New York Sharp Cheddar Pecan Pie Bars

New York Sharp Cheddar Pecan Pie Bars New York Sharp Cheddar Pecan Pie Bars

Cheddar Shortbread, Gooey Pecan, Bar-Size Easy

A flaky cheddar shortbread crust meets a gooey pecan pie filling, with Yancey's Fancy New York Sharp Cheddar baked right into the crust for the classic Southern cheddar-and-pecan-pie pairing in easy bar form.

Prep Time: 20 min
Cook Time: 50 min
Total Time: 1 hour 10 min
Serves: 16

What You Will Need

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 cups Yancey's Fancy New York Sharp Cheddar, shredded
  • 1 cup cold unsalted butter, cubed
  • 2 tbsp granulated sugar
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 cup light corn syrup
  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 1/2 cups pecans, chopped

What To Do

  1. Make the cheddar crust: Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a 9x13-inch pan with parchment. Pulse the flour, Sharp Cheddar, cold butter, granulated sugar, and salt in a food processor (or cut together by hand) until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs.
  2. Press and pre-bake: Press the mixture firmly and evenly into the bottom of the pan. Bake until lightly golden.
  3. Make the pecan filling: While the crust bakes, whisk the eggs, corn syrup, brown sugar, vanilla, and melted butter together until smooth, then stir in the chopped pecans.
  4. Fill and bake: Pour the filling evenly over the warm crust and bake until set and no longer jiggly in the center.
  5. Cool completely: Cool completely in the pan before lifting out and slicing into bars. The filling needs to fully set to slice cleanly.

Pro Tips:

The cheddar in the crust is subtle, not sharp and obvious. It reads as a savory backbone under the sweetness, the same way a slice of cheddar on apple pie works. Don't skip the full cooling time or the bars will be too soft to cut.