Pecan Pie Bars

Shortbread topped with loads of sweet pecans have all the best flavors of pecan pie but served as a finger food perfect for fall and winter parties. Bonus: These Pecan Pie Bars make a ton and freeze beautifully, making it a great make ahead dessert for fall entertaining. 

This post is sponsored on behalf of #FallFlavors. Our generous sponsors Millican Pecan and Door County Coffee and Tea  have provided us with products for recipe creation and a giveaway for our readers. As always, all opinions are my own.

Shortbread topped with loads of sweet pecans have all the best flavors of pecan pie but served as a finger food perfect for fall and winter parties. Bonus: These Pecan Pie Bars make a ton and freeze beautifully, making it a great make ahead dessert for fall entertaining. 

Happy Monday and welcome to the first day of #FallFlavors- a week of recipes celebrating some of fall’s most delicious flavors. In the past, I’ve participated in Apple Week and Cranberry Week, but this week is fun because I can use any seasonal ingredients that inspire me – pecans, apples, cranberries, fall squash, sweet potatoes… all of those ingredients that are warm and comforting. Recipes like Apple Cider Tea Chicken with Apples & Sweet Potato, Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Fall Magic Bars and a Cranberry Moscow Mule.

This week, I’ll be bringing you 3 recipes – two desserts and an easy dish dish that my mom used to make for us all the time when we were growing up. Like with most events, you can search the hashtag #FallFlavors on social media to see what else my blogging friends are bringing to you this week. There’s a giveaway – you can see the prizes and enter to win in the Rafflecopter under the recipe. Check it out.

Shortbread topped with loads of sweet pecans have all the best flavors of pecan pie but served as a finger food perfect for fall and winter parties. Bonus: These Pecan Pie Bars make a ton and freeze beautifully, making it a great make ahead dessert for fall entertaining. 

Today’s post was inspired by our sponsor, Millican Pecan. I instantly knew what I was going to make – these Pecan Pie Bars. I made them years ago for a Thanksgiving potluck at work, and honestly, loved them. Loved them way more than a traditional pecan pie. They’re sweet, they’re packed with that fabulous fall nut, with a lovely vanilla shortbread crust. They make a HUGE serving, making this bar a great option for fall entertaining – one tray and you’ve got a ton of servings. Plus, they freeze beautifully, so can be easily made ahead.

Recipe Notes:

    • This recipe calls for a 18x12x1 inch pan. Use it. My 17×12 inch baking sheet couldn’t hold all of that pecan and caramel deliciousness, and it created quite the mess in my oven. If you attempt to use your standard baking sheet, you’re going to want to have a tray or two under the baking sheet in the oven to catch any drippings. You’ll probably want to prepare for drippings anyway, unless your pan is at least 2 inches deep.
    • Ingredients: I used pecans from Millican Pecan. I also opted to use lemon and orange extract, but if you don’t have those on hand, use 1 tsp. each lemon and orange zest. If you use the zests, add at the same time as you add the honey and brown sugar.
    • Serving Size: The original Ina Garten recipe says this makes 20 bars. These bars are rich – I had originally cut these into 28 pieces, and then decided to halve the pieces again. That smaller size was just perfect for me.
    • Make Ahead: These bars may be made and refrigerated for up to a week. Or, make, cut, freeze (separated with wax or parchment paper) for a couple of months.

 

Shortbread topped with loads of sweet pecans have all the best flavors of pecan pie but served as a finger food perfect for fall and winter parties. Bonus: These Pecan Pie Bars make a ton and freeze beautifully, making it a great make ahead dessert for fall entertaining. 

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Shortbread topped with loads of sweet pecans have all the best flavors of pecan pie but served as a finger food perfect for fall and winter parties. Bonus: These Pecan Pie Bars make a ton and freeze beautifully, making it a great make ahead dessert for fall entertaining. 

Pecan Pie Bars

Shortbread topped with loads of sweet pecans have all the best flavors of pecan pie but served as a finger food perfect for fall and winter parties. Bonus: These Pecan Pie Bars make a ton and freeze beautifully, making it a great make ahead dessert for fall entertaining. 



Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Refrigerate 1 hour
Total Time 2 hours 5 minutes
Servings 48
Author Liz

Ingredients

Ingredients for the Shortbread Crust:

  • 1 1/4 lb. unsalted butter at room temperature
  • 3/4 c. granulated sugar
  • 3 extra-large eggs
  • 2 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 4 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp. salt

Ingredients for the Pecan Pie Topping

  • 1 lb. unsalted butter
  • 1 c. honey
  • 3 c. light brown sugar packed
  • 1/2 tsp. lemon extract
  • 1/2 tsp. orange extract
  • 1/4 c. heavy cream
  • 2 lbs. chopped pecans

Instructions

Make the Shortbread Crust

  1. Place one rack in the middle of the oven, and another just below. On the lower rack, place 1-2 baking sheets covered in aluminum foil to catch any drippings. Preheat oven to 350F.

  2. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar together on high until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce mixer to low and add eggs, one at a time, and vanilla. Scrape down sides of the bowl and mix again, if needed.

  3. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt. With the mixer on low, slowly add dry ingredients, scraping down sides of the bowl as needed, until just combined.

