Brown Butter Chess Squares from Scratch

5 from 41 votes

Brown Butter Chess Squares from Scratch

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!

Prep Time5

Cook Time40

Total Time45

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings:

Calories: 366kcal

Author: Brianna May

Equipment

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.

Nutrition