Description
Delicious pecan maple bars with a sweet and buttery crust, perfect for dessert or a snack.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup brown sugar (packed, light or dark)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (very soft)
- 1 large egg
- 1/3 cup brown sugar (packed, light or dark)
- 1/3 cup maple or pancake syrup (sugar-free lite pancake syrup suggested)
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- pinch salt (optional and to taste)
- 1 cup pecans (raw, unsalted, whole or your favorite type)
- about 1/4 cup salted caramel sauce (for drizzling)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line an 8-by-8-inch baking pan with aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray, and set aside.
- In a large bowl, add the flour, brown sugar, and cut in the butter using two forks or a pastry cutter until butter is evenly distributed and pea-sized lumps and sandy bits form.
- Turn mixture out into prepared pan and hardpack it with a spatula or hands to form a smooth, even crust.
- Bake for 17 to 18 minutes, or until crust is just set. Don’t overbake as it will go back into the oven after filling is added.
- In a large bowl (same one used for crust is fine; just wipe it with a paper towel), add the egg, brown sugar, maple syrup, vanilla, and optional salt, and whisk until combined.
- Stir in the pecans; set aside until crust is done baking.
- After crust has baked, gently pour filling over crust, smoothing the pecans with a spatula or fingers to evenly distribute them.
- Bake for about 16 to 19 minutes, or until center is set and not jiggly. Use an oven mitt to shake the pan gently starting at about 16 minutes, and use your judgment from there; bars will set up more as they cool.
- Place pan on a wire rack to cool for at least 1 hour before drizzling with salted caramel, slicing, and serving.
Notes
- Don’t skip lining the pan with foil because bars are sticky and it will save lots of cleanup time.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 34 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bar
- Calories: 250
- Sugar: 15g
- Sodium: 60mg
- Fat: 15g
- Saturated Fat: 8g
- Unsaturated Fat: 5g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 30g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 3g
- Cholesterol: 30mg