So much better than your average pecan pie
These Pecan Pie Bars are outstanding, like any pecan pie they’re irresistible. Have you ever bitten into a gooey yet crunchy bit of pecan pie, devoured the whole thing, and then wondered… ‘How did it get like this, so gooey yet crunchy? How do you make pecan pie?!’
Well I don’t mean to be the bearer of bad news, but traditional pecan pie is on many lists of the most fattening foods in the world. It’s because of the truly ABSURD amount of corn syrup and butter needed to make it the traditional way. Well, there’s good news folks! Let me set the scene here for you…
It’s 6:30pm on Thanksgiving and you just finished 2 full plates of goodness. You know what’s coming and you’ve mentally prepared yourself for it (big ol’ slice of pecan pie). You think of all the fat and corn syrup you’re about to ingest and you get sad thinking about how it will make you feel, but wait! Your grandma made these Pecan Pie Bars and now you can have 3 or 6 pieces with 0 regret because you know it’s made with NO CORN SYRUP, NO REFINED SUGAR, and it’s freaking GLUTEN FREE!
The perfect thanksgiving dessert
They are so addicting Jake has had me make them again… and he’s eaten nearly the whole dang batch! They’re sweet but not syrupy, salty and crunchy, gooey yet firm, and have the perfect shortbread cookie crust. You guys need to make these for you and your family this thanksgiving! They will love this take on traditional pecan pie.
If you love these pecan pie bars for their fudgy gooey texture, you’ll love these other recipes!
Alright friends, get out there and impress your family with this healthy yet DELICIOUS treat!
INGREDIENTS
Shortbread Crust
- 1 ¼ cup almond flour
- 3 tbsp melted butter (coconut oil if vegan)
- 2 ½ tbsp pure maple syrup
- Pinch of salt
Gooey Filling
- 12 Pitted Medjool Dates
- ⅛ cup water
- ¼ cup almond butter
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- ¼ tsp vanilla
- ¼ cup pecans
- 1 tbsp brown sugar or coconut sugar (optional)
Directions
First preheat your oven to 350F. Then, add ingredients for the shortbread cookie crust into a mixing bowl and stir until well combined. Line an 8×8 baking dish with parchment paper and press crust dough into pan until evenly lining the pan using your hands or a rubber spatula. Bake at 350F for 20 minutes, should be slightly golden on top.
As the crust is baking, add dates, water, almond butter, maple syrup, and vanilla to a food processor. Blend until thick, you may have to use a rubber spatula to scrape down and mix through as this will be VERY thick and gooey. When well combined, spread the filling on top of the dough, but PLEASE be careful as the dough may still be fragile and the mixture is sticky and may lift the dough from the pan. Once spread evenly onto the crust line the pecans on top of the filling.
At this time you can sprinkle the brown sugar over top of the bars right before baking. Bake at 350F for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, sprinkle with flaky salt, and try not to eat the whole batch right away!
Notes
- As noted above the date mixture may be hard to combine. If your dates are not very soft I recommend soaking them in warm water for 5-10 minutes before blending as this yields a softer texture. If you run into trouble with it just be patient and continue scraping down!
- Reminding you again that the crust will be fragile if you spread the date mixture onto the dough while it’s still warm. You can allow it to cool, or otherwise be very careful as the date mixture is so sticky it will pull the crust from the pan.
- You can crush the pecans if you’d like, it may make for more even bites, but I find it to be pretty to leave them whole.
- If you are a total pecan lover you can add a handful of crushed pecans into the date mixture to give it a more even texture with each bite.
- This recipe can easily be made vegan! Just use coconut oil instead of butter.
