These pecan cinnamon-sugar coated Brown Butter Pumpkin Blondies will be your new go-to fall bake this season! They're chewy, fudgy, and perfectly spiced! They're like fall in a bite!
If you're like me and you love a fudgy, chewy, brown butter blondie, then these Brown Butter Pumpkin Blondies will be your new best friend. From the spiced pumpkin blondies, to the spiced cinnamon sugar topping, they'll hit the spot, and more!
Pumpkin is in full swing, so be sure to try my Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Cake, Frosted Pumpkin Bread and Pumpkin Cupcakes!
Jump to:
♥ Why You'll Love This Recipe
Brown Butter - As the saying goes, "everything is better with brown butter." And it's true! These blondies are perfect with brown butter because the deeper, nuttier flavors go incredibly well with the pumpkin and spices.
Cinnamon sugar topping - The topping is absolutely what makes these blondies so much better! The little crunch and sweetness you get when you take a bite is on another level! It's kind of like a snickerdoodle pumpkin blondie!
Fudgy - These pumpkin blondies are SO fudgy! I went through some (still delicious) test batches just to finally nail the fudginess of these!
Easy and quick - This recipe doesn't take much time at all! Once the butter is browned, it takes a few minutes to mix everything in one bowl, then 20 minutes to bake. You'll have blondies in about 30 minutes.
📝 Ingredient Notes
A full list of ingredients, quantities, and instructions are located in the recipe card at the end of the post.
- Butter: For this recipe, I use brown butter, which is melting the butter, then continuing to cook it until it browns. This gives the blondies a rich and nutty flavor.
- Pumpkin puree: Make sure it's pure pumpkin puree, and not pumpkin pie filling. Pumpkin pie filling contains more ingredients than pumpkin puree, and has a ton of sugar. My favorite brand of Pumpkin Puree is by Libby's. While testing this recipe, I found that adding the pumpkin puree straight into the batter created more of a cakey blondie. To make sure I ended up with fudgy blondies, I needed to reduce the amount of liquid, so it's important to pat the pumpkin puree dry.
- Brown Sugar: This recipe uses all brown sugar. Either dark or light will work.
- Eggs: Instead of whole eggs, this recipe uses only the egg yolks. During test batches, I found that adding too much liquid made the blondies too cakey, so I reduced to only using the egg yolks.
- Vanilla extract: for flavor.
- Salt: balances out the sweetness and adds more flavor.
- Flour: All purpose flour works best with this recipe.
- Pumpkin pie spice: I love using pumpkin pie spice in my pumpkin recipes, but you could make your own as well.
- Pecans: You can roast them, toast them, or just chop them up and add them.
See recipe card for quantities.
🍴Special Equipment
Kitchen Scale: It's so important to use a kitchen scale for accurate results.
Baking Pan: My favorite 8 inch Square USA pan is from USA pan. It has straight edges, bakes evenly, and never fails. I highly recommend purchasing a good quality baking pan for your bakes.
Mixing bowls: I love using glass Mixing Bowls when making batters and doughs.
⇄ Substitutions
Brown sugar: You can use either light or dark brown sugar in this recipe.
Pumpkin Pie Spice: Instead of buying it, you can make your own.
✨ Variations
Chocolate: Instead of pecans, you can add white chocolate chips, or even dark or semi-sweet chocolate.
Nuts: Switch it up and use walnuts instead of pecans.
Leave out the topping: If you're not a fan of cinnamon sugar, you can just leave out adding the topping.
𓎩 Step-by-Step Instructions
A few instruction photos to help you nail this recipe every time.
Make the brown butter: Melt butter in a medium sauce pan on medium heat. Stir the butter to make sure it melts evenly. Once the butter is completely melted, it will start to foam up. Continue stirring the butter. As it cooks, it will start to change into a deeper color. This could take 6-8 minutes.You'll start to notice a nutty aroma and the butter will begin to have brown specs at the bottom of the pan. The entire process of browning butter from start to finish should not take more than 10 minutes on medium heat.
Step 1
Dry pumpkin: spread out the pumpkin puree on a plate and pat it dry with a paper towel. I used 3-4 paper towels. You'll want to pat it dry until the paper towel is soaked, then use another paper towel, and repeat this 3-4 times.
