Pecan Pie Bars

Holy moly me-oh-my, we cant get enough of Pecan Pie, so we baked these Pecan Pie Bars!

Makes 12-16 bars

Ingredients

Shortbread

• 250g unsalted butter
  
• ½ cup and 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
  
• ½ teaspoon salt
  
• 2 cups all-purpose flour

Pecan Pie Filling

• 2 & ¼ cups pecans
  
• 25g unsalted butter
  
• 1 cup light brown sugar
  
• Pinch of salt
  
• 1/3 cup light corn syrup
  
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream
  
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  
• ½ cup dark chocolate
  
• Sea salt for garnish
  

Method

1. Prepare the shortbread: Preheat oven to 160°c and spray a 22x32cm pan with non-stick cooking spray. Line with baking paper and set aside.
   
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and light brown sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the salt and flour and continue to mix just until combined.
   
3. Press shortbread dough evenly into the prepared pan and chill for at least 25 minutes.
   
4. Bake shortbread for 18-20 minutes, rotating once halfway through. Remove from the oven, set on a cooling rack and raise the oven temperature to 180°c.
   
5. For the filling, chop pecans and set aside. In 950ml saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.
   
6. Add brown sugar, salt, light corn syrup and heavy cream, and simmer for one minute. Pour filling over shortbread and bake at 180°c for 20 minutes, until bubbling around the edges.
   
7. Remove from the oven and cool completely, then refrigerate bars for a minimum of 6-8 hours, preferably overnight. When ready to cut the bars, lift them out of the pan by the parchment paper and cut into squares.
   
8. If drizzling with chocolate, melt chocolate over a double boiler or microwave in 30 second increments until melted. Using either a spoon or a piping bag, drizzle chocolate across bars. Garnish with sea salt if desired.