Place foil or parchment paper in metal baking dish; spray lightly with oil; set aside
oil
Melt butter in a small bowl; set aside
1 stick butter
Prepare the Crust
In a mixing bowl, combine flour and sugar and melted butter
1¾ cups flour, ½ cup sugar, 1 stick butter
Stir until dough begins to form; turn dough out onto counter;
Squeeze dough together and place in prepared baking pan
Spread dough out and press down into pan
Use a spatula to level crust and press into corners
Make the Pecan Topping
In a large mixing bowl, combine topping ingredients; mix well
1 cup brown sugar, ¾ cup light corn syrup, 1¼ teaspoon vanilla extract, 5 cups pecan halves, 1½ sticks butter
Add the Pecan Topping and Bake
Working in batches, add pecan mixture to the top of the dough; gently press coated pecans into corners; spread pecan mixture evenly; repeat process until the entire pecan mixture is in the pan
Bake uncovered on middle rack for 25-30 minutes at 350ºF
When the mixture is bubbly throughout, remove pan from oven; allow to cool a few minutes then refrigerate for at least 1 hour
Once the center is cooled, gently pull the foil out of the pan and place on cutting board
Gently peel foil from pecan bars and slice
Allow to sit at room temperature about 10-15 minutes before serving
Notes
Pan Size:
This recipe uses an 8" x 8" dark metal pan and yields 16 square bars that are 2" x 2" inches
If you don't have a square pan, use a 9" x 13" baking pan; note: the pecan bars will be thinner and you'll get about 24 bars; each 2" x 2 1/2"inches
Pecans:
If you use pecan halves, use 5 cups; if you use pecan pieces, use 4 cups
Butter:
If you use unsalted butter, add 1/2 teaspoon of salt to both the crust and pecan topping
Removing from pan and slicing:
If the foil sticks to the sides or bottom, (and it probably will), simply use a sharp paring knife to slice away any sticky foil
For best results, refrigerate, slice it while it's cold, then let it come to room temperature and serve
For a super clean cut, use a large, sharp knife
Place the knife edge straight down into the pecan bars; don't use a "sawing" motion or the pecans will crumble