With Thanksgiving coming up right around the corner, I thought I would share with you all the easiest (and tastiest) pecan pie bars. This recipe has been my go to recipe for a few years now and it has always been a hit when I make them for Thanksgiving dessert.
I always have love pecan pie itself, but I hate how much work it takes to prepare and how little servings you get for all your efforts.
With these bars, they are so rich and indulgent, you can slice them up smaller and get more servings out of them this way. Plus, I think it’s much easier to make than regular pecan pie.
Mine always tend to be too runny when I make it and this recipe seems to be tried and true and comes out perfectly every time I make it!
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Recipe Notes:
I got the original recipe from Rock Recipes, but I have tweaked a few things from it over the years. Feel free to check out the original recipe too if you have any other questions or concerns on how to make these.
But I promise, these pecan pie bars are super easy and don’t require too much time or effort!
It’s also important to note here that it does call for a food processor to combine the flour, butter, and sugar together to make the shortbread crust.
I don’t have one but I did use my handy dandy Ninja blender since it has a pulse option to it. And guess what!?
It turned out just fine! I’ll link a similar one to mine here below in case you don’t have a food processor either.
Pecan Pie Bars
Ingredients
For The Shortbread Crust:
- 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 3/4 cup cold butter
For The Pecan Pie Filling:
- 2/3 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/3 cup all purpose flour also add 1 tablespoon of all purpose flour to this mixture too.
- 4 large eggs
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 cups corn syrup dark corn syrup is the best.
- 2 1/2 cups chopped pecans originally recipe only calls for 2 cups, but I like to have mine with extra pecans so I add in an extra half cup here.
Instructions
For The Shortbread Crust:
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees if you are using a glass baking pan (or preheat to 350 degrees if you are using a different pan).
- Spray cooking pan with cooking spray throughly. Then place a sheet of parchment paper large enough to cover the whole pan on top of the sprayed cooking pan. This will make it much easier to remove the baked pecan pie bars later.
- Mix together the 1 and 3/4 cup of flour and 1/2 cup of sugar completely. Then, add in the cool 3/4 cup of butter. It is best to use a food processor for this part because you want the mixture to resemble very fine crumbs.
- Press the crumb mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan and try to make it as even as you can.
- Place into preheated oven and bake for about 25 minutes or until it is a nice golden brown color. The original recipe calls for just 20 minutes, but I find that it is not done enough after just 20 minutes for my oven. I did it for just 20 minutes one time and the crust came out a little doughy on the bottom so it just depends on your preference and your oven for how long you bake it here.
For The Pecan Pie Layer:
- While the shortbread is baking you can now make the top pecan pie layer to these bars. Mix together 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon of flour and 2/3 cups of brown sugar throughly to prevent any lumps.
- Then whisk in the 4 eggs, 1 tablespoon of vanilla, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1 1/2 cups dark corn syrup until completely combined.
- Let this mixture sit for about 15 minutes while the crust bakes and stir it occasionally.
- Add the pecans to the mixture and stir to combine.
- Pour topping all over the still hot shortbread crust and place it back in the oven for 50 minutes. Again, the original recipe called for about 40 minutes but I found that wasn't enough time for them to be completely done. You want it to have a little wiggle when you pull it out of the oven but not so much that when you cut into it, it will be runny.
- Cool the bars in the pan to room temperature and then place in fridge for several hours or even overnight.
- Once they are completely cool, pull the bars out of the pan with the extra parchment paper and then place on cutting board. Use a serrated knife and saw through the bars, cutting them to your desired size and enjoy!
Freezing the Pecan Pie Bars
If you don’t want to enjoy these right away, you can easily freeze them for later. That’s why I love making them ahead of time for Thanksgiving or Christmas or any other holiday party!
After the pecan pie bars have cooled completely, cut them up into little (or big) squares. Then, simply wrap each piece in cling wrap or Press-N-Seal wrap and wrapped place bars into freezer bag.
Then you can freeze them for up to 3 months and just take them out of the freezer the night before your event so they can thaw properly in the fridge.
And since they are individually wrapped, you can just take one or two out at a time!
End Notes
Let me know if you guys make this for Thanksgiving too! You will not be disappointed if you do! And if you’re looking for more Thanksgiving recipes, then check out my Homemade Broccoli Casserole or Sweet Potato Casserole recipe as well!
