Chewy Chocolatey Pecan Pie Bars

Every Sunday you can pretty much count on me being at church. Whether I am sitting in the service or working the nursery, I look forward to attending every week.

One thing that makes my church so special are the people. I have made lifelong friends that I am honored to call my family. One such person is our Associate Pastor, just about every Sunday or Wednesday night after church, my boys rush to his office. His office is full of unique items for them to play with, and he is so patient showing them how to work them all. Of course they always leave with a treat from the goodie jar.

Well, today is his birthday, so we wanted to make him some goodies to thank him for his kindness. I found out he likes pecans, and I wanted to try pecan pie bars with caramel. The result was chewy goodness in a bar. I had to taste test these a few times (to make sure they were good) and they are yummy!

If that picture didn't make your mouth water, maybe the next one will.

Chunks of pecans and chocolate chips contribute to the chewy, chunky goodness.

Packaged up and ready for delivery!

Pecan Pie bars:

For the Crust:
1½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup (1 stick) butter, softened
¼ cup packed brown sugar

Filling:

20 caramels, 3Tbls Butter, 3Tbls Milk
3 large eggs
1/4 cup corn syrup
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1¾ cups coarsely chopped semisweet or bittersweet chocolate (or chocolate chunks in a bag!)
1½ cups chopped pecans

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9×13-inch baking pan. In a saucepan over low heat, combine caramels, butter and milk. Cook, stirring frequently, until smooth. Remove from heat and set aside.

2. 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.

3. 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,then pour caramel drizzle evenly over the pecan mix and bake for 25-30 minutes or until set.

4. 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).

Recipe adapted from the browneyedbaker.com

For those of you who still prefer pecan pie, here was my muse for this bar:

Caramel Pecan Pie

Ingredients:1 (9 inch) unbaked pie crust
36 individually wrapped caramels,
unwrapped
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup milk

1/2 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup pecan halves

Directions:1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C.) In a saucepan over low heat, combine caramels, butter and milk. Cook, stirring frequently, until smooth. Remove from heat and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine sugar, eggs, vanilla and salt. Gradually mix in the melted caramel mixture. Stir in pecans. Pour filling into unbaked pie crust.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 45 to 50 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown. Allow to cool until filling is firm.

Recipe adapted from allrecipes.com