These gooey Brown Butter Chess Squares from Scratch are made without cake mix. The nutty and bitter notes of the brown butter balance out the sweetness of the confectioner's sugar. These are irresistible!
Looking for more bar recipes? Try my Peanut Butter Banana Bars or monster Condensed Milk Brownies.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Gooey - The cream cheese layer in these chess bars stays gooey and almost pudding like.
- Buttery - The brown butter adds nuttiness and notes of toffee and caramel.
- Balanced - The brown bits also add a tad bit of bitterness which tone down the sweetness from the confectioner’s sugar.
- Great holiday dessert - Brown butter screams fall so I love making these once the weather cools down.
- Chewy - The brown sugar makes the cookie crust layer nice and chewy.
- Made without cake mix - Most chess squares are made with a box of yellow or butter cake mix. These are made completely from scratch without cake mix. This results in a much better flavor.
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Butter: I recommend a high quality European butter, like Kerrygold. It has a much richer flavor.
- Milk Powder: This adds much milk solids to the butter so there will be more brown bits which is where the nutty flavor comes from. I highly recommend using it, but it can be omitted without any other adjustments.
Complete list of ingredients and amounts is located on the recipe card below.
How to Make Brown Butter Chess Squares
Quick Overview
- Brown the butter.
- Make the cream cheese layer.
- Make the crust layer.
- Assemble.
- Bake & cool completely.
Step by Step Instructions
The butter should have a dark brown color.
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and line a 9 x13 inch baking dish with parchment paper. In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium low heat. Once the butter is melted, add the milk powder. (See photo above).
Step 2: Stir in the milk powder. It will look clumpy. (See photo above).
Step 3: Turn the heat up to medium. Continue stirring. The butter should begin to bubble and a thick layer of milk solids will float to the top. (See photo above).
Step 4: Continue stirring and cooking until the butter starts to bubble more and get frothy. Brown bits will start to develop in the bottom of the pan. (See photo above).
Step 5: Once the bits become dark brown, remove from the heat and let cool. (See photo above).
Step 6: Using a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or an electric hand mixer on medium speed, beat the cream cheese and about 1 cup of the confectioner’s sugar together until smooth.
Do not over mix the eggs.
Step 7: Add another cup and beat until combined. Add the remaining confectioner’s sugar, 3 Tablespoons of the slightly cooled brown butter, vanilla, and salt. Beat until well combined.
Step 8: Add the eggs and mix on medium low until combined. Set aside.
Step 9: In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
Step 10: In a large mixing bowl, stir together the remaining brown butter (be sure to scrape all of the bits out of the pan), brown sugar, granulated sugar, egg, and vanilla.
For gooey bars, remove when the center has a slight jiggle. The bars will set more the longer that they cook.
Step 11: Pour the dry ingredients into the wet. Fold until the dough comes together.
Step 12: Press the dough into the prepared dish using your hand or the bottom of a flat cup.
Step 13: Pour the cream cheese mixture on top.
Step 14: Bake for 33-37 minutes or until the edges are set but the center still jiggles slightly and the top is golden. The internal temperature should be 165 degrees. Let cool in the pan for 2-3 hours and then refrigerate until cold before slicing.
Expert Tips & Variations
- Brown the butter. This is going to enhance the buttery flavor of these bars. I don’t recommend skipping this step.
- Line the dish with parchment. This is going to allow you to remove the bars and slice them easily.
- Do not overbake. The center should still be a little jiggly because they will continue to cook as they cool.
- Store in the fridge. Since these have a custardy cream cheese layer, they must be kept refrigerated. Store in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
Recipe FAQs
Chess squares typically made with yellow cake mix, butter, cream cheese, and powdered sugar. This recipe does not use boxed cake mixes though.
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Brown Butter Chess Squares from Scratch
Ingredients:
- 12 Tablespoons (170 g) unsalted butter*
- 2 Tablespoons nonfat dry milk powder*
Cream Cheese Layer
- 1 8 ounce block full fat cream cheese
- 3 ½ cups (420 g) confectioner’s sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 large eggs
Crust Layer
- 2 cups (260 g) all purpose flour
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 cup (200 g) brown sugar
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and line a 9 x13 inch baking dish with parchment paper. In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium low heat. Once the butter is melted, add the milk powder. (See photo above).
- Stir in the milk powder. It will look clumpy. (See photo above).
- Turn the heat up to medium. Continue stirring. The butter should begin to bubble and a thick layer of milk solids will float to the top. (See photo above).
- Continue stirring and cooking until the butter starts to bubble more and get frothy. Brown bits will start to develop in the bottom of the pan. (See photo above).
- Once the bits become dark brown, remove from the heat and let cool. (See photo above).
- Using a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or an electric hand mixer on medium speed, beat the cream cheese and about 1 cup of the confectioner’s sugar together until smooth.
- Add another cup and beat until combined. Add the remaining confectioner’s sugar, 3 Tablespoons of the slightly cooled brown butter, vanilla, and salt. Beat until well combined.
- Add the eggs and mix on medium low until combined. Set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together the remaining brown butter (be sure to scrape all of the bits out of the pan), brown sugar, granulated sugar, egg, and vanilla.
- Pour the dry ingredients into the wet. Fold until the dough comes together.
- Press the dough into the prepared dish using your hand or the bottom of a flat cup.
- Pour the cream cheese mixture on top.
- Bake for 33-37 minutes or until the edges are set but the center still jiggles slightly and the top is golden. The internal temperature should be 165 degrees. Let cool in the pan for 2-3 hours and then refrigerate until cold before slicing.
Notes:
- Butter: I recommend a high quality European butter, like Kerrygold. It has a much richer flavor.
- Milk Powder: This adds much milk solids to the butter so there will be more brown bits which is where the nutty flavor comes from. I highly recommend using it, but it can be omitted without any other adjustments.
- Brown the butter. This is going to enhance the buttery flavor of these bars. I don’t recommend skipping this step.
- Line the dish with parchment. This is going to allow you to remove the bars and slice them easily.
- Do not overbake. The center should still be a little jiggly because they will continue to cook as they cool.
- Store in the fridge. Since these have a custardy cream cheese layer, they must be kept refrigerated. Store in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
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