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Butter Pecan Pretzel Bars – sweet and salty comes together in a super easy dessert! Gooey caramel, pecans, and pretzels makes it extra delicious.
Cookie baking season is here! Are you ready? You really can make these Butter Pecan Pretzel bars anytime of year. Sweet and salty is always a good idea! Especially when they have just 6 ingredients, so you can make them in no time for a last minute cookie exchange, or you just want something sweet in the middle of the week.
Sweet and salty are always a hit together. Here you have the sweet buttery cookie base, topped with gooey melted caramel. And then crushed pretzels and a pinch of salt are added for that salted caramel flavor. It’s the best of both worlds! Not too sweet and not too salty; plus, they are both gooey and crunchy!
Why You’ll Love These Butter Pecan Pretzel Bars
- Easy – just 6 ingredients is all it takes, so you can throw these together with very little effort.
- Fast – with a little help from the store these come together in about 5 minutes! Then you just let them bake for a gooey, sweet and salty treat.
- Decadent – that gooey caramel takes these over the top! People will love the cookie base with the salt pretzel and nuts and the decadent caramel. A lot going on in just a few ingredients.
What You’ll Need
- Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough – the store bought dough is a great shortcut and time saver, but you can also use homemade. My favorite Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies is a great base for these bars.
- Pecans – you really can use any nut you want, walnuts would make a great swap.
- Caramels
- Milk
- Pretzels
- Coarse Salt
How To Make Butter Pecan Pretzel Bars
- Make The Base – In a mixing bowl mix together the cookie dough and some of the pecans. If you are using a homemade dough, just add the pecans when you add the chocolate chips. If using pre-made dough just crumble into a bowl and use your hands to incorporate the pecans. Press into a 9-inch square baking dish. Bake for about 20 minutes until golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool for 30 minutes before moving on.
- Melt Caramels. Once the bars have cooled unwrap the caramels and place in a microwave safe bowl. Stir in the milk and microwave on 60 second intervals, stirring each time, until fully melted an smooth.
- Toppings. Pour the melted caramel over the bars, then top with chopped pretzels and the remaining pecans. Sprinkle salt evenly over the top. Let the bars set up for 1-2 hours before slicing to serve.
Storage
You can store these butter pecan pretzel bars at room temperature. Just cover and they should last for 3-4 days. You can make ahead, but they are best eaten fresh. If you do want to make ahead, you can make the base and then top with the melted caramel and toppings the day you want to serve.
More Easy Dessert Recipes
- Chocolate Toffee Bars
- Pumpkin Delight
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bars
- Chocolate Cobbler
- Oreo Lasagna
- Oatmeal Cake
Butter Pecan Pretzel Bars
Ingredients
- 1 roll Pillsbury chocolate chip cookie dough
- 3/4 cup chopped pecans, divided
- 1 bag, 11 oz caramels, unwrapped
- 2 Tablespoon milk
- 1 cup pretzels, broken into small pieces
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º F.
- In medium bowl, crumble cookie dough; stir or knead in 1/2 cup of the pecans until well mixed and evenly combined. Press evenly in ungreased 9-inch square pan.
- Bake for about 20 minutes until set and golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool for 30 minutes.
- In a microwavable safe bowl, microwave caramels and milk uncovered on High 2 to 3 minutes, stirring every 60 seconds, until melted and smooth.
- Pour evenly over the baked bars. Sprinkle with pretzels and remaining 1/4 cup pecans, pressing slightly into caramel. Sprinkle with salt.
- Let cool for 1-2 hours, or until caramel is set.
- Slice to serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Pillsbury. The opinions and text are all mine.
Sweet and salty always make the best combination!
The perfect combination of salty and sweet! Ah-mazing!
Oh wow, these look AMAZING! I love sweet and salty combos! 🙂
Those look soooo good and I love how easy they are to make!
My favorite treats have a good mix of sweet and salty! I also love that you used the cookie dough. Makes this a quicker and easier!
I’m always craving the salt with the sweet! Making these this weekend!
This is absolutely AHHmazing! I would love to give this a try!