Pecan Squares
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my full disclosure policy.
Like pecan pie in bar form, these indulgent pecan squares with a buttery shortbread crust and rich caramel-pecan topping are an irresistible (and easy!) holiday favorite.
If you’re a fan of my bourbon pecan pie and candied pecans, you’ll love these pecan squares. With a buttery shortbread crust and rich caramel-pecan topping, they’re an indulgent treat—the perfect office snack, potluck dessert, or hostess gift for the holidays. And the best part? They’re easy to make!
Table of Contents
“I made these for the first time about 2 months ago. My family has not stopped requesting them since. Today will be the 4th time in 8 weeks. Soo good!”
What You’ll Need To Make Pecan Squares
- All-Purpose Flour: Forms the base of the crust, providing structure and stability to support the rich filling. To ensure accuracy, measure the flour by spooning it into the measuring cup and leveling it off.
- Cornstarch: Blended with the flour, cornstarch gives the crust a crisper texture.
- Confectioners’ Sugar: Sweetens the crust and helps achieve a shortbread-like consistency.
- Unsalted Butter: Creates a flaky, buttery crust by incorporating small pockets of fat that melt during baking. The butter in the filling adds richness and helps create the gooey, caramel-like consistency that holds the pecans together.
- Light Brown Sugar: Sweetens the filling with a deep, molasses-like flavor, complementing the pecans. When measuring brown sugar, always pack it tightly to eliminate air pockets.
- Honey: Adds sweetness and a touch of warmth, enhancing the overall flavor of the filling.
- Vanilla Extract: Enhances the flavor of the caramel with its aromatic richness.
- Heavy Whipping Cream: Adds creaminess and helps achieve the silky, smooth texture of the filling.
- Chopped Pecans: Provide crunch and a rich, nutty flavor that’s the star of these bars, adding texture to every bite.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-By-Step Instructions
Begin with the shortbread crust (which, by the way, is much easier than making a homemade pie crust). Combine the flour, cornstarch, confectioners sugar and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse a few times until combined.
Toss in the pieces of butter.
Pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal with pea-size clumps of butter within.
Dump the mixture into a foil-lined pan.
Then press firmly with your fingers into an even layer.
Bake until set but not browned, about 17 minutes.
In the meantime, make the topping. Combine the butter, brown sugar, honey, vanilla and salt in a saucepan.
Boil gently for a few minutes.
Then stir in the heavy cream and chopped pecans.
Spread the pecan mixture onto the baked crust.
Bake until bubbling and caramel-colored.
Cool completely, then transfer baked bar to cutting board.
Cut into squares with a sharp knife.
Serve and enjoy!
Make-Ahead Instructions
The pecan squares will keep nicely, covered and stored at room temperature, for 3 to 4 days.
Freezer-Friendly Instructions
These can be frozen for up to 3 months. After they are completely cooled, double-wrap them securely with aluminum foil or plastic freezer wrap with the layers separated by wax or parchment paper. Thaw overnight on the countertop before serving.
You May Also Like
Pecan Shortbread Squares
Like pecan pie in bar form, these indulgent pecan squares with a buttery shortbread crust and rich caramel-pecan topping are an irresistible (and easy!) holiday favorite.
Ingredients
For the Crust
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- ½ cup Confectioners' sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces
For the Filling
- 12 tablespoons (1½ sticks) unsalted butter
- ¾ cup packed light brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons honey
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Generous pinch salt
- 2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
- 3 cups coarsely chopped pecans
Instructions
For the Crust
- Cover a 9-inch square baking pan with heavy duty aluminum foil. Push foil neatly into corners and up sides of the pan, using two pieces if necessary to ensure it overlaps all edges (the overhang will help removal from pan). Spray foiled pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- Place the flour, cornstarch, confectioners sugar and salt in a bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment. Pulse a few times to mix. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal with pea-size clumps of butter within. It will seem dry; that's okay. Transfer mixture to the prepared pan and press firmly with your fingers into an even layer over the bottom. Refrigerate for 15 minutes. While the crust is in the refrigerator, adjust an oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 350° F. Bake the crust until crust is set but not browned, about 17 minutes. Set on rack to cool. Leave oven on.
For the Filling
- In a heavy medium saucepan over medium-low heat, combine butter, brown sugar, honey, vanilla and salt. Stir with a wooden spoon until sugar dissolves. Turn up the heat and boil gently for 3 minutes. Stir in heavy cream and chopped pecans.
To Assemble and Bake
- Pour pecan mixture over crust (it's fine if the crust is still warm). Bake until filling is bubbling and caramel in color, about 20 minutes. Cool completely on rack. To cut, use the foil overhang to lift baked square out of pan and onto cutting board. Loosen the foil from the edges, then cut with a sharp knife into 2-inch squares. Store finished pecan squares in air-tight container and serve at room temperature.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The pecan squares will keep nicely covered and stored at room temperature for 3 to 4 days. They can also be frozen for up to 3 months. After they are completely cooled, double-wrap them securely with aluminum foil or plastic freezer wrap with the layers separated by wax or parchment paper. Thaw overnight on the countertop before serving.
