Caramel Pecan Coconut Shortbread Bars
These caramel pecan shortbread bars have a crumbly and buttery shortbread cookie base, spread with creamy dulce de leche caramel, and topped with toasted pecans, coconut and flaky salt.
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
- Food Processor or Pastry Cutter
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour, fluffed, spooned and leveled
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- ¼ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- ¾ cup cold unsalted butter, cut into chunks
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp milk
- 1 can (13.4 oz) dulce de leche
- ¾ cup pecans, chopped
- ½ cup unsweetened natural coconut flakes
- ¼ tsp flaky finishing salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Lightly grease a 9-inch square baking pan with butter or non-stick baking spray, or just line the pan with parchment paper.
- In a bowl, combine the flour, powdered sugar and salt. Add the butter, and use a pastry cutter to cut in the butter until only small pieces remain. Add the vanilla and milk, and combine until moist and crumbly. (This can also be done using a food processor, instead of a pastry cutter.)
- Press the crumbs into an even layer against the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake for about 30-35 minutes, until pale golden brown, then set aside to cool for 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, toast the pecans and coconut by spreading them onto a baking sheet. You can toast them in the oven on a lower rack while the crust is baking, for about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool.
- While the crust is slightly warm, spread the dulce de leche over the crust. Sprinkle with the toasted pecans and coconut, then the flaky finishing salt. Let cool completely for several hours before cutting into squares.
Notes
Store leftover shortbread bars in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 3-6 months.
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