💡 Hint: Use a light colored metal baking pan. This will allow the blondies to bake evenly.
Step 2
In a medium bowl, add the slightly cooled brown butter and brown sugar and mix until combined.
Step 3
Then add the egg yolks, vanilla extract and pumpkin puree and mix until completely combined.
🎩Trick: Using a spatula instead of a hand mixer reduces the chances of over mixing, but once your ingredients come together, stop mixing.
Step 4
Then sift in the flour, salt, and pumpkin pie spice and mix until almost combined, then add in the chopped pecans and mix until all combined.
Step 5
Pour the batter into the prepared pan. This batter will be thick. Spread it with an offset spatula, then add the whole pecans to the top.
Step 6
Mix the cinnamon, sugar and pumpkin pie spice, then sprinkle on the top of the blondies. Place the blondies in the oven and bake for 20-22 minutes. The blondies will have puffed up and the edges will be set. Don't over bake.
💬 FAQ
It's possible you ended up with too much liquid in the batter. It's important to only use egg yolks, and to pat the pumpkin puree dry!
Brown butter instead of regular or melted butter creates a deep and nutty flavor that gives off notes of caramel.
💡Pro Tips
Measure Flour Correctly - As always, with any recipe, use a kitchen scale, as it is the best form of measuring your ingredients. If you don't have a kitchen scale, fluff your flour, scoop flour with a spoon into a measuring cup and level off.
Don't over mix: Using a spatula instead of a hand mixer reduces the chances of over mixing, but once your ingredients come together, stop mixing.
Don't over bake: Start checking the pumpkin blondies at 20 minutes.
Cool completely: Make sure you let the blondies cool completely.
Parchment paper: To avoid sticking, make sure to line the pan with parchment paper.
Light-colored pan: Use a light colored metal baking pan. They help cook evenly and doesn't cook too fast.
Dry pumpkin: Make sure to dry the pumpkin puree with paper towel so that you're not adding too much liquid.
❄ Storage
You can store these blondies in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-5 days.
📖 Recipe Card
Brown Butter Pumpkin Blondies
Ingredients
- ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter
- 1 cup (200g) brown sugar, packed
- 2 egg yolks
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup (75g) pumpkin puree measured out, then pressed between paper towels to get rid of extra moisture
- 1¼ cup (150g) all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- ¼ cup pecans, chopped (toasted - optional)
Topping
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- ⅙ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- whole pecans
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 350℉Line an 8x8 light colored metal baking pan with parchment paper and set aside.
- Make the brown butter: Melt butter in a medium sauce pan on medium heat. Stir the butter to make sure it melts evenly. Once the butter is completely melted, it will start to foam up. Continue stirring the butter. As it cooks, it will start to change into a deeper color. This could take 6-8 minutes.You'll start to notice a nutty aroma and the butter will begin to have brown specs at the bottom of the pan. The entire process of browning butter from start to finish should not take more than 10 minutes on medium heat.Once butter is browned, pour it into a heat proof bowl and set it aside to cool for about 5 or 10 minutes.½ cup (113g) unsalted butter
- Dry pumpkin: spread out the pumpkin puree on a plate and pat it dry with a paper towel. I used 3-4 paper towels. You'll want to pat it dry until the paper towel is soaked, then use another paper towel, and repeat this 3-4 times.
- Make the blondies: In a medium bowl, add the slightly cooled brown butter and brown sugar and mix until combined. Then add the egg yolks, vanilla extract and pumpkin puree and mix until completely combined. Then sift in the flour, salt, and pumpkin pie spice and mix until almost combined, then add in the chopped pecans and mix until all combined.1 cup (200g) brown sugar, packed, 2 egg yolks, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ⅓ cup (75g) pumpkin puree, 1¼ cup (150g) all purpose flour, ½ teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, ¼ cup pecans, chopped
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan. This batter will be thick. Spread it with an offset spatula, then add the whole pecans to the top.whole pecans
- Mix the cinnamon, sugar and pumpkin pie spice, then sprinkle on the top of the blondies.1 tablespoon granulated sugar, ¼ teaspoon cinnamon, ⅙ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- Bake: Place the blondies in the oven and bake for 20-22 minutes. The blondies will have puffed up and the edges will be set. Don't over bake.
- Let cool. Slice, and enjoy.
Comments
No Comments