Chef John’s Pecan Pie Brownies Recipe

I made these tonight. Followed the directions explicitly. Let them cool for 30 minutes, then into the refrigerator for about an hour. When I began to cut them into pieces, they crumbled. Just about every one other just crumbled. The flavor and texture is fantastic, but why did they all fall apart Chef? What was my error? Gave them a 4 star for the flavor, but the crumbling is not good.

I have never found Chef John to fail me. Literally every recipe I have tried has been fantastic, and this is no exception. These came out amazing - a perfect contrast in texture and flavor of the brownie and the pecan pie topping. I was forced to use to bread loaf pans instead of an 8 by 8 because they were all I had available. I cooked the brownie base for 20 minutes and the base with topping for 45 minutes. I let them cool 30 minutes and then put them in the fridge. They came right off of the parchment that I had sprayed with butter non-stick. They also cut nicely. I did however use chopped pecans that were on the smaller size (not roughly chopped, but with a nut grinder). Anyway - I fully expect I will gain 5 pounds this week, and it will be 100% worth it!

Holy mackerel, these bad boys are RICH. Super fudgy brownie base with a caramelly pecan pie topping—fabulous. I’m a salty-sweet lover, so I increased the salt to a teaspoon in each the base and the topping. To my palette, they were perfect. They are, however, quite messy. Use plenty of parchment paper and nonstick spray as recommended in the recipe. I also recommend using a serrated knife to cut them, but refrigerate them first to make them a little firmer. ALSO, mine were ready after just 45 minutes after adding the pecan pie topping—stay nearby and use your nose to smell if the sugar starts burning. My first batch got burnt to a crisp when I left them in for the full hour. 🙁

These are dense, fudgy brownies with an almost dark chocolate flavor due to the amount of cocoa. I cooked the brownie base 20 minutes and pecan pie topping for an hour. These brownies are easy to make, but the critical step is cooling the brownie adequately before cutting. I cooled them for 12 hours in the refrigerator before cutting. Six days later the leftover brownies tasted great too.

I got lazy and used box mix brownies but they still turned out pretty well, followed the directions otherwise. They weren't too sweet and were very gooey, even though they were in the oven so long. I used an instant read thermometer and checked the pecan pie filling done-ness that way. Google says pecan pie is done at either 185° or 200°. I temped mine at 50 min and the temp was 210°. Sure enough, only the slightest jiggle in the center. I will cook it for less time next time, try to keep the edges from getting rock hard. I attached a bad picture in poor lighting of my final product, displayed artfully on a paper plate.

This pecan pie brownie recipe was wonderful , I doubled the recipe and used a 12 by 16 inch pan , and it was amazing , shortened the baking time for the pecan layer , Total crowd pleaser , not too sweet, just perfect.I will be making them for thanksgiving also.

All in all it is a brilliant recipe! I don’t like brownies OR peanut butter 😝 BUT my friends and neighbors are fans of both and they wished I’d made more! I actually made it for them. They are very fudge like in the brownie part and I used parchment in a pan to freeze the peanut butter and lift it out easily with the parchment. It was so easy to lay on top of the brownie part being frozen; then top with the layer of the rest of the brownie mixture. It really is super rich and decadent! I ate a piece and it’s definitely delicious and milk was sooo good afterwards.

So rich, definitely give them more than a half hour to cool before cutting. Other wise you'll end up with a pecan brownie crumble

Fantastic! Amazingly good. Follow the instructions exactly. However, I reduced the amount of cocoa in the brownie base. 7/8 cup is too strong. I used 1/3 cup. Excellent brownie base, excellent pecan pie top, and very easy. Keep chilled.

Epic fail!! I followed the instructions exactly as written, and clearly cooking the brownies the second time for 1 hour is way, way too long. They were burnt, could barely get them out of the pan, and just plain inedible. It was a waste of my time and the money I paid for the ingredients!!

I’ve made these several times and they’ve always been a hit. We have a 9x9 pan and reduced final cook by 10 min.

I didn’t expect it to come out this perfect.

Recipe was very easy to follow and the brownie was so moist and delicious. This was a first non-traditional dessert for my family but it was a winner. Will definitely make again.

I made twice exact as recipe thinking maybe I did something wrong first time, and still did not come out right. Taste is great but they crumble when tying to slice! If not presentable for company I will not make again ! No matter how good won’t make again

I very seldom leave a review. These decadent bites are worth every calorie.

I won't lie, I used a box brownie mix. I stayed with the gooey recipe. In the future I will make it more cake like. It was a HUGE hit on Thanksgiving.

As a lover of chocolate and pecan pie these hybrid brownies are a huge hit for me. Right away one of my personal favorite homemade desserts. The textures are sublime with the glossy, fudgy brownie and the rich, soft candied pecans. Neither the brownie or the pecan pie filling are too sweet, the addition of the salt is subtle and adds a layer of complexity. I followed the instructions exactly. I checked the final bake at 45 minutes and they were already done with just barely a jiggle in the middle. Then they went in the fridge overnight. 👌 Super easy and absolutely fantastic. I'll be making these for many fall and holiday occasions.

I liked it, but I used maple syrup instead of HFCS. It was popular at Thanksgiving, and I hope it will be at Christmas also. it's still cooling, so I have not sliced it yet.

This was such a dud for me. Love the concept of the recipe, but when I followed the directions, they were so over done. Brownies were hard (to the point where I literally knocked on them!) and the pecan top was very tough and chewy. This is even with my oven that runs slightly under temp, and with me taking them out at the 55 minute mark. Darn! 😕

First of all, I would never use oil to prepare the parchment paper. It smelled like fish after the baking!!! I would use unsalted butter. it tastes much better than cooked oil! I followed the instructions and my fudge wasn't really cooked enough in the center, but the pecan pie crust was well done and difficult to cut even with a serated bread knife. It tasted terrific! So I am not sure where I went wrong in the preparation.