pecan Pie Bars earlier this week so I could actually enjoy them.
They are just like pecan pie but in bar form. The crust melts in your mouth. They’re really sweet but aren’t all pecan pies?
OTHER PIE RECIPES:
- Pecan Pie Muffins
- Pecan Cheesecake Pie
- Chocolate Pecan Pie
- Banana Cream Pie
- Peanut Butter Pie
- S’mores Pie
- Cherry Cheese Pie
- Boston Cream Pie
- Lemon Pie
- Peaches and Cream Pie
- Turtle Pie
- Nacho Pot Pie
Pecan Pie Bars
These are the best ever Pecan Pie Bars. This recipe tastes just like pecan pie but in easy-to-eat bar form! Great for Thanksgiving or anytime of the year.
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup white sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2/3 cup unsalted butter, cold (10 2/3 Tablespoons)
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup light corn syrup
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 2/3 cups chopped pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9X13 baking dish with heavy foil and spray with cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, stir together the flour, 1/3 cup sugar, and salt. Cut in 2/3 cup butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. You can use a pastry blender or just two knives. Sprinkle the mixture evenly over the prepared pan, and press in firmly.
- Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven.
- While the crust is baking, prepare the filling. In a large bowl mix together the eggs, corn syrup, 1/2 cup white sugar, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 2 tablespoons butter and vanilla until smooth. Stir in the chopped pecans. Spread the filling evenly over the crust as soon as it comes out of the oven.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until set. I usually like things on the rare side and a little gooey but these you want cooked all the way through so make sure the middle is set. If the top starts getting to browned cover with aluminum foil.
- Allow to cool completely on a wire rack before slicing into bars with a sharp knife.
Recipe Notes
Source: adapted from Allrecipes
Love these! …a great alternative to pecan pie. I think I will try swapping out the all-purpose flour with pecan meal/flour to try and create a gluten-free option. We have a daughter who is gluten intolerant so always looking at that option. Surprisingly, the pecan meal works most of the time. -Robert @ MillicanPecan.com
Good to know!
I have tried other pecan pie bars, but, this one is wonderful! Melt in your mouth!
I love hearing that!
In your ingredients you don’t mention margarine but you Day to add it on the filling. I’m assuming you meant butter, not margarine. Right?
Yes, butter!!!
Absolutely amazing better then pecan pie .
I agree!
These bars turned out perfect! Just make sure you press the crust evenly in the pan or the filling will be thicker in some areas while leaving other areas with very little filling.
Thanks for the tip!
I made these last week for an early thanksgiving dinner and everyone loved them. Super easy to make and a crowd favorite
Glad you liked them.
So, if I’m making these to serve 4 days from now, should I freeze them or store at room temperature? Thanks!
Shoot. They probably would be fine stored in the fridge until then.
Did you use light brown sugar or dark?
I used light but you can use either.
yummy – I used dark Karo, since that’s what I had, but it’s really good so would use the dark next time.
The recipe says unsalted butter for the crust and just butter for the filling. Is the filling unsalted as well?
Kelley,
You’re right! Shoot. I would just use what you had on hand. It’s such a little amount it shouldn’t matter either way.
Can these be frozen?
I’ve never tried but I don’t see why not?
I stumbled across this recipe and decided to make these for Thanksgiving instead of pecan pie, and I’m so glad I did! They were absolutely delicious, and simple to put together. I agree with Robin that even after several days, they tasted just as good as the first day. This recipe is definitely a keeper; thanks, Christy! I will keep coming back for more recipes! 🙂
Yay!!
Hello
Please explain what this part of the recipe means:
2/3 cup unsalted butter, cold (10 2/3 Tablespoons)
I’m confused as to what 10 2/3 means??!!
Sierra,
1/3 cup butter is 5 1/3 Tablespoons. You know how the butter has the lines on the wrapper showing you the tablespoon marks. So 2/3 cup is 10 2/3 tablespoons.
Awesome! Looked exactly as pictured, tasted even better. My son the, schooled chef, said they were the best bar he ever tasted!
Anyone know if these can be frozen?
I’ve never tried but I don’t see why not?
These were a huge hit at Thanksgiving and will now be in my annual rotation. Thank you! Super easy and delicious. Everyone gushed over them.
Thank you for sharing your feedback!!!
I don’t typically remember to come back and write reviews after trying recipes, but this bar version of pecan pie is amazing. I made it this year for Thanksgiving and with several different choices for desserts it was the perfect way to offer “pecan pie” without committing to a whole slice of pie. It has a wonderful crust to filling to pecan ratio, easy to pick up, and can be cut as desired for size. Three days later the crust is still tender and the bars are fresh. Actually it has taken an immense amount of will power to not have polished them off by now! Thank you very much for sharing this excellent recipe. I highly recommend it 🙂
Thank you Robin! That makes me smile!!
I made these this morning and they turned out great. Thanks for the recipe!
You’re welcome!
How many servings does this recipe make?
It really depends how big you cut the squares but I would say around 24.
I was wondering if this can be accomplished without the dish lined in heavy foil?
Yes, it just helps for easier removal.
Can you make these without corn syrup? It’s not usually something I keep on hand
I’m not sure what you would substitute for it. Most if not all pecan pies have corn syrup in them so in order for it to taste like it, I’m thinking it should be in there. I could be wrong though!
I made these bars and they were amazing! I wanted to make them a bit healthier so I used half whole wheat pastry flour and half oatmeal in the crust. I also used egg substitute instead if real eggs! They turned out great!
These look amazing! I’m new to baking so I was wondering how to “cut” the butter into the crust mixture. Thanks!
You can use a pastry blender or two forks. You basically want to get the butter incorporated until it looks like smalls peas. You could also use a food processor. Sometimes I just use my hands to blend it and scrunch it together until the texture of sand. That’s supposedly a no-no because it warms your butter. I don’t think it’s that big of a deal.
I made these last night and they are the BEST pecan pie bars I’ve ever made. I’ve tried several recipes and by FAR these are the most like pecan pie. Thanks for the recipe:)
I agree. Glad you did too!