Bourbon Pecan Brownies
These Bourbon Pecan Brownies are a new favorite in our house! These chewy, chocolatey brownies are topped with a brown sugar + bourbon + pecan frosting…and the result is delicious!
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I put brownies in the same category as chocolate chip cookies. The number of different recipe variations is virtually endless. Take brownies for instance: chewy or cakey? Nuts or no nuts? If nuts, what kind? Frosted or unfrosted? I could keep on going here, but you get the point. For me, I like a good chewy brownie with nuts. I don’t typically reach for a frosted brownie…but then again, I don’t typically make a bourbon pecan frosting!
For these Bourbon Pecan Brownies, I started with my favorite brownie recipe and then finished it off with a bourbon + pecan + brown sugar frosting. Oh man, this recipe is a keeper! Are you a fan of bourbon? Bourbon is a uniquely American liquor…in fact, to be called bourbon, it must be made in the US. This is similarly to how scotch must be made in Scotland. (All bourbons and scotches fall under the broader ‘whiskey’ category, though.)
Is it just me, or has the bourbon market exploded in the past 5-10 years? I feel like there used to be a few choices at the store, but now there is an entire wall dedicated to different bourbons. I’m ok with that! Laura and I occasionally enjoy picking out a random bottle at the store, and we’ve discovered several of our favorite bourbons that way. While that bourbon typically gets consumed on a weekend evening in the basement, every once in a while I might steal a splash for a recipe. Laura certainly didn’t mind that I borrowed a couple teaspoons for these Bourbon Pecan Brownies!
Bourbon Pecan Brownies
Bourbon Pecan BrowniesEven if you’re not a huge bourbon fan, I suspect you’ll enjoy these Bourbon Pecan Brownies! One of our friends isn’t a big bourbon guy, and he enjoyed these brownies. The bourbon adds an extra layer of flavor to the frosting, but it’s not overpowering at all. If you know it’s bourbon, then you’ll be able to pick out the flavor for sure, though.
Either way, chewy chocolate brownies topped with brown sugar + bourbon frosting come together to create a dessert recipe that’s worth keeping! Bookmark it. Print it out. Screen shot. Do whatever you do. Just try not to eat the entire batch at once, ok? (Although I won’t judge you if you do.) Cheers, friends! Oh, and if you make these brownies at home, come back and share your thoughts. Or just snap a photo and tag me on Instagram (@Spicedblog).
Love brownies? Check out some of these other favorites, too!
Black Forest Brownie Pie
Samoa Brownies
Cheesecake Swirled Brownies
German Chocolate Brownies
Strawberry Cheesecake Brownies
Bourbon Pecan Brownies
Ingredients
For Brownies
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 4 oz. semisweet chocolate
- 1¾ cups semisweet chocolate chips divided
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
- ⅔ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ Tbsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- ¾ cup chopped pecans
For the Bourbon Pecan Frosting
- ⅓ cup heavy cream
- 4 Tbsp unsalted butter
- ⅔ cup brown sugar
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup chopped pecans
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tsp bourbon
Instructions
For Brownies
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Grease and flour a 9”x13” baking pan. Line bottom parchment paper (see note); set pan aside.
- Using a medium saucepan, add the butter, chocolate and 1 cup of chocolate chips. Place over medium-low heat, stirring often, until butter and chocolate have fully melted; set pan aside to cool.
- Using a large bowl, mix together the eggs, sugar and vanilla. Stir the egg mixture into the warm chocolate mixture.
- Using a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Stir the flour mixture into the chocolate mixture.
- Stir the chopped pecans and remaining ¾ cup of chocolate chips into the batter.
- Pour batter into prepared baking pan. Bake at 350°F for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the brownies comes out mostly clean.
- Let brownies cool completely before frosting.
For the Bourbon Pecan Frosting
- Using a medium saucepan, add cream, butter and both sugars. Place over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture begins to boil. Continue boiling for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
- Remove pan from heat and stir in remaining ingredients (pecans, powdered sugar, vanilla extract and bourbon); let mixture cool for 5 minutes.
- Spread frosting evenly over brownies. Let cool for 1 hour, or until frosting has fully set.
Brown sugar bourbon frosting!!! I think I could eat that all by itself! 🙂 I’m sure it’s even better paired with the brownies though. These look amazing!
Oh man, that frosting is seriously tasty, Kathy! I typically enjoy just drinking my bourbon, but I’ve gotta say that bourbon is a fun addition to desserts…and frosting! These brownies didn’t last long around here!
I had no idea bourbon had to be made in the US to be called bourbon. That’s so interesting! I love the flavor of bourbon but it’s something I rarely think to add to desserts; for some reason I always lean toward liqueurs in baking. But I’m totally trying these–I love a frosted brownie!
Yup, bourbon is an American thing. Otherwise, it’s whiskey. You know what’s funny? In Scotland, Scotch is called whiskey. I mean it is Scotch whiskey, after all. Anywho, I typically enjoy just drinking my bourbon, but it’s also a lot of fun to put a splash of bourbon in a dessert! These brownies didn’t last very long at all around here! 🙂
I think these brownies are in a class all on their own. Seriously! These sound and look like they would be dangerous to be around, lol. Love that bourbon pecan frosting! Pinned 🙂
Haha! Thank you so much, Dawn! I love a good brownie, but then add a bourbon pecan frosting on top? Oh yeah, that’s where I need to be! Thanks so much, my friend!
