These are actually Derby bars, but since it’s winter and the derby is May, I didn’t want to confuse anything. Honestly, I love these bars any time of year and think they’re a delicious variant of a pecan pie. So, imagine pecan pie plus chocolate and bourbon, pretty delicious sounding, right? And even though making bars isn’t that much easier than making pie, I for some reason find bars a lot less intimidating. I guess there’s less pressure for a perfect crust, no expectation for lattices or perfectly crimped edges. These chocolate pecan bars are delicious warmed up a little and served with a scoop of ice cream, obviously. Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS (CRUST):

For 1 9×13 inch pan (about 24 bars, depending on how you slice)

2 cups all-purpose flour

8 ounces unsalted butter, room temp

1/2 cup powdered sugar

pinch of kosher salt

DIRECTIONS:

Work together the flour, butter, powdered sugar, and salt until it forms a dough.

Spread it on the bottom of a greased 9×13″ baking dish (I used a glass one) and pat down so it’s evenly distributed.

Bake at 350 F for 20-25 minutes, until lightly golden brown, and cool.

INGREDIENTS (FILLING):

1 cup unsalted butter, browned

1 cup sugar

1 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 cup all-purpose flour

4 eggs

1 tablespoon vanilla

2 tablespoons bourbon

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

1 1/2 cups pecans

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 F.  Cream together the eggs, butter and sugar.  Mix in the vanilla and bourbon and add the flour a little at a time on low speed. Fold in the pecans and chocolate chips and pour over crust.

Bake for 50-60 minutes. Take out of the oven and cool completely.