Pecan Pie Bars are an unfussy, easy way to enjoy Pecan Pie! A thick buttery shortbread crust topped with sweet filling and crunchy pecans. It’s basically Pecan Pie you can eat with your hands!
Looking for a classic pecan pie recipe? Try my easy pecan pie, which just happens to be one of the most popular recipes on my site!
An Easy Pecan Bars Recipe
Over the last few years I have become a HUGE Pecan Pie fan. It was always a pie option that I overlooked, especially if there were other pie offerings available. I’m not sure if it’s age, or I’ve just come to my senses, but Pecan Pie has become one of my most favorite pie recipes to bake.
Pecan Bars: Pecan Pie You Can Eat With Your Hands!
I have an AMAZING Pecan Pie Recipe here on my site, that has quickly become one of my most popular recipes, so I absolutely recommend you check that out. But if you’re looking for something a little different, while still enjoying the traditional flavors of Pecan Pie this is the recipe for you!
You might associate Pecan Pie with Thanksgiving and fall baking. And while that’s true, I have found that Pecan Pie is really a fantastic pie recipe to enjoy all year long, which of course includes these Pecan Pie Squares!
I mean, think about it…there are no true “seasonal” ingredients, it can hold up in most temperatures perfectly, and is a very easy dessert recipe that’s special enough for serving to guests, but laid back enough to have with a scoop of ice cream on a Tuesday night!
How Do You Make Pecan Pie Bars?
The process for making these bars is super easy, and it’s a great dessert recipe to make in advance! Here’s what you will need:
- All Purpose Flour – This will be for the crust, as well as the filling.
- Butter – The crust is a shortbread-style, so you will definitely need butter! I prefer salted.
- Sugar – You’ll need granulated sugar for the crust and brown sugar for the filling!
- Corn Syrup – You can use light or dark, although I used light in this recipe because I always seem to have that on-hand.
- Eggs – 4 large eggs for the filling!
- Vanilla/Salt – Important for flavor!
- Pecans – Of course you need pecans for this recipe! You can buy the pre-chopped, or coarsely chop them yourself.
Can You Make Pecan Pie Bars in Advance?
Yep! That’s one of the things I love so much about this recipe, it that it’s PERFECT for making in advance. I typically make them the night before I am serving them, and leave them in the pan (uncut) and refrigerate. When I’m ready to serve them, I cut them up and arrange them on a platter!
Do You Have To Refrigerate Pecan Pie Bars?
I do prefer to refrigerate Pecan Pie, because it makes it easier to cut into pretty pieces or bars. You could leave it at room temperature and it will be fine, but the filling will get slightly soft. BUT if you plan on serving this with ice cream, of course room temp or even heated up a little bit is ideal!
Also, keeping it stored airtight in the fridge will keep it fresh longer!
Can You Freeze These Pecan Bars?
Yes! You can freeze the pecan pie bars in the pan OR individually!
Make sure everything is wrapped airtight before freezing for up to 2 months. Allow it to thaw in the refrigerator or heat in a 300°F oven for about 20 minutes!
I ABSOLUTELY recommend you give these Pecan Pie Bars a try! You might even decide to forgo traditional Pecan Pie on Thanksgiving this year!
Looking for More Pecan Recipes? Try These:
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Pecan Pie Bars
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 30 bars 1x
- Category: Pie
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Dessert
Description
Pecan Pie Bars are an unfussy, easy way to enjoy Pecan Pie! A thick buttery shortbread crust topped with sweet filling and crunchy pecans. It’s basically Pecan Pie you can eat with your hands!
Ingredients
Crust
- 3/4 cup butter, room temperature
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
Filling
- 2/3 cup light brown sugar
- 1 1/2 cups corn syrup (light or dark)
- 4 eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 9×13 baking dish with foil and set aside.
- In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment combine the butter and sugar together on medium speed. Turn the mixer to low and add in the flour until combined. Mixture will be dry.
- Press the mixture evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake for 18-20 minutes until lightly golden.
- While the crust is baking make the filling. In a large bowl whisk together the sugar, corn syrup, eggs, and vanilla until smooth. Add in the flour and salt and whisk again until combined. Stir in the pecans.
- As soon as the crust is done, pour the pecan mixture on top of the hot crust. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the center is set.
- Cool completely before slicing into bars, or refrigerate airtight until ready to serve.
Notes
Store airtight in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Slice
- Calories: 186
- Sugar: 18.7 g
- Sodium: 99.3 mg
- Fat: 8.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 25.9 g
- Protein: 2.2 g
- Cholesterol: 37 mg
Keywords: pecan pie bars recipe, pecan pie bars, thanksgiving dessert ideas, thanksgiving desserts, easy thanksgiving desserts
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5! I make this at least once a week!!! My family loves it. Reading the comments below … I will definitely try the chocolate chips.
★★★★★
Delicious! I added some chocolate chips to the top of the crust before I added the filling and it was perfect. Keeping this recipe!
★★★★★
great idea adding chocolate chips!
I made this yesterday. It came out perfect but I don’t like the flour taste from the filling. I didn’t have corn syrup but it worked great with maple syrup. I will do another portion but substitute the flour with walnuts flour. I will be back with new comments after baking.
★★★★
I made these for thanksgiving and everyone loved them! I’m going to make them again for Christmas!
★★★★★
Delicious. I followed the recipe exactly as shown except I use dark brown sugar and dark Karo. These were delicious and surprisingly much better than a similar recipe I made a few days earlier. (It had some bake time errors).
★★★★★
The flavor of these bars is delicious, but I did have one big problem – the filling leaked underneath the parchment paper, taking some of the crust with it and making it soggy. Did anyone else have this problem? I’m wondering if it’s because I substituted corn syrup for simple syrup and it was too thin? Hard to find corn syrup here in Italy…would love to try these again if I can figure out what went wrong!
★★★★