Salted honey bars are made for honey lovers. Made with a brown sugar sort of shortbread crust, and topped with a creamy honey layer that gets crunchy on top, this Southern honey bar recipe with a touch of cornmeal was a hit with my crew! Plus they feed a crowd!
Every year about this time I am on the search for recipes using honey.
It is traditional to eat apples and honey for the Jewish New Year as we pray for a sweet new year.
I love honey and always love the tradition of dipping apples into honey. If you have never tried this you should.
As a child apples and honey was something we looked forward to every year. I even gave my kids apples and honey as a snack after school.
Apples and honey is a healthy snack they never turned down!
Table of contents
My honey cookies are a big hit with anyone at every time of year.
But this year I'm making these honey bars that truly serve a crowd.
Looking for a fun activity for the new year? Assemble a variety of honeys and taste them. You really can tell the difference between the varieties!
Fun idea: Did you know that if your honey crystallizes and you don't feel like melting it-just take the crystallized honey and blend it into honey powder that can then be used to sprinkle on or in anything!
A great hostess gift is gifting a variety of honeys.
More on Honey
In my opinion local honey is best. It is hard to know how honey is processed when it comes from other countries. Manuka honey from Australia and New Zealand is highly rated but stay away from Chinese honey which is often diluted with sugar syrup.
The most common honeys here are clover honey or wildflower honey.
Raw honey is taken directly from the beehive without filtering or heating. Once honey has been heated the glucose is cooked out of it which means it shouldn't crystallize however it loses any microbial properties it had.
Use about ⅔ cup of honey to 1 cup of sugar and reduce the liquid in the recipe by about ¼ cup. Also lower the oven temperature by 25 degrees and add ¼ t of baking soda per cup of honey to help balance the acidity of the honey. Honey is sweeter and adds a different flavor to any recipe that calls for sugar.
If the bees are collecting nectar from organic fields then it is. However some honey can still be organic but getting labeled organic is an expensive process. So often your honey can be organic, but can't be labeled as such.
Honey Bar Ingredients
There aren't too many strange things going on in this honey bar recipe but here's a few things to know.
Honey bars begin with a brown sugar shortbread like crust and are made in a 12 x 17" pan. So be prepared for a lot of bars!
Though the filling is made with a cup of honey it also requires cane syrup.
What is cane syrup?
Cane syrup is made from sugar cane juice.
Steen's and Lyle's are both common brands.
Where I live it is hard to find cane syrup, so corn syrup is often recommended as an alternative.
Corn syrup works, but keep in mind that the reason corn syrup is starting to get a bad rap is because it is an industrially made product from cornstarch!
It also has very little flavor except for adding sweetness where as cane syrup has more of a complex flavor.
Brown Butter - Makes this recipe very unique. Brown butter adds so much flavor and nuttiness to the filling. Brown butter isn't hard to make either! You will find that every time you melt butter you begin to wonder if you should let it brown. It is amazing on steamed veggies and even fish!
Cornmeal - Cornmeal adds a bit of texture and a slightly sweet taste.
Eggs - The eggs make the filling more of a custard though this is a solid filling that is still somewhat soft.
Apple cider vinegar - Vinegar helps thicken a heavy cream mixture, adds flavor and helps balance the cream. Lemon juice works also.
Maldon salt flakes - I use Maldon salt as a finishing salt. It is a flaky salt that is crunchy and clean tasting. Plus I think it looks pretty!
How To Make: Honey Bars Recipe
There are four main things to know about this recipe.
- It begins with the brown sugar crust. Not hard to make but you do need a crust for these honey bars.
- This recipe requires brown butter. Unless you don't feel like browning the butter. It really is optional but brown butter adds flavor and if you are going to the trouble to make this delicious bar cookie than just brown the butter. OK?
- After that it's blending the ingredients to make a custard. Pour it into the baked crust and salivate for about an hour. No mixer required. But you should have a good whisk!
