Chocolate Chip-Pecan Pie Bars
These pecan bars were the very first thing that I ever baked on my own. Like, EVER. Sure, I helped my mom make Christmas cookies when I was a kid, but I began baking on my own in high school with this very recipe. These bars showed up at a family party and given my affinity for pecan pie, it’s no surprise that I was totally and completely enamored with them. My grandma gave me the recipe and I found myself making them quite frequently. They quickly became my “signature” and were for a long time – I would take them to work potlucks, family parties, and anywhere else I thought people could use a little something sweet.
These bars are a breeze to throw together and don’t require much in the way of equipment or time. You can easily mix together the crust ingredients with a fork, a pastry blender, or your fingers – just make sure you get the mixture to a crumbly texture. The bars need to cool completely before you cut them or the filling and chocolate will smear and run a bit. I actually prefer these chilled in the refrigerator, but you can keep and serve them at room temperature if you’d like.
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Ironically, I never made these bars around Thanksgiving, but it goes without saying that they are the perfect portable Thanksgiving dessert. They’re a great alternative for a full-blown pie, and you could easily omit the chocolate and add more pecans if you’d like. Although, I do think the combination of chocolate and pecans is something extra-special.
Do you remember the first thing you learned how to bake all on your own?
One year ago: Sweet Potato Scones with Maple Cream Glaze
Two years ago: Salted Caramel Apple Cheesecake Pie
Four years ago: Pecan Pie
Five years ago: Lebkuchen
Chunky Pecan Pie Bars
Ingredients
For the Crust:
- 1½ cups (187.5 g) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (113.5 g) salted butter, at room temperature, (1 stick)
- ¼ cup (55 g) packed light brown sugar
Filling:
- 3 large eggs
- ¾ cup (255.75 g) light corn syrup
- ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons salted butter, melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1¾ cups (306.25 g) coarsely chopped semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, or chocolate chunks in a bag!
- 1½ cups (148.5 g) chopped pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x13-inch baking pan.
- For the crust, mix together the flour, butter and brown sugar until crumbly. Press into the baking pan and bake for 12-15 minutes or until lightly brown.
- For the filling, beat the eggs, corn syrup, sugar, butter and vanilla extract with a wire whisk. Stir in the chunks and pecans. Pour evenly over the baked crust and bake for 25-30 minutes or until set.
- Cool in the pan on a wire rack. Cool completely and cut into bars. Store in an airtight container at room temperature (or in the refrigerator if you live in a warm/humid area with no air conditioning).
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
These are absolute perfection 😍 I love this recipe! I find that I have to bake it an extra 5 min. I also like to increase the crust by 50% just because it’s SO good!
Outstanding and easy ! So much quicker than making mini pecan tarts for the holidays and the addition of the dark chocolate adds a contract to the of this bar. Love. I’ve been using this recipe for 6 or 7 years !
All your recipes sound great, I wish I could try them all.
Big hit! Easy to make and delicious.
Should the pecans be toasted?
Made these last night. I had to use mini dark chocolate chips because that is what I had and they worked fine. (We keep those around to sprinkle over sherbet.) Great recipe! Yummy! Where have I been that I missed this recipe since 2009? Better late than never. Thank you!
Looks delicious
We’ve used your recipe for years now and it’s still my husband’s favorite! Such an easy and delicious recipe! Made some for our neighbor’s yesterday and they looked so pretty!
Will these freeze OK?
Yes!
Can I make this in a 8×8 or 9×9 pan? Would I need to halve the recipe?
You would want to halve the recipe for an 8×8 or 9×9 pan. Enjoy!
Made the 9×13 as directed, it was amazing! Only thing I did different was swap out 1/4 cup of the corn syrup for pure maple syrup. Great Thanksgiving dessert!
Very delicious, but too rich. I will make it again, but will only add half the chocolate next time.
I love salty sweet. Could you use salted roasted pecans in this recipe?
Hi Erin, Absolutely!
I have a couple of questions.
1) I always buy unsalted butter. Should I add salt to the crust? If so, how much?
2) If I want to omit the chocolate, should I substitute the same amount of pecans as chocolate?
Thanks!
Hi Charlotte, I would add a pinch of salt to the crust. Yes, you can add more pecans in lieu of the chocolate.
These look so nummy! I’m making these for the holidays for sure! Thanks for all your wonderful recipes. When I see your Pins on Pinterest, I know it’s going to be good.
Salted or unsalted butter?
Hi Carolyn, Salted!
Hi,
Do you use light or dark brown sugar in this recipe? I have both and I am not sure which one to use. Thanks!!!
Hi Melissa, Light brown sugar.
Can these delicious bars be frozen. I like to bake in quantity and it would be a big help if I could. Thanks a million
Hi Barbara, Yes, they definitely can be frozen!
kinda new here and i want to do this for a special day, but how do i “grease” the pan
Hi Shay, You can either rub butter or shortening over the surface of the pan, or spray it with a non-stick cooking spray, like Pam. Enjoy!
My preference would be to use Lyles Golden Syrup. It doesn’t have that gel factor. Would it have to be adjusted for more or less compared to the Karo syrup?
Hi Cheryl, I haven’t tried Lyle’s Golden Syrup, so I couldn’t say for sure if any alterations need to be made.
I want to leave out the corn syrup. Can I use just brown sugar instead?
Hi Donna, Unfortunately, I would not recommend doing this, as the bars will not turn out correctly.
We do not really care for pecan pie, but oh my gosh…I made these last week and they were gone so fast! So, so good! I am going to be making some this Christmas to gift different people! :) Thanks for sharing such a great recipe!!
I made these (twice!) over the Thxgiving wknd. They are fabulous! SO GOOD!!! When I pressed the dough for the crust into my 9×13 pan, it barely covered the bottom. I didn’t think the crust would be thick enough to hold up the bars (so people could eat w/o a fork) so I doubled the crust ingredients, & they were perfect! These are going to be a Thxgiving tradition at our house from now on.
Drop dead scrumptious. I threw in Ghirardellis semi-sweet chips, the entire bag, and yes, it was overwhelming chocolate ecstasy, since it probably exceeded by 1/2 cup, but who cares? It’s pinned as a complete WINNER, and tomorrow, my guests will be reeling from the ecstasy. Thanks beb!