Nuts add a rich, crunchy element to a wide range of different baked goods, including brownies, and it's even better if the nuts are toasted, which helps to release their oils and make them taste even nuttier. While celebrity chef Alton Brown recommends the toasting step, he has a slightly different prep tip for better-tasting nuts in brownies.

In his book “EveryDayCook,” Brown says that you don't just want to toast the nuts for your brownies — you want to fry them in butter or oil for five to seven minutes before adding them to the batter. This step intensifies their buttery, nutty richness and sweetness even more, making them the perfect addition to your brownies.

Brown says that frying nuts brings out even more of the "toasty flavors and aromas," and that the leftover oil can be repurposed. To get your fried nuts to a perfect golden brown color, he says to keep them moving and swirl them around in the pan to wind up with a delicious, caramelized, out-of-this-world end product.