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A buttery crust and a layer of gooey caramel studded with pecans and chocolate chips make these caramel pecan bars one irresistible dessert.
I first made these caramel pecan bars almost 10 years ago. They were one of the first things I baked after moving into our old house, and the recipe still holds a special place in my heart.
And why wouldn’t it? We love both caramel and pecans around here – my salted caramel sauce and candied pecans are two of my very favorite things. So a recipe that combines the two ingredients is sure to be a hit.
Classic pecan bars are always a favorite around the holidays. But these caramel pecan bars change things up a bit and give the old standby a twist that I think you’ll love.
I have a feeling you’re gonna want to whip these up for all of your cookie exchanges this year.
Why you’ll love these caramel pecan bars
Caramel pecan bars are like if strawberry oatmeal bars or fig bars got a cozy winter makeover. Hear me out!
These bars have a buttery oat crust that also serves as a crumbly topping. In between the layers is a filling of ooey gooey caramel, chocolate chips, and chopped pecans.
I mean, c’mon.
If you love salted caramel chocolate chip cookies or salted caramel blondies, you’ll fall in love with the bits of melty chocolate speckled throughout the rich caramel filling. Add in the crunchy, nutty pecans and it’ll be amazing if you can stop at just one of these little bars.
And like all of our favorite bar desserts, you can cut them into as many pieces as you need, making this the perfect recipe to make for holiday gatherings, cookie exchanges, or football watch parties.
How to make caramel pecan bars
These caramel pecan bars are pretty easy to throw together, so they’re a great option when you need a last-minute treat to take somewhere. Honestly, the hardest part is unwrapping the caramels!
Ingredients you’ll need
To make these gooey, nutty bars, you will need:
- 1 (11-ounce) bag individually wrapped caramels
- 5 tablespoons heavy cream
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups rolled oats
- 1 ½ cups packed light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 ¼ cups melted unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ½ cup semisweet chocolate chips
- ¾ cup chopped pecans
An 11-ounce bag is about 35 caramels. You will need to unwrap them; this is honestly the part of the recipe that will take you the longest.
If unwrapping individual caramels is not accessible for you or you simply don’t have the time, you can use an 11-ounce bag of Kraft Caramel Bits instead.
Before you start baking, make sure you know how to measure flour correctly. This will help your caramel pecan bars turn out perfect every time.
If you start baking and realize you’re out of brown sugar or yours hardened in the pantry, don’t panic. You can make a simple brown sugar substitute, and I have a whole post with tips for how to soften brown sugar.
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Pin ItMaking these bars
These caramel pecan bars are baked in a 9×13-inch pan. Line the pan with foil, making sure to leave some extending past the edges of the pan, and spray it with nonstick spray.
To make the bars, start by melting the caramels and the heavy cream over low heat. Stir occasionally until smooth. Set aside.
In a large bowl, add the flour, oats, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt. Whisk this together, then add the melted butter and the vanilla, stirring until combined.
Press half of the crust mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake the crust at 350°F for 8 minutes.
When the crust comes out of the oven, sprinkle on the chocolate chips and chopped pecans. Pour the caramel over the top.
Take the rest of the crust mixture and crumble it over the top of the caramel. Bake the bars for another 13-15 minutes, until the crust is golden.
Let the caramel pecan bars cool completely. Once they’ve cooled, pop them into the refrigerator for a couple of hours to make them easier to cut.
Storage tips
I recommend storing caramel pecan bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. You can store the bars at room temperature, but the caramel may get a bit oozy depending on how warm your house is.
If you are storing them in the fridge, let them come to room temperature before serving.
Caramel Pecan Bars
Ingredients
- 1 bag individually wrapped caramels 11 ounces (about 35 caramels), unwrapped
- 5 tablespoons heavy cream
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups rolled oats
- 1 ½ cups packed light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 ¼ cups unsalted butter melted
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ½ cup semisweet chocolate chips
- ¾ cup chopped pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line (1) 9×13 inch baking pan with foil, leaving about 1 inch of the foil extending over the edges of the pan. The extra foil will create handles that you can use to lift the caramel bars from the pan. Spray foil with nonstick cooking spray. Set pan aside.
- In a medium saucepan over low heat, melt together the caramels and heavy cream, stirring occasionally until smooth.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, brown sugar, baking soda and salt. Stir together the melted butter and vanilla extract. Add butter and vanilla mixture to the dry ingredients and stir until combined. Press half the mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan to form a crust layer.
- Bake crust in preheated oven for 8 minutes. Remove and sprinkle crust with with chocolate chips and pecans. Pour the caramel mixture over the top and then crumble the remaining crust mixture on top of the caramel.
- Place caramel bars back into preheated oven and bake for an additional 13-15 minutes. Place pan on cooling rack and cool completely. Once bars are cooled to room temperature, I recommend placing the pan into the refrigerator for a couple of hours. This will enable you to cut the bars with ease. Allow bars to come to room temperature before serving.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
My whole family loves these. I left out the chocolate and 1/2 cup of sugar because I thought the bars would be too sweet. My friend who owns a restaurant stated that the they were so good, she asked if I would make them for her to sell. Unfortunately, I am too busy.
These are divine. I made them last night to take to work this morning and they were overwhelmingly the most popular thing I have taken in to date. I did fiddle with the recipe. Only half the pan was normal, the other half I held the chocolate and used thinly sliced, chopped apples. I took the apple half in the morning and the chocolate half after lunch and both were equally popular. It was not a concentrated effort to break the flavors up, it was just getting too sticky to cut the second half in a timely fashion. I like to cut them into little pieces (half bars) and put them in a cupcake liner. Neater in the backroom, you know. They were gone by eight. So, thanks for that. I used parchment instead of foil because foil is just not what it used to be. It worked well enough, it cut of course, but did not stick to the bars, which was my concern with the foil. I did not spray the paper (because I forgot, ha ha). Because I used the apple, the baking time was way off (I had to probably double it) and the other half may have been more done than it normally would be. No regerts. I am very grateful for this recipe, I was floundering yesterday over what to make for today and one of the girls said she liked no bake cookies (which I also made) and then I got this email. It was a no-brainer. Most of the cookies were still there when I left. I will probably make this fairly frequently. Five stars, will recommend.
Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Do you have to use those little caramels or can you use other caramel?
Hi, Kasie! I think the caramel candies are your best bet. Caramel sauce would probably be too thin and gooey to hold up in the bars. I hope you like them!
Could these be made with Gluten Free flour or would it lose the consistency?
Trish-
Hello! I have not attempted to make these bars gluten-free, so unfortunately, I can’t give details regarding the consistency. If you give it a try, I’d love to hear about it.
-Jamie
That first photo… my mom loves anything caramel and pecan bars are her fave… gotta make these :) Pinning!
Medha-
I really hope you get the chance to try these. Thanks for visiting!
-Jamie