Hi David! I’m with you on chewy brownies with nuts! Then to top them with bourbon frosting just takes them to a whole new level! I don’t drink bourbon, but I occasionally cook with it. Like bread pudding with bourbon sauce or chocolate bourbon truffles.
Everyone has their own favorite brownie. I get it. But for me, that’s a chewy brownie with pecans. Walnuts are acceptable if pecans aren’t available. I do enjoy drinking bourbon, and I also agree with you that bourbon is fun to cook with, too! A good bourbon sauce is really hard to beat. I’m thinking a bourbon caramel sauce drizzled over ice cream might need to happen. Think how good that would be! 🙂
I need to try these brownies! Making soon. Thank you for sharing with us. BTW just a quick question David, can I use anything else instead of eggs or can I avoid the same for this recipe. 🙂
Hmmm…that’s a good question about the eggs here, Puja. To be honest, I’ve only ever made this brownie recipe using the eggs. However, I’ve seen some eggless brownie recipes out there. You might start with one of those and then add the frosting from there. It’s worth a shot! 🙂
Loving thes brownies David. I mean I’m a huge brownie fan anyway but with bourbon in and topped with a pecan frosting? Yes please! You would have to hide that bourbon bottle from me after making these though. That would be too temping to me to have it left out…….. 😉
Haha! You’re totally right about hiding that bourbon bottle, Neil. I poured out a little too much bourbon when I was making these brownies. (Accident? I think not!) Needless to say, it didn’t go back into the bottle. 🙂 But these brownies are delicious in their own right! Thanks so much, my friend!
When it comes to brownies, it’s pretty easy for me because perfect brownies must meet the following criteria: 1. Chewy. 2. Nuts. Loaded with nuts. A mix of nuts is acceptable. A combination of nuts and dried fruit is acceptable (but npt preferable) 3. Unfrosted because they’re sweet enough without extra sugar… But wait, I don’t think I’ve ever tried a frosted brownies. Don’t worry though – this recipe sounds and looks perfect despite the frosting. Indeed it looks that a great addition. Besides, you cannot go wrong with a pecan – bourbon frosting, right? Delicious, my friend!
I’m pretty close to you on our brownie preferences, Ben. Chewy is a must…otherwise it’s just chocolate cake. Nuts is a definite, too. Pecans are my first choice, but walnuts are acceptable, too. I might have to differ on the dried fruit only because I don’t love fruit + chocolate. (I know, I know…call me strange!) But don’t sleep on a good frosted brownie! They’re delicious. And this bourbon + pecan frosting is good enough to eat with a spoon…not that I did that or anything. Haha!
When I saw these in your Instagram feed I had to come over immediately to check out the recipe. Boy are these are kind of treat!! I need to whip up a batch of them to share at this Sunday’s Super Bowl party!
Why thank you so much, Marissa! I normally don’t do frosted brownies, but when that frosting contains bourbons and pecans? Well, I have to do frosted brownies then! 🙂 I hope you had a great weekend, my friend!
Bourbon Pecan Brownies, what a good idea. When I read the title I knew I remembered this frosting. Then when I read the recipe I remembered that my grandmother used to make a spice cake with a similar frosting and studded with pecans. I haven’t thought of that cake for years, but now I can almost taste the frosting.
Having lived in bourbon country (Woodford County, KY) for 10 years, I can attest to the boom in the biz. Me, I’ll always be a Woodford Reserve type of bourbon drinker.
Ohhh, I love a good spice cake, Ron. I often make one around the holidays, but I just didn’t get around to it this year. (I suspect it got replaced with packing boxes for the move. That’s not a good trade-off!) I’m more than a little jealous that you lived in bourbon country, too. Have you ever tried Woodfood’s Double Oaked? That’s our #1 go-to bourbon for drinking around here! I’ll cook with other stuff, but for drinking? It’s the double oaked! Cheers, my friend!
David you are on a roll with these buttercreams and frostings! First I saw that marshmallow buttercream and now this bourbon pecan frosting! I am a bourbon lover for sure and I think I could eat this frosting with a spoon – hold the brownie – though together they sound divine as well!
Haha…thanks so much, Shashi! What can I say? I love frostings and buttercreams! 🙂 I also happen to love bourbon. While I normally just drink my bourbon straight, I had fun with this bourbon pecan frosting on top of brownies. There is so much yumminess going on here! Thanks so much, my friend!
I’m dying over these David, the texture looks amazing, and your photos are stunning!
Why thank you so much, Sue! These brownies turned out quite well, and I’ve gotta say that I’m a fan of baking with bourbon. 🙂 Hope your week is off to a great start, my friend!
Should the brownies be cooled completely before frosting? My baking spidey-senses say yes, but the recipe doesn’t specify.
Hey Meg! Yes, I would recommend letting the brownies cool completely before frosting…otherwise you might end up with the brownies tearing apart. They’d still taste delicious, but they might not look so hot. 🙂 I hope you enjoy these as much as I do! (Also, I just adjusted the recipe to let the brownies cool…thanks for pointing this out.)
Thank you!!
A good quality bourbon mixes well with pecans! Loving brownies, your fabulous pictures caught me eye. They look delicious and I can’t wait to try out your recipe. Thanks for sharing.
I couldn’t agree more! Bourbon + pecans is a great combination…and even better when you throw some brownies in the mix! 🙂