Pumpkin Spice Paleo Vegan Pecan Pie Bars

Pumpkin Spice Vegan Pecan Pie Bars - These easy, healthy pecan pie bars are only 8 ingredients and have a pumpkin spice spin! A gluten/grain/dairy/egg free dessert for Thanksgiving that's paleo friendly! | Foodfaithfitness.com | @FoodFaithFit

Pumpkin Spice Paleo Vegan Pecan Pie Bars

Please read recipe fully, as crust needs to cool 1 hour and the bars need to refrigerate overnight.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 35

Total Time 45

Servings Bars

Calories 147kcal

Author FoodFaithFitness

Ingredients

For the crust:

1/3 Cup Coconut Oil, at room temperature (should be the consistency of softened butter)
3 Tbsp Maple syrup
3/4 Cup Coconut flour, sifted (66g) *
1/2 tsp Pumpkin pie spice
Pinch of sea Salt

For the pecan topping:

2 Tbsp Flax meal
5 Tbsp Warm water
1 Cup Pecans (105g)
1/2 Cup Coconut sugar, packed
3 Tbsp Maple syrup
1 1/2 Tbsp Coconut oil
1 1/4 tsp Amoretti Natural Pumpkin Pie Extract
1/4 tsp Sea salt
1/3 Cup Canned pumpkin puree

Instructions

Heat your oven to 350 degrees and line the bottom of an 8x8 inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang to use as a handle to get the bars out of the pan once chilled.
In a large bowl, beat the maple syrup and coconut oil together using an electric hand beater until creamy and well combined. Stir in the coconut flour, pumpkin pie spice and salt until it forms a dough.
Press the dough evenly into the bottom of the pan and bake until the edges are a deep golden brown, and the middle is lightly golden, about 14-15 minutes. ** Your crust will probably have risen and cracked a little bit when it comes out of the oven, use the back of a small spoon to pack it down so it’s flat and crack-free. Let cool for 1 hour before starting the topping.
Additionally, as soon as the crust comes out of the oven, whisk the flax meal with the warm water and refrigerate, so the egg can gel up for the hour that the crust is cooling.
In the meantime, place the pecans onto a cookie sheet in a single layer and bake them into the oven until they darken and smell "nutty" about 8-10 minutes. Let cool and then roughly chop and set aside.
Once the crust has cooled for 1 hours, combine the remaining coconut sugar, maple syrup, coconut oil, Pumpkin Pie Extract and salt in a large sauce pan over medium heat and bring to a boil. Boil for one minute, stirring frequently and then remove from heat. Let the mixture stand at room temperature for 5 minutes.
Once it has sat, add the chilled flax eggs and mix well. Finally, stir in the chopped pecans until they are coated in the sugar mixture.
Pour the topping over the crust, using a spoon to spread out and make sure the sugar mixture and pecans are evenly coating the crust. Press the pecans lightly so they lay flat.
Dollop the canned pumpkin over top of the pecan mixture and use a sharp knife to swirl it around.
Bake until the filling looks set, about 20 minutes. Let stand until it comes down to room temperature. Then, refrigerate for at least 6 hours - overnight ***
Once chilled, slice and DEVOUR. ****

Notes

*As with all gluten free baking, PLEASE weigh your flour as different brands can weigh differently for the same cup measurement.

**Make sure the crust is nice and golden. You want it be really firm, or the topping will cause it to go soggy.

***Make sure you give these bars the full amount of time to chill, as this is what hardens the crust. And serve these bars cold, not at room temperature or warmed up.

****Since the topping is so sticky, it's a lot easier to slice these if you a run a sharp knife around the outsides of the pan first, before slicing into bars!

Nutrition