Penuche Squares
Penuche Squares are a delicious Southern dessert! They have that home-cooked taste that will remind you of your grandmother cooking in the kitchen!
These Penuche Squares have been a part of my family since before I was born! This is another family favorite, and I know you will love these squares! Remember that Chess Pie recipe I posted back at the beginning of December? This is another Southern classic from that same aunt who brought you the chess pie!
When I made these Penuche Squares this afternoon, my kitchen was filled with the wonderful aroma of melted butter and brown sugar, and oh my goodness, these brought back some of the best memories from my childhood!
When I moved to California in 2003 from Tennessee, my aunt mailed me some of her classic recipes. I stuffed them in a folder and forgot about them…until about a month ago. I was cleaning out some folders, and low and behold, there were my aunt’s recipes! She hand-wrote them and mailed them to me so I’d have a bit of home with me on the West Coast!
Ingredients
The full printable recipe card with measurements and instructions is found at the bottom of the post.
- Unsalted butter
- Dark brown sugar
- Large eggs
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Vanilla extract
- Salt
- Chopped pecans
How to Make
- Step One: Preheat oven to 350℉ and line a 9×9 inch baking pan with parchment paper.
- Step Two: Melt the butter in a saucepan.
- Step Three: Stir in the brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract and mix well until all ingredients are melted.
- Step Four: In a separate large bowl, combine all dry ingredients.
- Step Five: Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients and stir with a large wooden spoon until the ingredients are mixed well.
- Step Six: Pour the batter into the 9×9 inch pan and bake for 30-35 minutes uncovered. Or until a toothpick comes out clean
- Step Seven: Let these cool in the pan before cutting into squares. Optional – top with powdered sugar.
These are so simple to make. The key to this recipe is a good brand of dark brown sugar, which calls for a whole box. But don’t worry! These Penuche Squares make 15 bars, so they feed a lot!
A crust will naturally rise on the sides when baking these in the oven. Oh my, don’t these look so amazing!
You’ll want to cook these for 25 minutes and not a minute more. They don’t taste good when they are overcooked. Let these Penuche Squares completely cool before cooking.
Once they’ve cooled and you’ve cut them into squares, feel free to sprinkle powdered sugar on top. It helps them look extra appetizing!
These Penuche Squares are great for any potluck or as a dessert for your family. Not to be morbid, but my aunt used to take these to the funeral homes when a loved one had passed away. With a lot of sad faces and heavy hearts, she loved to serve this sugary sweet treat to help brighten other people’s days. Bless her sweet soul!
If you’re looking for other sweet treat recipes to make that your family will love, check out my Flourless Chocolate Torte and my Homemade Apple Pie.
You’ll also enjoy these Christmas Chewy Bars or Butter Tart Squares.
Enjoy these Penuche Squares and happy eats!
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Penuche Squares
Ingredients
- ¾ cup unsalted butter
- 2 cups dark brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup chopped pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉ and line a 9×9 baking pan with parchment paper.
- Melt the butter in a saucepan.
- Stir in the brown sugar, eggs and vanilla extract and mix well until all ingredients are melted.
- In a separate large bowl, combine all dry ingredients.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients and stir with a large wooden spoon until the ingredients are mixed well.
- Pour the batter into the 9×9 pan and bake for 30-35 minutes uncovered. Or until a toothpick comes out clean
- Let these cool in the pan before cutting into squares.
- Optional – top with powdered sugar.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Lost my mother in laws recipe, so glad you shared it. Alway a hit when I’ve made them! So glad to find this recipe!!
PS
16 Oz = 2 8 Oz cups & use ins stick of butter & cut second one in half. Hope that helps.
How much is in a stick of butter? 16oz of dark brown sugar? Cups? Recipe is inconsistent.
Sounds like a sweet little square snack
Wow, these seem pretty simple to make and looks fantastic! Thank you for sharing on Merry Monday! Hope to see ya next week!
Kim
Your Penuche Squares will be a very special treat! Thanks so much for sharing your post with us at Full Plate Thursday. Have a great week and come back soon!
Miz Helen