The BEST Pecan Pie Brownies

These Pecan Pie Brownies are gooey, delicious and with a fudgey and crinkly brownie base and topped with a candied pecan pie topping for the ultimate gluten-free holiday dessert.

These Pecan Pie Brownies will forever change the dessert game. They are simply delicious and made with a fudgey brownie base (using my popular brownie recipe) then they’re topping with my pecan pie bar topping. There is really nothing not to love about them.

The edges get crispy and crunchy from the pecan mixture and the center is gooey and delicious. These make for such a good holiday dessert to serve or gift to someone too. I love keep them in the freezer too. They’re so good frozen!

I have been on a roll sharing new dessert recently. I love testing all of the holiday desserts for my site because that means we have tons in the house. And we are a family who sits down and eats dessert every night. So to have all of these goodies to sample and share, makes my heart so happy.

What I love about these though is that they are great for holidays or really anytime of the year. If you love brownies and pecan pie, you are in for a delight with these. I cannot wait to hear what you think of them.

What ingredients you need to make pecan pie brownies:

• Tahini or creamy nut butter – I love using peanut butter or almond butter
• Eggs – I haven’t tried flax eggs but I do think they would work well
• Cacao powder – I haven’t used cocoa powder and it’s not usually 1:1 sub
• Dark chocolate chips – either dark chocolate, semi-sweet or milk chocolate all work
• Avocado oil – you could also olive oil too if you wanted or melted coconut oil
• Maple syrup or honey – I go with maple syrup for these but honey could work
• Coconut sugar – I haven’t tried another sugar but cane sugar may work well too
• Non-dairy milk – you can also use regular milk if you prefer
• Chopped pecan pieces – either buy whole and chop or buy already chopped/in smaller pieces

How to make Pecan Pie Brownies:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line an 8×8 baking dish with parchment paper and grease well
2. Cream together the tahini/nut butter, maple syrup, coconut sugar, eggs and vanilla
3. Mix in the cacao powder and baking powder until well combined (it will be thick!)
4. Fold in dark chocolate gems then add batter to baking dish
5. Bake in oven for 18-20 minutes
6. While brownies bake, in a small saucepan, warm the oil, coconut sugar, maple syrup, and vanilla until boiling
7. Once boiling, constantly stir and let bubble for one minute and then simmer for 3-5 minutes
8. Remove the pan from heat and stir in almond milk and pecans
9. Pour mixture over brownies and bake for another 20 minutes or until top is bubbling a bit
10. Allow the brownies to cool/set for about 2 hours then slice and enjoy!

FAQs and tips on making these pecan brownies:

1. Do I have to make brownies from scratch? Nope! Feel free to use your favorite boxed mix if you prefer. I find my brownie recipe very easy to make so I prefer to use it in this.
2. My pecan topping fell apart after baking, what happened? They didn’t set long enough. After the pecan brownies bake in oven, allow them to set fully for 2 hours or so. If they don’t the pecans will fall apart. They’re still 100% edible and delicious though!
3. My brownies seem undercooked before the pecan topping goes on, is that right? Yup! You want them to be kind of underbaked because you will be putting them back in the oven with the pecan pie topping.
4. How long do these brownies stay good for? About 5 days in airtight container, 7 days in fridge for 2 months in the freezer.

A few other delicious dessert recipes to try:

The BEST Chocolate Brownie Pie (gluten-free)

Pumpkin Crisp Recipe (gluten-free)

Gluten-free Pecan Pumpkin Pie

The Best Ever Healthy Pecan Pie Bars (paleo + vegan)