Getting healthy for the New Year doesn’t have to mean skipping dessert. Try these sugar free Keto Pecan Toffee Bars. You won’t regret it, I promise! Now with an instructional video.
One of my favorite keto holiday treats now has its own How To Video! Check out how easy it is to make these sugar free Pecan Toffee Bars.
There are two ways of looking at this New Year thing. Depending on your perspective, you might be saying:
HAPPY NEW YEAR! Woot woot, welcome to 2016!!!
Or, if this change of calendar year has snuck up on you, you’re all:
OH CRAP, IT’S ALREADY 2016, HOW DID THAT HAPPEN!???!”
Where do you fall on that spectrum? I think I am somewhere in the middle. It’s astonishing how quickly time moves as you get older and no matter how aware I am that a new year is coming, I always feel a little caught off guard.
But at the same time, I always feel the excitement that a new year and a new start brings. I don’t make New Year’s resolutions anymore, as I know full well that life might throw me a curve ball and those grand plans will fall to the wayside. I have no interest in feeling guilty for not living up to my own grandiose expectations.
But I do have ideas and plans and dreams and I get pretty excited about getting after it in the year to come. Whether or not I can bring them all to fruition remains to be seen.
Proof that I am constantly surprised at the rapid passing of time are these low carb Pecan Toffee Bars. I developed this recipe well before the holidays with every intention of getting it up before Christmas. That didn’t happen, obviously.
But in the end, I am rather glad about that. I sensed a little “holiday sweets” ennui from my readers and I decided to hold these back for a bit. I would have hated to see them get lost in the shuffle of holiday cookie recipes. They are much too tasty to be overlooked! And besides, any time is a good time for pecans and toffee. Right? Right? Am I right?
Tips for Pecan Toffee Bars
The almond flour shortbread crust on these bars is simply divine. It’s crisp to bite into but also melt in your mouth delicious, as all good shortbread should be. Be sure to pre-bake it and let it cool before adding the topping. That process is part of what helps it crisp up so nicely.
The toffee is made with Swerve Sweetener, an erythritol based sweetener. Let’s be honest, low carb sweeteners do not behave exactly as sugar does. So while Swerve does caramelize, it takes a little coaxing. You need to make sure you boil the toffee mixture enough. Do not panic if it smokes a bit, as this is normal when caramelizing erythritol based sweeteners.
Be sure to stand near that pan while it caramelizes as it can over cook and burn, just like a sugar based toffee. Watch it carefully and when it deepens to amber, remove it from heat immediately.
When you add the vanilla, it will bubble vigorously. This is also normal for any toffee recipe.
Don’t pre-toast the pecans, as they will get plenty toasted during baking. I used pecan halves but you can use chopped pecans as well, as long as they are raw and unsalted. I’ve made these several times and I actually find that some chopped pecans makes the bars easier to cut in the end.
Let the bars cool completely before cutting, and use a very sharp large knife. Because of the hardness of the toffee, these can shatter a bit when cutting. A very good chef’s knife helps. Also be sure to cut straight up and down, without sawing.
These delicious keto Pecan Toffee Bars make a fabulous gift for anyone. If you can pry them from your own fingers!
More Fabulous Keto Pecan Recipes
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Keto Pecan Toffee Bars
Ingredients
Shortbread Crust:
- 1 ¼ cups almond flour
- ¼ cup powdered Swerve Sweetener
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup butter chilled and cut into small pieces
Topping:
- ¾ cup granulated Swerve Sweetener
- ½ cup butter
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch salt
- 2 tablespoon powdered Swerve Sweetener
- 2 ½ cups pecans (some chopped, some whole)
Instructions
Shortbread Crust:
- Preheat oven to 325F and line an 9x9 or 8x8 inch square baking pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang for easy removal.
- In the bowl of a food processor, combine almond flour, powdered sweetener, and salt. Pulse to combine. Sprinkle with butter pieces and pulse until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Alternatively, you can cut in butter with a pastry cutter.
- Press into bottom of prepared baking pan. Bake 12 to 15 minutes, until just beginning to brown on the edges. Remove and let cool while preparing topping.
Topping:
- In a medium heavy-duty saucepan over medium heat, combine Swerve and butter and stir until Swerve is dissolved. Bring to a boil and cook without stirring until mixture darkens to amber, about 5 to 7 minutes (time may vary depending on the quality of your cookware).
- Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract and salt. If the mixture appears to be separating, stir in 2 tablespoon of powdered Swerve Sweetener until it comes back together.
- Sprinkle crust evenly with pecans. Pour toffee mixture evenly overtop. Bake another 15 to 20 minutes, until topping has darkened and bubbles thickly. Let cool completely before cutting into bars.
