Pecan pie

NYT Pecan Pie Brownies

| Micki Paugh

I bring you to another one of my mail ready recipes! This was another one of the recipes that I tested out for mailing and according to the recipients, they made it through beautifully! I think the key to mail-able baked goods is both density and freezing! I made these twice because I made a few mistakes the first time. The second time that I made them was about a week before I mailed them and once they were cooled, I froze them in ziplock baggies until I was ready to ship them. Even from Baltimore, they only took two days to make it to the recipients on the West Coast which was fantastic! I was really excited to make these because they combine brownies and pecan pie, two of my favorite baked goods! I found these as a I was going through the New York Times Cooking website. I’ve featured a couple of their recipes now and I cannot stress how much I love their cooking section. In an effort to keep the New York Times alive, the cooking section was monetized and a subscription costs about $45 a year. If you’re able to pay, it is absolutely worth it. Some of their cooking recipes can be hard and unnecessarily complicated but I’ve found that the variety and quantity of recipes is unmatched. This specific recipe is from Melissa Clark, one of the many wonderful writers for the food section. These brownies took a little time to perfect but are a wonderful afternoon treat! As I’ll share below, the first time I made them was a little bumpy but I got the hang of it by the second time.

So what went wrong the first time that I made this? A couple things but the biggest issue was the pan size. This recipe calls for a 8 inch square pan, the typical brownie pan. However, the closest thing that I have to an 8 inch square pan is my 9 inch cake rounds. Instead of buying yet another pan, I decided to make the brownies in my rectangular cake pan (8 by 13) which caused them to burn pretty badly because I misjudged the baking time with the thinner layer of brownies in a larger pan. The second time, I used my nine inch cake rounds and cut the brownies into squares once they had cooled a little bit. I also didn’t bake as long on round two because I was worried about burning them. The original recipe said to bake up to 55 minutes for the topping to set. I only baked for fifty minutes and found the fudge-y texture of the brownies to be so yummy that I didn’t want to bake it any longer. Because I chose not to bake it as long, the pecans were liable to coming loose. So a bit of a trade-off but one that didn’t affect my brownies too much after I froze them. I also found the recipe to a be a little bitter both times I made it. The brownie batter itself is very sweet but the topping wasn’t. It may have been because I used whole milk rather than heavy cream in the topping and I think you may have better results if you add an additional tablespoon or two of light brown sugar. So let me know how it goes for you in the comments below and happy baking!

NYT Pecan Pie Brownies Recipe

For the Brownies

  • 115 grams (1/2 cup, 1 stick) unsalted butter,
  • 115 grams (4oz) unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
  • 250 grams (1 /4 cup) granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs, at room temperature
  • 130 grams (1 cup+ a lil more) all purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 45 grams (1/4 cup) semisweet chocolate chips

For the Pecan Layer Topping

  • 85 grams (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted
  • 60 milligrams (1/4 cup) honey
  • 55 grams (1/4 cup) light brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons heavy cream (I used whole milk, if you do so, add another tablespoon of sugar)
  • 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 200 grams (2 cups) toasted pecans halves, roughly chopped
  1. Heat an oven to 350F. Put the pecans onto a large sheet pan and roast for 8 minutes or until you can smell the nuts. Set on a rack and let cool.
  2. Once ready to bake, heat oven to 350F. Grease and line an 8 inch square pan with two inches of excess parchment on each side to help lift out the brownies once they’re baked.
  3. To make the brownies, place the butter and chocolate into a medium pot and place on the stove over low heat. Melt, stirring constantly. Once melted, scrape into a large bowl and mix in the granulated sugar. Let sit until cool to the touch, 4-5 minutes.
  4. Once cooled, whisk the eggs into the chocolate mixture. Whisk in the flour, cocoa powder, vanilla, and salt. Mix in chips and scrape into the prepared pan. Smooth over the batter into an even layer and set aside.
  5. Make the pecan layer by whisking together the melted butter, honey, brown sugar, heavy cream, and fine sea salt. Fold in the pecans until well coated. Once mixed, pour pecan mixture in an even layer over the brownie batter.
  6. Sprinkle lightly with flaky sea salt and bake until the top is set and firm to the touch, 45-55 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack to cool completely before cutting into 16 squares.
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Mini-Pecan Pies

| Micki Paugh

These are so good that one did not even make it to the plate for a photo. The day after I baked these, they were GONE! They are so good and I cannot wait to share the recipe! I found these after searching around for fall desserts on the New York Times Cooking App and came across these darlings! On their app, they’re called Pecan Tassies and are meant to be similar to a bite-size cookie. I ended up modifying the recipe slightly and making them much larger for a more satisfying bite and now I’m calling them mini-pecan pies! I love pecan pie and it’s one of my favorite foods that we have around the holidays. It’s also the favorite pie of my father whose birthday falls around Thanksgiving time. This year, I wanted to make these for our scaled down gathering and they have already been a big hit with my boyfriend. I can’t wait to make these for my whole family over the holidays!

I made a couple of modifications to the original recipe that really make all the difference. My recipe makes about ten cupcake sized pecan pies which I baked in a single muffin tin using reusable muffin liners. You can also make these in a mini-muffin pan that produces quite a few more so it’s your choice. The baking time doesn’t vary so you can’t go wrong either way. The dough that holds the pecan pie goo is quite soft and should be handled as quickly as possible so it doesn’t get tough or melt all over your hands. I added a tablespoon of maple sugar to my recipe which more than the two teaspoons of sugar from the original recipe but the addition makes the mini pies truly delectable. If you don’t have maple sugar, you can use regular granulated sugar or look for some maple sugar in stores. In my post “Maple Shortbread Cookies” I also include instructions for how to make maple sugar from maple syrup which you can always do as long as you have Grade A maple syrup around. The pecan pie goo is delicious but make sure your butter is truly melted before you mix it. When I was making my mini pies, I didn’t melt it as well as I should have and ended up with butter chunks that I slowly had to melt while trying not to cook the egg that I had already beaten in! As long as your butter and cream cheese are close to room temperature, it’s a super easy and quick recipe to whip together. Happy baking!

Mini-Pecan Pie Recipe

For the Crust

  • 85 grams (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 123 grams (4 oz) cream cheese at room temperature
  • 1 tablespoon maple sugar (or granulated sugar if that’s all you have)
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 128 grams (1 full cup) All Purpose flour

For the Filling

  • 1 large egg
  • 78 grams (1/4 cup) maple syrup
  • 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
  • 28 grams (2 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 66 grams (2/3 cup) pecan halves, finely chopped
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 and spray a dozen non stick muffin cups.
  2. Make the dough. Beat together the butter, cream cheese, sugar, and salt until creamy. Beat in the flour until the dough just comes together. Portion out the dough and press into a cup shape in the muffin tin.
  3. Make the filling by whisking together all the ingredients except the pecans.
  4. Sprinkle the pecans inside the crust in each of the cups before you add in the filling to evenly distribute the pecans. You’ll use 2 or more tablespoons per crust.
  5. Bake until the filling is set and the crust is brown 20-27 minutes (the original recipe went to 25 but I needed two extra minutes so go to 27 if your oven takes its time when baking stuff)
  6. Remove the tin from the oven and let cool on a wire rack for at least ten minutes. After ten minutes, remove the pies from the muffin tin and let cool on the wire rack. Once cooled, eat with a little whipped cream on top for a truly decadent mouthful!