Also, let me know what some of your favorite recipes are for Thanksgiving too. I’m also curious to see if you prefer more of pecan, pumpkin, or apple pie this time of the year?!
This look and sound amazing! What a treat! Thanks for sharing.
Thank you! They really are a delicious treat for sure!
I’m here for anything with less than a 50 min prep time!
Your blog is so pretty. I’m sorry in advanced for all the comments I might spam you with while I click around lol
Awe thank you so much girl! Feel free to click around as much as you want!
This sounds soooo nice and not that difficult to bake – I’ll definitely have to give it a go before lockdown 2 is over! xx
Yes! You definitely should! Lockdown is the perfect time to bake things!
Oh my! These look amazing! So yum! 💛🙌💛
Thank you! They are so delicious!
These look super scrumptious! I don’t always have pecan desserts but this is a great one to try!
Yes, you should definitely try it out! I love it!
These look so yummy, I’ll have to give them a go xx
https://www.dellalovesnutella.co.uk/
Yes you should! They are totally worth making!
Oh!!!!!!! This is so yummy for afternoon tea. Thank you for sharing.
Yes! It would be perfect with tea or coffee!
I’m not sure I’ve ever tasted a pecan pie. The only pecan pie flavoured things I’ve ever had is popcorn! These sound absolutely lovely though. Perfect with a cuppa!
Oh my gosh girl you are missing out. I love pecan pie!
Oh wow how good do these look and sound?! I love pecan pie but having it in a more manageable size is exactly what I need! Thank you for sharing this ❤️
Thank you! Yes, these are the perfect size and they are so delicious too!
These look great! Perfect for a Thanksgiving treat.
Thank you! They are definitely the perfect Thanksgiving treat!
These pecan pie bars look delicious! I could really eat a few of these right now! x
Lucy | http://www.lucymary.co.uk
Thank you! They are definitely addicting once you start eating them!
This looks like a snack my husband would love. Looks pretty easy to make. I will have to give these a try.
Yes! It is both easy and delicious!
So, I’ve never been a huge fan of pecan pie because of the texture BUT it’s my dad’s all-time favorite dessert and I bet he’d LOVE this “bar” version so much. I might have to make them as a holiday treat for him. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Yes you should definitely try it! They are so good!
Yum yum yum, these looks delicious! I absolutely love pecans, so I will definitely be trying this recipe out! Thanks for sharing!
Yes you should! It is so delicious!
Hi Charity. These pecan pie bars sound delicious. Until I get a chance to make my own I’d like one of yours, please – the one in the third row of the first column in the picture 🙂
Lol you got it my friend! You definitely should try them sometime though when you have the time, because they are so good!
These look so good. I’ll be making them this week. Thanks for posting!!
Oh yay! You will love them!
These look so delicious! I want to make them for Thanksgiving! Adorable blog…so glad I stopped by from Twitter. Thanks for sharing!
Awe thank you so much. I appreciate it! I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
The recipe looks very interesting. I will surely try it. Thanks for Sharing.
Thank you! You really should try them. They are great!
Oooh I love pecan pie, so I can just imagine how wonderful these bars would taste. Thank you for sharing.
Yes! I like the bars even better than regular pecan pie too!
Wow sounds awesome and definitely easy. Except I would make without eggs
Thank you so much. It is a great recipe!
I don’t like pecans, but my mum loves pecan pie & I should definitely make these bars for her next time I visit!
Yes you definitely should. She would love them!
These sound delicious! I love that they give me all of the holiday vibes – the perfect option to bring along to family holiday get-togethers (although we might have to shelve that part of the equation until next year lol)
Yes they are perfect for the holidays. Festive and delicious!
I love pecans! These look easy to make, and I already have the ingredients in the house. And I love that you mentioned how to freeze them because a lot of times I avoid baking sweets because I don’t want so much left in the house to tempt me.
Yes! I love the freezing option as well because I am the same way. If I see it out, I have to eat it lol
I have to try these! I love how easy they are and how delicious they look. I always find pecan pie a bit too heavy for me, but I love the flavors, so these bars look like an amazing ‘lighter’ alternative. 🙂
Yes! They definitely are because you can cut them up into much smaller pieces!
Thanks for sharing, these bars look yummy 🙂
Thank you! They sure are!
Ooh I need to give these a try!
Yes you should! They are so delicious!