pecan pie bars

Pecan pie is my husband's favorite dessert (close tie with pineapple upside down cake... which I have yet to master)... and this recipe for pecan pie bars is heavenly!

Sandy's Pecan Pie Bars
Makes 12 bars

• Butter-flavored cooking spray
• 24 pecan shortbread cookies (such as Pecan Sandies)
• 2 sticks (1 cup) butter, divided use
• 1¼ cups packed dark brown sugar
• ⅓ cup light-colored ("white") corn syrup
• 2 tablespoons whipping cream
• 2 cups pecans, chopped
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Preliminaries: Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9-inch baking pan with cooking spray.

Make cookie base: Pulse cookies in food processor until crumbs. Cut 1 stick (½ cup) butter into pieces, and pulse with crumbs until together they form a mass. Lightly pat mixture into the prepared baking pan. Bake 15 minutes and cool completely on a wire rack. Leave oven on.

Make the topping: In a medium saucepan, combine the remaining ½ cup butter, brown sugar, corn syrup and whipping cream. Cook and stir over medium heat, until boiling. Let boil 1 minute, and remove from heat. Stir in pecans and vanilla.

Final baking: Pour pecan mixture over the cooled base. Bake in preheated oven 20 minutes or until bubbling.

Presentation: Cool in pan on a wire rack. Cut into bars, and serve.

Source: Adapted from "Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade Desserts 2," (SLSH Enterprises Inc., 2008).