Nutrition Information
Powered by 
- Per serving (16 servings)
- Calories: 357
- Fat: 29 g
- Saturated fat: 11 g
- Carbohydrates: 26 g
- Sugar: 18 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Sodium: 88 mg
- Cholesterol: 41 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
See more recipes:
Comments
Add a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Such a delicious treat and so easy to make. I do love pecan pie, but I don’t like the sugar buzz I feel after eating a whole slice. These bites are perfect for getting the taste without eating too much (unless you eat 2 or 3 at once, ha!). I made these for a holiday potluck and cut the squares diagonally to make triangles. It’s a great 1 to 2 bite size, especially when there are other desserts that people want to try.
Oh my goodness, these bars are pure heaven! I made one batch and after we tasted them, I immediately started my second batch. Forget the pecan pie, these bars will permanently replace it. I didn’t have a 9″ square pan, so I used a 7″x11″ dish, worked perfectly. Thank you so much for all your wonderful recipes. I have made so many and have never required an adjustment. Thank you, thank you, thank you! I would love your recipe for a shortbread cookie similar to Walker’s finger shortbread. I’ve been trying to perfect that recipe for 4-5 years & haven’t accomplished it yet.
Hi Aileen, so glad you enjoyed these. While I don’t have a recipe for shortbread like Walker’s, I would suggest looking here: http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/shortbread-recipe (I love King Arthur’s recipes.)
Jenn, it’s been three years now and I just made three batches of pecan squares! This is one of the most requested cookies. I am going to try preparing them with walnuts (english or black or perhaps a mixture) for a friend who is allergic to pecans. Also, thank you for recommending the King Arthur’s shortbread recipe. It’s close enough to perfect! Thank you for all the wonderful recipes you have shared with us over the years.
No where in the recipe does it mention the size of baking pan that should be used???
You may have been looking at the portion of the recipe that has the pictures, but it’s mentioned below that in the full recipe: you’ll need a 9-inch square baking pan. Hope you enjoy them!
After having some difficulty with the shortbread mixture, I researched other recipes and decided to add a beaten egg. It came out perfect. It’s a definite keeper for all our Thanksgiving pecan pie (too sweet) needs. To gild the lily, I drizzled dark chocolate over the cooled bars.
I have made these twice now, and absolutely love them. Jenn, I have a suggestion for how the recipe is written given my own experience. Both times I made it, I started to put the crust in the oven before refrigerating it. I wonder if you could move the instruction to preheat the oven so that it follows the instruction to refrigerate the unbaked crust for 15 minutes prior to baking. There’s not a need to preheat the oven before preparing the crust since it can easily preheat while the crust is chilling in the fridge. It may seem silly, but I know many of us are multi-tasking while baking, and I think it would be helpful. Thanks again for such a wonderful recipe!
Great suggestion Alison! I’m going to make an adjustment to the recipe– thanks!
5 star rating
Made these for Thanksgiving in lieu of pecan pie. They were absolutely amazing.
I combined one egg with the shortbread mixture. Found them still a bit too sweet. Next time will limit to 2 T. honey.
A definite holiday tradition!
I am excited to make this recipe, however, when adding the heavy cream should it be room temperature?
Thanks
Lenore, The cream doesn’t need to be at room temperature before adding it to the saucepan. Enjoy!
These were fantastic! I made them exactly as written, except I used an 8X8 inch pan because that’s all I had. The foil lining sprayed with cooking spray is an absolute must for easier removal from the pan and cutting (I refrigerated mine for a while before cutting as a previous reviewer suggested.) My crust mixture seemed too dry when I pressed it into the pan (it didn’t really come together like shortbread dough), but after baking it was perfect. They turned out great! I cut them into fairly small squares as they are quite rich, and they were a big hit at our Thanksgiving gathering. Thanks for another great recipe!
Hi Jennifer,
I am new to your site and am loving the quality of your recipes! This pecan shortbread bar is fantastic and also easily adapted gluten free for my needs. Thank-you!
Hi Diane Jacobs,
I too am living (or trying to) gluten free. I would love to get your adaptation on this recipe.
Thank you!
Doreen
Doreen, I believe that the only ingredient that contains gluten is the flour. Reading through the comments, a few people have been successful using gluten-free flour. I hope you enjoy them!
Good Morning!!
I love this recipe,and have made it many times, but one of my guests for Thanksgiving has a nut allergy to walnuts and pecans. What would be a good substitute, if any for the pecans in this recipe?
Hi Candi, I think slivered (not sliced) almonds might work. Hope that helps 🙂