The Vanilla Bean Blog's Salty Bourbon Squares

Every week, we’re spotlighting a different food blogger who’s shaking up the blogosphere with tempting recipes and knockout photography. Below, Sarah Kieffer of The Vanilla Bean Blog shares a recipe for chocolatey, sweet-and-salty bourbon squares to help you handle holiday stress.

Photo: Sarah Kieffer

Salty Bourbon Squares
Serves 4 to 6

These salty bourbon bars have helped keep me sane. Bittersweet chocolate, fleur de sel, and bourbon goodness: tiny bites of sweet comfort. Use 1 tablespoon bourbon for a lighter flavor, or you can omit it all together. But really, you don’t want to.

1 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup butter
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 egg
1 Tbsp. vanilla
2 Tbsp. bourbon
8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. fleur de sel or coarse salt [to taste]

Preheat oven to 325. Grease a 9-inch square pan, and line pan with a parchment sling.

Heat brown sugar and butter together in a saucepan until sugar is melted, stirring occasionally. Let cool. Whisk flour and baking powder together, and set aside. Add egg, vanilla, salt, and bourbon to the cooled butter mixture, and beat together. Stir in the flour mixture, and then the chocolate, until just combined.

Spread batter in the pan, and bake 18 to 22 minutes, until light golden brown, and a toothpick comes out clean, being very careful not to overbake. Sprinkle with fleur de sel. Let cool in the pan, then carefully lift parchment sling from the pan and cut brownies into squares.

More brownie action:

Fudgy cheesecake brownies to wow your party guests

How to make brown butter cupcake brownies

Spicy malted chocolate chipotle brownies to heat you up on a cold day

What desserts are you baking for the holidays? Tell us below!