Creamy Lemon Pecan Bars (Adapted from Kraft)8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup confectioners' sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
3/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup pecans, toasted and chopped
8 ounce cream cheese, softened
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1/2 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon fresh grated lemon zest
confectioners' sugar to dust
Preheat oven to 350
In a large bowl, beat together butter, powdered sugar and vanilla. Mix in the whole wheat pastry flour, 1/2 cup all-purpose flour and toasted pecans until crumbly. Scoop mixture into a 9" x 13" baking dish coated with nonstick spray. Pat the mixture down to form an even layer. Bake for 15 minutes - remove and reduce oven temperature to 325.
In a large mixing bowl, beat together cream cheese and granulated sugar until smooth and well blended. Mix in eggs, one at a time, until combined. Stir in remaining 1/4 cup flour, lemon juice and zest.
Pour mixture over the baked crust. Bake until set and very lightly browned around the edges - about 25 to 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool completely. Place in the refrigerator for at least a couple hours. Dust with confectioners' sugar on top before cutting into bars.
Makes about 28 bars.
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I will be adding these to my already loved Creamy Key Lime Bars that you posted, I can't wait to try them! Yours look really good, and I love the addition of the pecans to the crust!
ReplyDeleteI have been trying all of your recipes one by one and they are all great. So, I would like to thank you here for sharing them. Also, I have a question about the recipe above: Can I substitute "8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened" with olive oil?
ReplyDeleteLaurie - Let me know if you try either!
ReplyDeleteSertac - I'm not sure if it would work as I really think the buttery flavor would be missed and for the fact I've never used olive oil in a crumbly base like this. If you try it, please let me know!
Thank you for the recipe. My bars got high praise. I followed your instructions to the 't', and the only thing I could see to change next time is to add just a smidge more butter as my crust was a bit crumbly. The pecans are great in the crust.
ReplyDeleteAlso, if someone has an aversion to using butter I would think coconut oil would make an excellent (healthy) substitute.
Vgillen - Thanks for the coconut oil suggestion, I'll be noting that one down in my records!!
ReplyDelete