Start a fun family tussle with Pecan Pie Brownies, a rich chocolaty brownie with a sweet pecan pie topping- it’ll be a mad dash for seconds!
Decadent and simple to make, Pecan Pie Brownies are a hit at Thanksgiving or any time of year! Using a brownie mix cuts down on time and ingredients, while stirring up the pecan pie topping only takes pecans, butter, corn syrup, sugar, and eggs for a truly memorable dessert.
Happy Little Squares
Some desserts were made to be together. Obviously, chocolate was made for everything delicious but pairing it with pecans has brought a new level of happiness to my life! Not only do we get to enjoy fudgy chocolate and a topping of crunchy, sweetened pecans, but this entire recipe is so simple to make. My kids love helping with all of the stirring and measuring but let’s be honest, they’re in it for the yummy reward! That’s ok, I am too.
Other Recipes to Serve with Pecan Pie Brownies
- Are you getting ready for Thanksgiving or just craving the best Sweet Potato Casserole, topped with crunchy pecans? This one is a must-make!
- Why not start the day in the best way possible – with more pecans! Caramel Apple and Pecan Pancakes are everything you dream about and more.
Ingredients
Brownies: Pick your favorite family-sized brownie mix so it will fill a 9×13 cake pan. Check the back of the box to see what additional ingredients you will need and get those as well.
Toppings: You will need pecans, corn syrup, granulated sugar, vanilla extract, eggs, and unsalted butter to make the pecan pie topping.
How to Make Pecan Pie Brownies
STEP ONE: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and grease a 9×13 baking dish. Prepare the brownies according to the directions on the box, and then pour the batter into the baking dish. Bake the brownies for 20 minutes or until the brownies are almost fully cooked but not completely.
STEP TWO: To make the topping, mix the eggs, corn syrup, sugar, butter, and vanilla extract in a medium bowl until everything is well-mixed. Stir in the pecans.
STEP THREE: After the brownies are mostly baked, pull the dish from the oven and pour the pecan pie topping over the top.
STEP FOUR: Bake the brownies for another 25 minutes and then remove them from the oven. Allow the brownies to cool completely before cutting and serving.
Tips for Success
- A family-sized brownie mix will fill a 9×13 cake pan. If you can’t find the family-size box, just pick up two boxes of regular-sized brownie mix. If you have a favorite homemade brownie recipe, you can also use that!
- When baking the brownies, you don’t want them fully cooked before placing the topping on, so pull them from the oven after they have been baking for 20 minutes or when they look almost done. Also, check the bake time on the back of the brownie mix box since cooking times can vary. You want to top the brownies 10 minutes before the directions say they should be done. This ensures a soft, perfectly cooked brownie but will also prevent the pecan pie topping from sinking.
- Chopped or whole pecans work for these brownies, so pick your favorite!
Do I have to use corn syrup in the topping?
Corn syrup is a great, cost-effective way to include a sweet syrup in recipes that require a lot of it but there are other syrups you can use. Agave syrup or maple syrup would be good choices in this recipe, as would honey. You need 1 1/2 cups of the syrup, so make sure you purchase enough bottles of agave, maple, or honey.
How long do these brownies last?
Fresh baked goods are always the best, but you can make these ahead of time and then keep them covered, either on the counter or in the refrigerator. These brownies will be good for up to four days on the counter, or you can freeze them after they have cooled completely for up to three months. If you freeze them, wrap them tightly in plastic wrap and then put them in a freezer bag or other container. Let the brownies thaw in the fridge, and then you can simply pop a piece in the microwave for a few seconds if you like them warm.
You won’t want to miss any of these amazing pecan recipes!
- Fudgy Chocolate Pecan Pie
- Pecan Pie Recipe
- Pecan Pie Cheesecake
- Salted Caramel & Pecan Thumbprint Cookies
- Mini Caramel Pecan Pumpkin Truffles
*This post was originally posted on 11/08/2017.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 box family-size brownie mix plus ingredients to prepare (see note)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 ½ cups corn syrup
- 4 eggs
- ¼ cup unsalted butter melted
- 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups pecans chopped or whole
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9-inch x 13-inch baking pan (glass or metal) and set aside.
