These fabulous bars, loaded with pecans, have a buttery shortbread base and the gooiest butterscotch maple filling. They're super yummy and for those with a sweet tooth. They make wonderful holiday desserts and gifts.
For your sweet tooth
A rich and gooey nut bar that can be a snack or dessert. With a crackly crust that'll make you pick up all those bits left behind when you cut them.
They're a close relative to the walnut squares with honey, and we love both. Don't make me choose.
Originally, they were called loaded bars, which basically gave me permission to use whatever nuts (or dried fruits) I wanted. A sort of everything-but-the-kitchen-sink bar.
It turns out that just pecans and maple syrup take them from great to extraordinary. A masterpiece. A pecan pie in bar form: easier to make and easier to eat.
That said, you can experiment with different nuts and maybe cranberries or raisins.
I've made these bars a million times with different variations. I even sold them at a Cafe I had years ago, and pecan pie (with and without cranberries) was always the favorite; people went crazy for them. Seriously.
The shortbread base
This is a very standard formula (using cups as the volume unit): 4 parts flour, 2 parts butter, 1 part sugar, and a pinch of salt per cup of flour. It works every time for whatever type of square or bar you want to make.
It can be frozen before baking. Line your pan with the shortbread base, prick it with a fork, and pop it in the freezer for a few days or weeks until you're ready to bake the whole thing.
Mounds of dough
The dough is soft and easy to spread.
Drop large spoonfuls of dough that you can then pat and spread to cover the whole surface. It's the easiest way to distribute the dough as evenly as possible.
Patting
Use your fingers; it's the simplest way to even out the dough. Flour them lightly to prevent sticking.
Once the pan is lined, the dough needs to chill.
Pre-baking
This step prevents (as much as possible) the dough from being soggy once the pecan filling is added and the pie is baked.
You have to bake it until just beginning to color and the surface is mostly dry.
Maple caramel
This pecan pie butterscotch topping is gooey and buttery.
Make sure you use a saucepan with high sides as the mixture sputters when the cream is added.
Pecans
Stir the caramel into the pecans, fold everything to coat well and immediately pour it into the prepared pan.
Act quickly as the caramel hardens fast. If it's hard to spread, place the bowl or pan in the oven for a minute or so to loosen it up.
Baking
When you take it out, it will be soft and gooey, and you might feel it's not set yet. But it will harden as it cools down.
If you let it firm up completely in the oven, it will be too hard once it's cool and ready to cut.
Kitchen Notes
- Organization: read the recipe first and ensure you have ingredients at the correct temperature, utensils and equipment needed, and enough workspace. This will make the process so much easier.
- Baking time: consider that all ovens and pans are different, even if they look similar. The baking time in my recipes is as accurate as possible, but it might take you more or less time. You can use a thermometer (like the OXO oven thermometer) to check that your oven is at the right temperature. I recommend tracking how your oven works and what tiny details you might need to adjust.
- Serving: though you can eat them at room temperature, these bars are really good when eaten cold.
- Storage: store leftovers in the fridge for several days covered in plastic wrap or an airtight container. You can freeze them for up to a month covered in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil or a freezer-safe container to avoid dryness and freezer burn.
Related recipes you might like:
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Maple Pecan Pie Bars
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ½ cup sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- pinch salt
For the topping:
- 5 cups pecans, or use a differnt nut or a mix
- ½ teaspoon orange zest, about 1 orange
- ½ teaspoon lemon zest, about 1 lemon
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- ½ cup maple syrup
- 1 cup brown sugar, light or dark, firmly packed
- ¼ cup sugar
- ¼ cup heavy cream
Instructions
For the crust:
- Line a 13x18-inch (23x33cm) metal baking pan with 2-inch sides with parchment paper that hangs a bit over the long edges, covering the bottom and both long sides but not the short sides. This will help remove the whole block of nut bars from the pan.
- In a bowl mix 1 cup unsalted butter and ½ cup sugar with a whisk or handheld electric mixer.
- Add 2 cups all-purpose flour and pinch salt in two or three additions, mixing well. It will all come together in a shabby ball. Be sure the flour is well mixed and no dry patches remain. If using the electric mixer, do so at the lowest speed.
- Distribute the dough in small mounds on the bottom of the pan. With lightly floured hands, slowly and patiently pat the dough to cover the entire surface and go 1 inch up the sides. Start with the sides and work towards the middle, flouring your hands as necessary.
- Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC).
- Bake the dough for about 15 minutes, until beginning to color. Don't bake it all the way through.
For the topping:
- When the dough is baking, start with the topping.
- In a large bowl mix the 5 cups pecans with ½ teaspoon orange zest and ½ teaspoon lemon zest.
- In a medium saucepan, melt 1 cup unsalted butter with ½ cup maple syrup.
- Add 1 cup brown sugar and ¼ cup sugar, mix well, place over medium heat and cook until it starts to boil. Cook for exactly 2 minutes without stirring after it starts to boil.
- Remove from the heat and add ¼ cup heavy cream carefully as it will bubble furiously.
- Immediately pour over the nut mixture and mix well to coat everything.
- Pour this caramel nut mixture over the pre-baked dough, carefully covering the whole surface. Don't dump everything in the middle because it will be hard to spread to the sides without tearing the dough. Some parts will have more caramel than others but it will even out in the oven.
- Bake for 25 minutes, remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack.
- If the caramel spilled to the sides of the dough, run a thin knife around the edges after it's cooled for a few minutes so it doesn't stick. If it does stick and you have trouble removing it, simply pop it in the oven for 4 or 5 minutes until the caramel is warm again.
- Lift the parchment paper and place the whole block on an even surface to cut it. I cut 12 large squares. By cutting them in half again you can have 24 rectangles or triangles.
- We like to eat them cold.
Notes
Very adapted from Cookies, by Maida Heatter
Anne ~ Uni Homemaker says
Oh YUM, I can eat a whole batch of these! Thanks for sharing your recipe Paula. 🙂