Brown Butter Honey Pistachio Bars (Print Version)

Nutty brown butter and honey blend with crunchy pistachios for soft, chewy bars with flaky sea salt finish.

# Ingredients:

Fats and Sugars

01 - 1 cup (2 sticks or 226g) unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing
02 - ¾ cup (165g) packed light brown sugar
03 - ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
04 - ½ cup (170g) honey (clover or wildflower preferred)

Dry Ingredients

05 - 2 ½ cups (about 310g) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
06 - 1 teaspoon baking soda
07 - ¾ teaspoon salt (reduce to ½ teaspoon if using salted pistachios)

Add-ins

08 - 1 ½ cups (about 210g) raw, unsalted shelled pistachios, roughly chopped (reserve ¼ cup for topping, optional)
09 - Flaky sea salt, for sprinkling on top (optional)

Wet Ingredients

10 - 2 large eggs, room temperature
11 - 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

# Instructions:

01 - Melt 1 cup unsalted butter in a medium, light-colored saucepan over medium heat. Swirl pan occasionally as butter foams and sizzles, then clears. Continue cooking until milk solids turn golden brown and aroma becomes nutty, about 5-8 minutes. Remove from heat and pour butter with solids into a heatproof bowl. Cool for 15-20 minutes at room temperature or 10 minutes refrigerated, stirring occasionally until cool but still liquid.
02 - Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease a 9×13 inch baking pan with butter. Line with parchment paper, leaving overhang on two opposite sides. Lightly grease parchment paper.
03 - In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt to evenly distribute leavening and aerate the flour. Set aside.
04 - To cooled brown butter, add light brown sugar, granulated sugar, and honey. Beat with an electric mixer or whisk at medium speed for 2-3 minutes until smooth and slightly lightened. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping bowl sides as needed. Stir in vanilla extract until combined.
05 - Add dry ingredients gradually in three additions to wet mixture, mixing on low speed or folding with spatula just until almost incorporated each time. Avoid overmixing to prevent toughness; stop when no large dry flour streaks remain.
06 - Using a spatula or wooden spoon, gently fold 1 ¼ cups chopped pistachios into dough until evenly distributed. Reserve remaining ¼ cup for topping if desired.
07 - Spread dough evenly into prepared pan using back of spoon, offset spatula, or lightly greased fingertips, pressing into corners. Level surface. Optionally sprinkle reserved pistachios and flaky sea salt on top.
08 - Bake on center rack for 25-30 minutes until edges are golden and set, and center appears slightly underbaked but not wet. Insert toothpick should yield moist crumbs without raw batter. Begin checking at 23 minutes for preferred chewiness.
09 - Remove from oven and cool entirely in pan on wire rack for 2-3 hours or longer to allow bars to set fully for clean slicing. Avoid cutting while warm to prevent crumbling.
10 - Lift bars from pan using parchment overhangs. Cut into desired sizes using a sharp knife, wiping between cuts for clean edges. Serve and enjoy.

# Notes:

01 - Using a light-colored pan allows precise monitoring of butter browning. Cooling bars fully ensures optimal texture and clean cuts.

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