Preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C and grease two 12 section tartlet pans or 8-inch square pan.
For the salt-roasted pecans, melt the butter in a small frying pan over medium heat and add the pecans and salt. Stir and toast the pecans for about 5 minutes, until the pecans have a nutty aroma (the salt will not dissolve, but adds a nice crunch). Remove the pan from the heat and cool while preparing the brownies.
In a large pan melt the butter, golden syrup, and chopped chocolate, mixing until smooth.
Remove from heat, add the water and stir until well blended.
Stir in the brown & granulated sugars, and eggs, mix well until combined.
Stir in the cocoa powder.
Add flour, vanilla, and salt and blend (be careful not to over mix or the texture will end up cake-like instead of fudgy)
Stir in the chocolate chips.
Divide the batter into the pans, or spread into the 8-inch pan. Arrange the pecan halves on top.
Bake for about 12 minutes, until the tops of the brownies lose their shiny appearance.
If baking in an 8- inch pan, bake an additional 10 -15 minutes.
Notes
If you can, always use a good quality cocoa powder such as (dutch cocoa powder) it gives a richer chocolate flavor.
You can use an ice cream scoop to add the batter to the pan. It helps keep the brownies uniform in size.