These pecan pie bars are a brown sugar shortbread crust topped with plenty of gooey pecan filling. An alternative to the traditional pecan pie that’s perfect for feeding a crowd!
When I’m entertaining during the holidays, I serve a variety of seasonal desserts including pumpkin dump cake, apple cobbler, and these decadent pecan pie bars.
Most of the time I am not a huge pie fan, I’m more of a cake lover. That being said, pecan pie is my weakness, I can never turn it down. These pecan pie bars have all the same great flavors of pecan pie in a hand held form. It’s a buttery crust topped with the BEST pecan caramel, and these pecan bars also happen to be super easy to make. If you’re a pecan pie lover, you must add these bars to your holiday menu!
How do you make pecan pie bars?
This recipe starts with a crust that’s a lot like shortbread. Press the crust into the pan, then bake it until golden brown. It takes a little time to work the crust into the pan, I found that using an offset spatula coated with cooking spray really helped with the process. The topping is a mixture of chopped pecans, brown sugar, butter and corn syrup. The mixture goes on top of the crust and the whole thing is baked to gooey, sticky delicious perfection. Cut into bars, then serve and enjoy.
Tips for the perfect bars
- I chilled my bars to make them easier to slice, they’re great straight from the fridge or you can bring them to room temperature after you cut them.
- You can buy a bag of pre-chopped pecans to make prep time go a little faster.
- The crust will look like coarse crumbs when you mix it together. This is normal, and the crust will take shape as more of a dough once you start pressing it into the pan.
- These bars stay fresh in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for 2 months.
Pecan pie bar variations
I love this recipe exactly as it’s written, but you can add other ingredients to the mix to customize the bars to your tastes.
- Chocolate: Stir 1/2 cup of chocolate chips into the pecan topping.
- Spice: Add 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice when you stir the pecans into the brown sugar mixture.
- Nuts: Try using a combination of walnuts and pecans for a different flavor.
Once you try these delicious treats, you’ll find yourself making them every year during the holidays. I love that you can cut them as big or as small as you want, which means you can make bite sized squares and feed a large group. Try serving the bars with a scoop of ice cream on top, you’ll be glad you did!
More fabulous holiday desserts
- Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake
- Pumpkin Spice Cakes
- Caramel Apple Dip
- No Bake Pumpkin Cheesecake
- Pumpkin Meringue Pie
Pecan Pie Bars Video
Pecan Pie Bars
Ingredients
- 2 cups unsalted butter softened, divided use
- 2 cups light brown sugar packed, divided use
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract divided use
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1/2 cup light corn syrup
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1 pound raw pecans chopped
- cooking spray
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9"x13" pan with parchment paper. Coat the pan with cooking spray.
- In a large bowl using a mixer, beat together 1 cup of the butter and 1/2 cup of the brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Add 1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla extract and 1 tablespoon of water, then mix until combined. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour and mix until coarse crumbs form.
- Scoop the dough into the pan. Use your fingertips to press the dough evenly into the pan. It helps to use an offset spatula coated with cooking spray to get an even layer.
- Bake for 15 minutes, until crust is lightly browned around the edges.
- Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the remaining 1 1/2 cups of brown sugar and the corn syrup. Stir until well blended.
- Bring to a boil and stir frequently for 3 minutes. The mixture will get light and airy. Remove the pan from the heat and add the heavy cream and the remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla extract. Stir until combined.
- Add the pecans and stir until they are completely coated.
- Pour the pecan mixture over the crust, and spread into an even layer.
- Return the pan to the oven and bake for 25 minutes, until the pecan topping is set (it will move slowly when you wiggle the pan).
- Allow the bars to cool completely before cutting into squares.
Nutrition
This post was originally published on November 7, 2017 and was updated on October 25, 2019 with new content.
I made these and they were loved by everyone. However, I had to adjust the oven temperature to 350 degrees. The recipe called for a 250 degree oven.
Thank you so much for catching my error!
Yum! These make my mouth water! I love pecan pie or bars!
How long do you think these would last at room temperature? We are traveling for the holidays but would love to take some!
I’d say 2-3 days!
Wow what great pictures of this. I would love to try this pecan pie bar good for the holidays.
I have been collecting recipes for desserts, cookies, candy bars, etc. because I plan to make them as gifts this coming holiday season. I love your recipe for pecan pie bars. My family would love them and they’d make a perfect gift for my friends. .
They look so elegant. I wouldn’t mind having these on the table for dessert for Thanksgiving!
I love pecan pie! Can’t wait to try them in a new way, with your bar option. They sound like nutty, buttery perfection.
I’m working really hard this year to get as much down early as I can. So I’ve been making lists and checking them twice. Adding these pecan pie bars to my baking list for the holidays.
These look absolutely incredible! I need to try and make a batch. My family would go crazy for these!
I love pie bars because they’re so much easier to eat than regular pie. These pecan pie bars look great.
These look ah-mazing! We are HUGE fans of pecan pie so these would probably not last too long here! Might have to make these for Thanksgiving!
These look so good. I could probably eat a bunch at once. This was definitely a good find from the cookbook!
My Mom loves desserts with pecans in it so this would be perfect for the upcoming holiday time.
I would love to make this for the family especially this season! It looks so good and I’m sure the boys will love this!
This is perfect when you have guests over! I also wouldn’t mind making this as a gift for family and friends this season! What a lovely recipe!
My kids are going to love this! I think treats like this are awesome and perfect for the season! We also love pecan pie so having that in bar form would be awesome.
These look really good. I will have to make this for my husband, he loves pecans. Thanks for the recipe!
These are marvelous! I love the recipe! Beats making a whole pie!
Those sound delicious. Anything containing pecan is my jam. This is a great way to enjoy pecan pie without the fork.
Oh, yum! I have to make these for Thanksgiving AND Christmas! They look like the bar form of pecan pie. Om nom nom.