Patricia Kingry says
Could you us powered stevia in place of swerve?
Carolyn says
No…in this case you need a bulk sweetener like Swerve or other erythritol.
Wenda says
This bar is sooo delicious…my husband wants more…and he’s not low carb..Thank you!!
Lisa says
Holy cow these are amazing! I’ve been following a keto diet for the last 6 months and I’m always looking for a sweet treat that won’t throw me out of ketosis. My husband and kids also loved these! The only problem is that we can’t keep them around for more than 12 hours! Thank you so much!
Corly says
I just made this and think I cooked the filling for too long as it became more crunchy than gooey. I will definitely try again though because it is still so good. Next time I will chop the pecans up a bit, mix them into the sugar/butter/vanilla mixture and then pour that over the shortbread crust. I think it will allow for more even coverage. Thanks so much for all your recipes!
Carolyn says
It’s supposed to be crunchy. Toffee is crunchy, not gooey and the recipe is designed to be like toffee.
Kelsey says
These look fantastic! I am love that they are low carb, I will have to try these out! Thanks so much for sharing!
Sheryl says
I made these this morning. I cannot find Swerve in my area, so used Pyure sweetener. After putting the crust in to bake I read the package and realized that it substitutes for sugar only needing to use half as much… And I read on the swerve website that Swerve is 1:1 so realized I’d used too much! So I cutback in the topping. . All things considered, this is a fabulous recipe! I’m already looking forward to making it again! I’m thinking of chopping up some of the pecans and baking them in with the crust next time. Thanks for a great recipe!
Carolyn says
So glad it worked with Pyure. I am surprised, I wouldn’t have thought it would!
Amy says
Parchment paper and I do not get along. Do you think spraying the pan with coconut oil would work just as well?
Carolyn says
I think you will have trouble getting them out but it’s up to you!
Christie Fine says
I saw this recipe yesterday on the Swerve site and I immediately made them. Oh my goodness they are good! Thank you for the wonderful recipe. I haven’t told you in a while but you are my hero.
Mary Coy says
Can you make this ahead? Does it need to be refrigerated?
Thanks!
Nancy says
Happy & Healthy New Year!
Can I use Splenda for this recipe?
Thank you for ALL that you do, you are a blessing to me, with Diabetes T2, been eating LC for 1 1/2 yrs, lost 60 lbs, reduced my diabetes meds in half, got off 2 cholesterol meds, off b/p meds ?
nancy says
ooops Duplicated my comment, sorry!
nancy says
Happy & Healthy New Year!
I LOVE your recipes, all delish ?
Can I make this with Splenda?
Thanks for ALL you do ???
Carolyn says
No, I am afraid Splenda would not work at all. It won’t caramelize.
Debra says
Happy New Year and thank you for this recipe! Looks wonderful!
Carolyn says
Hi, I ran out of my granulated Swerve… can I use confectioners Swerve instead? What would be the ratio? Thanks and Happy New Year!
Carolyn says
I think, can’t say for sure, that you can swap it in 1:1 and it *should* work. I hope!
Carolyn says
Thank you! I will try it!
Heather W says
I know this is an old post, but for anyone coming new to the site, confectioner’s Swerve does work 1:1. I had already made the crust before I realized I was out of granulated Swerve so figured I’d give it a try. Turned out great.
Lynn says
Hi, we just finished our annual family New Years dinner party. I made these for dessert. They were wonderful and very well received by the whole bunch! I offered Carb Smart vanilla ice cream on the side but I thought it was awesome on its own.
I used only whole pecans halves and I will use some pieces next time as some of the pecan halves did not stick as well as your photo looks. Thank you for helping us welcome 2016 with such a special (and easy) treat!
Carolyn says
Okay, that is very good feedback. Thanks!
Roxana says
I know what you mean, I feel like every time I make resolutions I end up not following them and just feel guilty later, so I’m all for skipping them! These toffee bars look so wonderful – what a sticky, gooey, crunchy treat for January! 🙂
Barb says
I’ve only been able to find powdered swerve – can that be used instead of the granulated? Or truvia?
Carolyn says
I think the powdered Swerve will work. The Truvia will definitely not.
Eugene says
Hi Carolyn.
Why would Truvia not work? According to their ingredients information, it is erythritol (the only ingredient of Swerve) plus traces of stevia extract.
Carolyn says
Because it’s more concentrated in sweeteners (2 to 3 times) compared to Swerve, which measures like sugar. Which means you wouldn’t get nearly enough of the toffee to cover the bars.
Eugene says
Hm, Sverwe’s own nutrition information says (here: http://www.swervesweetener.com/what-is-swerve/): “Erythritol: 5g for 5-gram serving”. So it is 100% erythritol.
