Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars

Go nutty for dessert with Dark Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars. Baked on a buttery crust, these cookie bars are splashed with bourbon and loaded with toasted pecans, dark chocolate chips and ooey gooey goodness.

The best thing since sliced bread is sliced pie. Not only is pie a sweet, satisfying indulgence, but it’s the grand finale to any good meal. Then again, sometimes pie is the meal. There’s pot pie, shepherd’s pie, pizza pie and that Greek pie with phyllo I can’t spell. Basically, you can cut anything into a triangle, slap it on a plate and call it pie. No plate? No problem, Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars place your favorite pie in the palm of your gluttonous hand.

Not only do these nutty cookie bars let you skip a plate and forego a fork, the press-in crust lets you bypass the rolling pin. Eliminating temperamental pie dough from the equation means more time for your temperamental family. That’s what the holidays are all about: crazy relatives and crazy good desserts.

Topping the crazy good list are Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars. I’m talking freshly toasted pecans, dark chocolate chips and magic of baking them with brown sugar and bourbon. They’re ooey gooey crunchy and chewy–basically everything you could ever want from a dessert that’s part pie, part cookie, part bar and full on delicious.

Before sharing the recipe for Chocolate Chip Pecan Pie Bars, here are a few tips to help you out:

Fresh pecans are mandatory, therefore, don’t use the open bag of pecans that’ve been in your pantry since last Thanksgiving.

Dark corn syrup is preferable for depth of flavor, but light corn syrup is a great substitute.

For the best pecan bars, always use toasted pecans in the filling. To toast pecans, simply add them to a foil lined baking sheet in a single layer then place in the oven for 8 minutes at 350 degrees, stirring after the first 4 minutes.

Only toast the pecans to be mixed in with the filling ingredients. The pecan halves placed on top of the filling should not be toasted since they will toast as they bake.

Bars are done when the edges are set and the center jiggles just a bit when wiggled. Avoid overbaking; the center will continue to set as it cools. Plus, be sure to cool completely to room temperature (approximately 3 hours) before serving to give the filling proper time to thicken.

Allow bars to cool completely, cover with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator up to 5 days.

Yes, you can make pecan pie bars ahead of time and freeze up to 3 months. After baked bars cool completely, wrap tightly with plastic wrap, cover with aluminum foil and freeze. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator then serve at room temperature.

I hope you enjoy this recipe for Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars. Please leave a rating and review below after you try the recipe yourself. And, while you’re at it, sign up for my Recipe Newsletter so you never miss a tempting recipe.

Finally, if you like chocolate pecan desserts then you’ll love these Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies. Soft, chewy and crunchy in every bite, these brown butter cookies are a trifecta of textures and flavors.