  4. Turn out dough onto an 18x12x1 inch baking pan (or deeper). With clean, floured fingers, press into baking sheet, creating a lip around the edges. Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Crust should be set but not browned. Remove from oven and let cool.

Directions for the Pecan Pie Topping:

  1. Begin making topping as you remove the crust from the oven to cool.

  2. In a large, heavy-bottomed pot, combine butter, honey, and brown sugar over low heat. Stir every few minutes until butter is melted. Increase heat to medium-high and bring mixture to a boil. Boil for 3 minutes.

  3. Remove from heat and slowly stir in extracts and heavy cream. Then stir in pecans, ensuring they're completely coated.

  4. Pour pecan mixture onto cooled crust, trying to keep away from the edges best as possible. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until filling is set. Remove from oven and allow to cool.

  5. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold, at least an hour, before cutting. Store in the fridge until serving.

This recipe was adapted from The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook (p 188).

Shortbread topped with loads of sweet pecans have all the best flavors of pecan pie but served as a finger food perfect for fall and winter parties. Bonus: These Pecan Pie Bars make a ton and freeze beautifully, making it a great make ahead dessert for fall entertaining. 

Again, welcome to Flavors of Fall where we celebrate all things associated with fall like squash, apples, pecans, sweaters, football; you get the idea!  Ellen from Family Around the Table and Christie from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures have gathered 24 bloggers who have over 100 recipes they’re sharing this week in celebration of cool weather and sweatshirts.  We hope you find many must make recipes so get your pinning, tweeting, and sharing fingers ready!

Here’s what we made for Monday:

Breakfast
Cinnamon Glazed Donut French Toast by Daily Dish Recipes
Cranberry Pecan Coffee Cake by Family Around the Table
Ginger Pear Muffins by Jolene’s Recipe Journal
Spiced Coffee Toffee Bread by Cheese Curd In Paradise

Savory
Baked Stuffed Acorn Squash with Sausage and Apples by Simple and Savory
Door County Maple Coffee-Crusted Steak by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
Fig and Brie Grilled Cheese by The Redhead Baker
Java Beef Flatbread Pizza by Cindy’s Recipes and Writings
Pecan Crusted Chicken Cutlets with Pears by A Day in the Life on the Farm
Tuna Pot Pie by Palatable Pastime
Vegan Chili by Red Cottage Chronicles

Dessert
Apple Cheesecake Streusel Bars by Love and Confections
Caramel Apple Cookie Cups by Sweet Beginnings
Caramel Pecan Cookie Sticks by The Freshman Cook
Chocolate Cappuccino Biscotti with Pecans by Blogghetti
Cinnamon Maple Pecan Cookies by Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
Coffee Granita by Karen’s Kitchen Stories
Irish Apple Cake by A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
Pecan Chocolate Chip Skillet Cookie by Crumb Top Baking
Pecan Pie Bars by Books n’ Cooks (above!)
Pumpkin Bundts with Brown Butter Glaze and Candied Pecans by Our Good Life
Vegan Coffee Layer Cake by The Baking Fairy

Make sure you like Fall Flavors on Facebook and follow the Fall Flavors on Pinterest, too!

Flavors of Fall Door County Prize Package

Prize 1 – Door County Coffee and Tea Company

Founded in 1993 in Door County, WI, Door County Coffee and Tea Company is a small family owned business. Roasting a variety of flavors for 26 years, one winner will receive three full pot bags of all of their fall flavors. 21 bags in all! Their mission through the years has been to produce high quality, best-tasting coffee using only Specialty Class 1 Arabica coffee beans. Combine that with superior roasting technology and you get a wonderfully even and perfect roast every time and that means the perfect pot of coffee. A $40 value.

Flavors of Fall Millican Prize Package

Prize 2 – Millican Pecan Tower of Treats Gift Tins

Originally founded as the West Texas Pecan Nursery in the late 1800’s, Millican Pecan is now in 5th generation ownership. Located in San Saba, TX, the family continues the tradition of pecan farming while also branching the business into the online world. The family also enjoys educating people about pecans. One winner will receive The Tower of Treats Gift Tins. The tower includes 3 decorative gift tins stacked on top of each other. The bottom tin includes our 2 lb. Chocolate Pecan Sampler, the middle tin is our Flavored Pecan Sampler and the top tin is a 8 oz. tin of Milk Chocolate Caramillicans (similar to Turtles). An $80 value.

The Rafflecopter was removed in July 2023, after the giveaway closed, for improved reader experience.

Disclaimer: Two (2) winners will be selected. The prize packages will be sent directly from the giveaway sponsors. Bloggers are not responsible for prize fulfillment. Winners have 24 hours to respond once notified by email, or they forfeit the prize and an alternate winner will be chosen. The #FallFlavors bloggers are not responsible for the fulfillment or delivery of the prize packages. Bloggers hosting this giveaway and their immediate family members living in the household cannot enter or win the giveaway. Entries will be verified. No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited by law. Must be 18 years of age or older to enter giveaway. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed, administered by, or associated with Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter or any other social channel mentioned in the #FallFlavors posts or entry. Thank you to our sponsors Millican Pecan and Door County Coffee and Tea for providing prizes.

4 thoughts on “Pecan Pie Bars”

  1. Love that these are in bar form. I love pecan pie but have a hard time serving it up beautifully. The crust always sticks and breaks up. This is a solution to that problem for me.

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