By: Tommy Burkhammer Jr

Ingredients: 

Shortbread Crust:
½ cup Softened butter 
¼ cup + 2 tablespoons white sugar 
1½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1¼ cups flour
⅛ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon cinnamon

Filling:
½ cups pecan halves
1 cup brown sugar
¼ cup melted butter
1 teaspoon corn starch
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ cup honey
½ cup white corn syrup
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 eggs (at room temperature)

Directions :

Roast:
Preheat your oven to 350; once the oven is heated, roast your pecans for roughly 7 minutes. Be careful not to burn them. They should have a slight crunch to them when done.

Shortbread Crust: 
Grease then line your 8×8 pan with parchment paper and set to the side. In a bowl, cream together your softened butter, white sugar, salt, and cinnamon until light and airy. Add your vanilla extract and mix until incorporated. Gradually add your flour into the mixture, just until all ingredients are combined. The dough will be crumbly but will hold together when pressed into a ball. Using a spatula, press the dough into your greased and lined pan and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Bake the crust in your 350 oven for 16 minutes, until slightly golden or not shiny on top. This is a parbake, the crust will not be fully cooked.

Filling:

In a bowl, cream together your butter, brown sugar, corn starch, salt, honey, white corn syrup, cinnamon, and vanilla extract. Mix well until combined, then add your eggs and mix until combined. Do not overmix. Add your roasted pecans to the mixture, then fold them in using a spatula. Layer your pecan mixture on top of the cooled shortbread crust.

Bake for 40 minutes at 350, check at the 35-minute mark to ensure the pecans on top are not too dark. Then cover with foil for the last 5 minutes of the bake. (If you’d like your bars more candied than a traditional pecan pie, bake for 45 minutes.)

Allow your bars to cool at room temperature for an hour, then in the refrigerator for 4 hours to set completely. Once set, leave at room temperature for 2 hours, then slice into 3 columns and 6 rows to get similar bars to the picture. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for 3 days, or longer in the refrigerator.