Pecan Pie Bars
I have quite the collection of cookbooks. Some people might think it excessive, but I think of each and everyone of them as a friend. I spend endless hours flipping through their pages, inhaling the smell and savoring the taste of each recipe via my imagination. My favorite books are the vintage cookbooks. There is history to be discovered between their covers. When I peruse their pages, I travel to a time when cooking and baking seemed simpler, especially baking. I think of how far the world of baking has come, even in the last number of decades. We have at our disposal so many more ingredients, gadgets, and pieces of equipment. The possibilities are endless. Of course, all that considered, the past provides the foundation from which all our modern-day baking comes, and for that I owe a debt of gratitude to the pioneers in the field of baking.
While looking through one of my older cookbooks recently, I came upon a recipe for what the book called Penuche Bars. I was immediately drawn in by the title. I shared in this post from last year just what a fan of penuche I am. Enticed, I gave the recipe a try. What resulted was a very delicious bar cookie, but not exactly one reminiscent enough of penuche to be called that. It more so resembled a slice of caramely, chewy, and nutty pecan pie than brown sugar fudge, and I’m not complaining about that . Once I got out of my head what I expected the bars were going to be, and embraced them for what they were, I realized I had stumbled upon a keeper of a recipe. Even more than that, I actually prefer these bars over pecan pie, because sometimes the pie can be too goopy and syrupy for me. So this Thanksgiving, give them a try. You might just become a convert too!
Pecan Pie Bars
Bottom Layer
2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup confectioners’ sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup ( 1 1/2 sticks ) butter, cold, cut into 1/2-inch dice
Top Layer
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar, packed
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups sweetened flaked coconut
1 1/2 cups roughly chopped pecans
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Heavily butter a 9 x 13-inch metal pan. Line pan in both directions with heavy-duty foil. Butter the foil.
Bottom Layer: Combine the flour, confectioners’s sugar, and salt in the work bowl of a food processor and pulse several times to blend. Add the butter and process until large pieces of dough begin to form. Scrape the dough into the prepared pan and spread into an even layer. Press the dough firmly into the pan using a flat-bottomed spatula or the bottom of a glass. Bake the crust until golden, about 25 to 30 minutes. Remove to a rack to cool slightly while preparing the top layer.
Top Layer: In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, brown sugar, and vanilla until smooth and slightly thickened. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and baking powder. Add the dry ingredients into the egg mixture, stirring until mixed well. Stir in the coconut and pecans. Spread evenly over the bottom layer.
Reduce oven temperature to 325˚F, and bake bars until just set (the center of the bars should not giggle), about 35 minutes. Cool completely before cutting into desired size.
Crust adapted from Carole Walter’s Great Cookies
Filling adapted from Farm Journal’s Country Cookbook
I have a substantial cookbook collection too. When I began blogging I got caught up in all the new book releases. Now I’m much more selective, and wait to see if the cookbook stands the test time. One of my favorite things is to shop thrift stores for cookbooks. So many classics can be found! I like pecan pie too, but agree about the filling. My solution has been to add more pecans and less filling. Although the Pecan Pie Bars sound like a better solution! (I’ve often had rebellious thoughts of ditching pie as Thanksgiving dessert, but always get vetoed!)
Deb, if I even hinted at not having pie for Thanksgiving dessert, my family would banish me to a remote island for the holiday. I like your suggestion of just adding more pecans to balance out the filling of a pecan pie. Brilliant!
Would it be bad to make a whole batch of these just for me? I love pecan pie, and often can’t be bothered with making it only because I’m the only one who loves it in my house. But I suppose the wonderful thing about having them in bar form is that they’re easier to share with friends and neighbors!
This recipe is a gem, Mary!
Thanks Liren! I stashed my bars in the freezer for gift giving or a last minute dessert over the holidays. It takes a lot of willpower not to sneak into the freezer and nibble away at the inventory. 😉