- Don't forget to sprinkle with salt flakes!
How To Serve
Personally I love these with a big glass of milk. However now that I think about it, ice coffee would be awesome!
Last year I brought a cookie tray to our festival dinner and these were on the tray.
I have a great recipe for black and white cookies but I haven't posted the halvah cookies yet...
They can be frozen and will last about 3-7 days on the counter.
I say this because Colorado is very dry. However if you are in a warm, humid climate I would refrigerate them after about 3 days.
What else is there to know?
If you love honey and salty sweet confections you will love these honey squares.
I love crust and this crust makes me want these all on its own.
Plus the creamy center is great but as these brown butter cookie bars bake the top becomes crunchy.
This is another recipe from my favorite Southern baker. Thanks Cheryl Day!
You are truly dangerous!
What more can I say? Give them these honey bars recipe a try and let me know your thoughts!
And for more honey recipes just keep reading!
I'd love to hear if you make this recipe!
Please share a review or rate the recipe,
and be sure to tag me on social!
Recipe
Salted Honey Bars
- Prep Time: 25 Minutes
- Cook Time: 60 Minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
- Yield: 24 Bars 1x
- Category: Cookies/Bars
Description
If you love honey, you will love these bars. Made with a brown sugar sort of shortbread crust, and topped with a creamy honey layer that gets crunchy on top, these Southern honey bars with a touch of cornmeal were a hit with my crew! Plus they feed a crowd!
Ingredients
Brown Sugar Crust
4 ½ c unbleached all purpose flour
¾ c packed brown sugar
¾ t fine sea salt
1 lb unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
Honey Bar Filling
2 sticks unsalted butter, cut into cubes to help melt better
1 c sugar
⅔ c honey
¼ c cornmeal
2 t fine salt
6 large egg plus 2 large egg yolks beaten
1 c cane syrup
1 c heavy cream
1 T vanilla extract
4 t apple cider vinegar
Topping
2 t flaky sea salt, such as Maldon for sprinkling or to taste
Instructions
Place rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350. Lightly butter the bottom and sides of a 12 x 17" rimmed baking sheet and line with parchment leaving an overhang on two opposite sides of the pan.
In a large bowl use your hands or a fork to combine the flour, brown sugar and salt. Slowly drizzzle in the melted butter and stir with a fork until it looks moist and crumbly. Using your hands or fork, press the dough evenly over the bottom and up the sides on the baking sheet. Refrigerate for 15 minutes to set the crust.
Line the crust with parchment and fill with dried beans, rice or pie weights.. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until crust is set and lightly browned. Remove parchment and weights and set the crust on a wire rack to cool completely before filling.
Filling:
In a large skillet or saucepan melt the butter over medium-high heat, stirring with a heatproof spatula. Stir up the brown bits so they don't burn. The butter will begin to foam up. Continue cooking over medium heat until the butter turns golden. Butter will sputter but as soon as it smells nutty and irresistable and becomes quiet, remove from heat.
Scrape it and the brown bits into a large heatproof bowl. Let cool about 15 minutes.
Whisk the sugar, honey, cornmeal and sea salt into the browned butter. Add the beaten eggs and yolks, slowly whisking until everything is fully combined. Whisk in the cane syrup, cream, vanilla and vinegar, in that order until smooth.
Pour the filling into the baked crust. Bake for 40-45 minutes until the edges of the filling have puffed up and the center only wobbles slightly if jiggled.
Remove from oven and sprinkle with the flaky sea salt. Let cool on a wire rack for at least 3 hours before cutting into bars.
Store at room temperature for up to 3 days or longer.
Notes
Thank you Cheryl Day: Treasury of Southern Baking
Recipes Using Honey
Honey Glazed Chicken with Lemon and Olives
Whiskey Honey Cake (Zoe's Favorite!)
2pots2cook says
Ingredients promise this bars to become another keeper! Thanks Abbe! 🙂