My oldest “baby”, Hayden, just turned 22 and as he wasn’t home for a traditional birthday celebration with cake this year, I decided to bake him a batch of these amazing brownies to enjoy when he returned from college for Thanksgiving. They are a slight twist on an Alice Medrich recipe from her fab book, Seriously Bitter Sweet: The Ultimate Dessert Maker’s Guide to Chocolate
I’m sure these are delightful with a thinner layer of brownie on the bottom, but I dare say that going ALL the way was a brilliant move on my part. As a lover of both rich, fudgy brownies and pecan pie, I’m having a hard time imagining a more perfect sweet nosh than these bars. They are SO freakin’ good….and yes, Hayden concurs with that assessment. Happy Birthday, big guy! Cheers – Dad
Ingredients
for the brownie base:
- 10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter
- 1 1/4 cup sugar
- 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder (natural or dutch-process)
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 cold, large eggs
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour (unsifted, measure by stirring briefly, spooning into the measuring cup until it's heaped above the rim, then leveling it with a straight-edged knife or spatula)
- 2/3 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)
for the pecan pie topping:
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons lightly packed brown sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cups chopped pecans
Instructions
for the brownie base:
- Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and heat the oven to 350℉. Line the bottom and sides of a 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper or foil (or use a silicone pan, sprayed with baking spray like I did), leaving an overhang on two opposite sides.
- Combine the butter, sugar, cocoa, and salt in a medium heatproof bowl and set the bowl in a wide skillet of barely simmering water. Stir from time to time until the butter is melted and the mixture is smooth and hot enough that you want to remove your finger fairly quickly after dipping in to test. remove the bowl from the skillet and set aside briefly until the mixture is only warm, not hot.
- Stir in the vanilla with a wooden spoon. Add the eggs one at a time, stirring vigorously after each one. When the batter looks thick, shiny and well blended, add the flour and stir until you cannot see it any longer, then beat vigorously for 40 strokes with the wooden spoon or a rubber spatula. Spread evenly in the lined pan.
for the pecan pie topping:
- Mix the flour and baking soda well and set aside.
- Combine the melted butter, sugar and salt in a medium bowl. Stir in the egg yolk and vanilla, then the flour mixture, and finally the nuts.
to finish the brownies:
- Drop spoonfuls of the pecan pie mix over the brownie layer in the pan (they will spread and cover the brownie evenly during baking).
- Bake until the edges of the topping are well browned and cracked, and a toothpick plunged into the center emerges slightly moist with batter, 20-25 minutes (mine were perfectly done at 20 minutes). Let cool completely on a cooling rack.
- Lift up the ends of the parchment or foil liner, and transfer the brownies to a cutting board. Cut into 16 or 25 squares.