- Prepare the brownie batter according to package directions. Pour the brownie batter into the prepared baking pan.
- Bake for 20 minutes (or 10 minutes less than the package directions indicate).
- While the brownies bake, mix together the sugar, corn syrup, eggs, butter, and vanilla in a medium mixing bowl. Stir in pecans.
- After brownies have partially baked, remove the pan from the oven and pour the pecan pie filling over the top. Spread the topping into an even layer.
- Place the brownies back in the oven and bake for 25 to 35 minutes or until the filling only jiggles slightly in the middle when you move the pan.
- Remove the brownies from the oven and let cool to room temperature before cutting into 20 squares.
Angela Perez says
I used only 1 box of brownie mix in a 13×9 pan baked for 18mins to set up but not fully cooked.
Made the pecan mixture w/only 1/2 cup sugar (because corn syrup is sweet enough) & poured on semi baked brownie w/o it sinking to the bottom. I baked for 28 mins (watching it & checking occasionally to make sure it browned well & center was slightly jiggly.).
Turned out perfectly delicious!!
Dakota1200 says
It took several tries but these Brownies are Delicious. I have made them 3 times.
1st try: MUSHY MESS (Followed recipe exactly). Tasted good, just had to eat it with a spoon. It was
AMAZING spooned over Vanilla Bean Ice Cream.
2nd try: Much better consistency. Baked Brownies an additional 10 minutes. (35 minutes total) before
adding pecan pie topping. Brownie still didn’t hold together when sliced. (Completely cooled)
3rd try YUMMY… Baked the Brownies 45 minutes before adding Pecan Pie topping. FINALLY, the
brownies were cooked enough to integrate with the Pecan Pie topping BUT also support it.
This time the Ice Cream went on top…
Heather says
are the measurements 11/2 for the corn syrup and vanilla extract accurate? Or is it a typo? Thanks
Jennifer Kimmel says
Hello Heather! This is correct
Pg13 says
I used the family size dark chocolate mix (18.2 oz I believe) Cooked it the required 21-23 minutes. They looked and tested done. Let them cool while I made the pecan pie topping. Poured that on and baked for 25 minutes. The brownies dissolved. Baked it again 3 times (each for 20 minutes). Still uncutable. Tried baking the same batch 2 times the next day ( once for 20 and once for 25 minutes). Could now slice and scoop out brownies, but no way were they able to be eaten by hand. The pecan pie filling was on the top and bottom of the brownies. I served them in litter bowls. They tasted good. But way too much trouble; recipe didn’t work. Maybe too much caro syrup. Won’t make them again.
King4PR says
WOW was MY response and everyone who tried it – WOW WOW WOW! When I made the brownies, I substituted bourbon where it called for water (I think it was about 1 cup total or whatever the recipe called for). Then I added another cup of bourbon to the pecans. It was a very subtle flavor but absolutely delicious! I will 100 percent be making this again, it’s to die for!
Carol Fritzley says
I just made the recipe and very disappointed. Felt like I should have let the brownies cool before adding the topping as it all settled to the bottom as the brownies were still hot. let cool completely but the middle was just mush.
Very expensive to have this happen wont make it again
l
Elizabeth says
I would love to try this recipe. They look so good
Kim says
Can’t even get the page top load fully because of all of the ads and trackers on this site. Ghostery counts 118 so far with more popping up. Sends all kinds of requests back and forth from slow tracking and ad vendors. Kind of a ridiculous level, doncha think?
Jennifer Kimmel says
So sorry Kim! Hope its working better for you now.
Lisa Jones says
Cooked for 30 minutes. Let cool for 15. Added the topping. Cooked for 40 minutes. The brownie mix is still like goo. So sad these didn’t turn out. Should have read the comments first instead of just looking at it on Facebook. Lesson learned.
Jackie says
I’ve made these brownies for the first time about a month ago for our wine gathering with our dear friends. We all enjoyed the brownies so much that I’m making them now for my husband for Father’s Day. Very delicious and delightful! 💕
Aubrey Cota says
So happy to hear that! Thank you, Jackie.
Shelley says
Made these and they are delicious! This a great way to dress up your regular brownies.
Aubrey Cota says
Thank you, Shelley!
