Pecan Pie Bars

In England you cannot get a good pecan pie. I am yet to find one anyway.
I've tried real, proper Pecan Pie on American soil and it was incredible. 
I've also tried making my own pie and I'm going to put it down to a dud recipe but it did not live up to my own hype.

So, what to do when you want a nice slice of pie and there's no diner on the corner or an American grandma in the kitchen with her own trusty recipe? Well all you have to do is use my recipe for Pecan Pie Bars. They're simpler than making a whole pie but don't scrimp on the sweet, crunchy, nuttiness of propa pie.

If you can manage to get out of bed as the days are getting colder (and shorter) then I highly recommend making these. To make them even more of a treat, try heating a bar in the microwave for 1 minute and covering with my cheats, dairy free custard (recipe here). 

Ingredients:
For the base:
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup soft light brown sugar 
2 2/3 cups plain flour 
½ teaspoon salt
For the topping:
½ cup unsalted butter 
1 cup soft light brown sugar 
1/3 cup honey 
2 tablespoons double cream 
2 cups chopped pecans


To Make:

• Preheat the oven to 180ºC and line a 9x13-inch pan with greaseproof paper.

Make the base:

• Cream together the butter and brown sugar until fluffy.
• Add the flour and salt and mix until crumbly. 

• Press the base into the lined pan and bake for 20 minutes until golden brown.

Make the filling:

• Combine the butter, brown sugar, honey and heavy cream in a saucepan and stir over medium heat. Simmer the mixture for 1 minute, then stir in the chopped pecans.

• Remove the base from the oven and immediately pour the pecan filling over the hot crust spreading it to cover the entire surface.

• Return the pan to the oven and bake an additional 20 minutes.
• Remove the pan and allow the bars to fully cool in the pan.
• Lift the bars out of the pan and transfer them to a cutting board. 
• Peel off the greaseproof paper and slice into bars.