Truvia – https://www.truvia.com/products/truvia-packets – says that 3-gram serving contains 3g erythritol. So it is also basically 100% erythritol.
I assume both have different mixtures to them, so to stand out among competition, but can it be that those trace amounts of other ingredients matter?
Carolyn says
No, they are not the same. Swerve measures exactly like sugar…so 5g (1 teaspoon) of Swerve = 5g (1 teaspoon) of sugar. Truvia is not 100% erythritol, because STEVIA has no carbs and no calories (and also no bulk or weight), so when you see 3g of erythritol, that’s the only thing that’s giving it carbs. And if 3g of Truvia = a serving, that means 3g of Truvia = 5g of sugar. So it is more concentrated.
I suggest you Google “Truvia equivalent to sugar” and you will see that it is suggested that you use 1/3 to 1/2 cup Truvia when trying to get the same sweetness. Please don’t underestimate the sweetness of stevia, it is intensely strong so while it may not make up much in terms of the WEIGHT of the product, it intensifies its sweetness a great deal.
If you were to use the equivalent amount of Truvia that I used Swerve in this recipe, it would be horribly sweet. Probably disgusting.
Eugene says
Now I get it. So you say that Truvia is more sweet than sugar and Sverwe, and therefore you need less truvia to achieve the same sweetness, and thus getting less bulk. Makes sense.
I tried your recipe with trivia anyway before I posted my first comment – I just don’t have anything else in my local ShopRite with erythritol. It is indeed very much sweet, but not disgusting 🙂
Will try with sverwe or pure erythritol next time.
Carolyn says
Yup, that’s what I was saying. Glad they weren’t awful but I definitely think they’d be too sweet for me!
Eugene says
Oh, and thanks for the explanation and for sharing your amazing recipes.
April Jenson says
Hi, I get mine from Lucky vitamin and It’s cheaper than on Amazon. They also carry lilys chocolate WAY cheaper. April
Angela Pickett says
I made these with walnuts instead of pecans. They were amazing! Fixing the second batch to share with co-workers tomorrow. Thanks for your recipes!
GLO says
I just made this – cooling as we speak. Maybe it’s because I used mostly whole pecans but some of the pecans are loose (not covered by the toffee) should I have used pieces instead of whole pecans?
Carolyn says
I did have a mix in mine so that may account for it. Hope it turns out all right. If not, let me know and I will amend the recipe. I did find that even my bigger pieces (I did half of each) stuck fine, except in a few places on the very edges.
TanYa says
Thanks for another one of your creative ideas; I love them all! I’ve been longing for a low carb version of pecan pie! This sounds pretty close, but how do the pecans stick to the crust? It doesn’t sound like the toffee is sufficient to do this?
Carolyn says
Oh yes, the toffee is sufficient to do it! 🙂
Leah says
Can’t wait to try this! Thanks for sharing.
Bobie Fredrikson says
Could you double the recipe and do a cake pan?
Carolyn says
I think your crust will be a little thicker that way, since the area doesn’t work out to exactly double but it should still be good. Maybe you should bake it a little longer. Just not too much…only when the edges are just beginning to brown.
Mer says
Took me 4x to get the caramel sauce right, and once I did, seemed like there was nowhere near enough to cover the whole thing, so now I have many pecans uncovered so you can just pick them right off. Wasted a lot of time and money 🙁
Carolyn says
I don’t know why the caramel would give you so much trouble, unless your pan is not very good and/or your heat was too high. And there absolutely IS enough to cover the whole thing, you have to drizzle it into every part – but if you dumped it into the centre, it may not. And once it bakes again, it spreads out. I have made these multiple times and never had these issues.
Staci says
Oh, you put this up just for me, right? LOL
This is my first holiday season as a diabetic and I have been longing for pecan pie!
A dear friend gave me a huge bag of the most beautiful & huge pecans I’ve ever seen and now I know exactly what do wth them. Thank you!!
Carolyn says
You’re welcome! Sorry it’s your first holiday as a diabetic but you can do this!
Guinan says
Hi Carolyn!
I’d looove to try making these, but Swerve Sweetener isn’t sold here in the Netherlands. Can I use plain erythritol instead? Or do you know how to “fake” Swerve?
Your recipes are amazing and I’m collecting a load of them for when I start my next attempt at losing some 40 lbs on Low Carb. Gathering courage and recipes for now.
Happy New Year to you and keep up the good work. You definately make a difference! 🙂
PS: do you use salted or non-salted pecans for this??
Carolyn says
Raw unsalted pecans for this and yes, you should be able to use plain erythritol for this. Good luck!
Brenda McNicol says
Guinan, are the Sukrin line of sweeteners available in the Netherlands? The mfgr is in Norway. Amazon carries Sukrin if you cannot find it in a store