Nelda Rodriguez says
Did anyone make cake like brownies? Even though there are a lot of bad reviews, I still want to try making it. ?
Tami says
Thank you. Yours was the most helpful comment. The recipe printed on this page is pretty awful. No such thing as a 40-oz. brownie mix. I will use one family size mix , 18.2 oz, let brownie mixture cool before adding pecan pie mixture, and hope for the best. Because the posted recipe was so unclear, I won’t look for more recipes here.
JTMire says
Very disappointed. I also used 2- 20 ounce packages. And center was NOT COOKED! Please recheck you recipe before posting to make sure everything is correct. Pecans are VERY expensive!!! Will never look for a recipe on this site again.
Ashley says
I read the comments before I attempted this recipe- and it came out AWESOME.
I used ONE family size Betty Crocker dark chocolate brownie mix (I think it was about 19.9 ounces) in a 13×9 glass pan. They didn’t come out as thick as the pictures this way, but they were at least fully cooked.
I used butter to coat the sides, but it was still pretty sticky. I would probably use parchment paper next time. I also used pecan halves and chopped them myself instead of buying the pre-chopped pecans. They came out bigger this way, and looked nicer on top.
I followed the rest of the directions precisely, making sure the brownies were pretty much fully cooked (30 minutes in the oven) before I poured the pecan pie mix on top. I also let the brownies cool for about 30 minutes before I poured the filling over, to prevent the eggs from cooking on top of the brownie (it worked). I put it back in the oven for 40 minutes. Make sure you let it cool completely before consuming, it holds it’s shape much better when cooled.
Ooey gooey goodness! This was a hit at my family’s Thanksgiving dinner 🙂
Angela says
Thanks Ashley for making it crystal clear and correct. I will use your info when making these 😊
Hannah says
These are very poor instructions. I poured the pie filling over the brownies after 35 minutes in the oven and it sunk through. The brownies are completely ruined. Please update the cooktime on these so this can be a usable recipe.
Lindsey says
I followed the recipe exactly and it was ruined. The pecan mix sank to the bottom and it all turned into soup. I am so upset.
Christyn says
I tried this recipe out last night for Thanksgiving – followed everything exactly, but it looked a bit runny when I took it out. I hoped it just needed to cool and would firm up after a few hours, but it didn’t. I put it back in for about a half hour and it got a bit better, but still not firm at all. I cut into it and found the brownies hadn’t even cooked, and the pecan mixture was seeping into it. I ended up having to cook it for another hour or so for it to even resemble brownies. They still ended up tasting really good, but the cooking times were way off – I probably ended up cooking them for somewhere around 3-4 hours altogether. I’d make it again, but would definitely have to change the timing a bit!
Jillian says
These look delicious! I’m going to make them for thanksgiving!! Just to clarify, this recipe calls for 4 eggs in addition to the eggs that the brownie mix calls for?
So if the family size brownie mix calls for 4 eggs, I will need 8 eggs total?
Thank you!!
Aubrey Cota says
You will mix the brownie mix as instructed per the box, then you will use the other 4 eggs listed for the pecan topping. Hope that helps to clear that up. Thank you.
Stephanie says
What kind of corn syrup did you use? Dark or light? Plan on making these for Thanksgiving!!
Aubrey Cota says
Quite honestly you can use whichever you prefer. While light is typically used when a delicately sweet flavor is desired, such as in fruit sauces and jams and dark has a more robust flavor and color, it is ideal for many baked goods. Keep in mind these are on the rich side so it’s left up to you to decide.
Anna says
This recipe was AWFUL. As everyone has already stated, the brownies did not cook all the way through. The pecans sank to the bottom. I was left with soup that no one could eat. This was a $30 grocery trip I could have definitely done without.
Julie says
I made this recipe today and it was a disaster. The pecan filling absorbed and sunk into the brownies. Aside from being a gooey mess, it tasted awful. I used Ghirardelli Brownie mix which is usually everyone’s favorite. The pecan pie filling changed the chocolate flavor and the brownie tasted “off”. I threw them out. The filling was not a good taste and putting it on top of the brownie turned it into an awful tasting mess.
Erika says
We mad these too and they didn’t cook at all… goopy mess.