Kentucky Bourbon Brownies

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13-inch baking pan.

2. Place butter and chocolate in the top of a double boiler over simmering water. Stir frequently, scraping down the sides with a rubber spatula to avoid scorching, until chocolate is melted, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool completely, 10 to 15 minutes.

3. While chocolate cools, sift flour, baking powder, and salt together in a bowl.

4. Beat eggs in a bowl using an electric stand mixer or hand mixer until almost light in color. Mix in bourbon and vanilla extract. Gradually mix in sugar until well blended. Stir in chocolate-butter mixture. Stir in flour mixture until combined, scraping down sides of the bowl as needed. Fold in pecans. Spread brownie mixture into the prepared pan.

5. Bake in the preheated oven until edges pull away from the sides of the pan, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely on a wire rack.

Cook's Notes:

If you'd prefer cake-like brownies, use 4 eggs instead of 3.

Instead of folding pecans into batter, you can alternatively place pecans on top of brownie batter before baking.

As soon as pan is removed from the oven, you can sprinkle semisweet chocolate chips over the brownies, let sit for 1 minute, and spread melted chips over entire surface.

You can combine 2 cups cream cheese frosting with 1 tablespoon bourbon, mix, and spread over cooled brownies. Garnish with chocolate shavings. Refrigerate until ready to serve.