Brownie Peanut Butter Cups

When I first saw this recipe, I decided these brownies had to be made now. Unfortunately, it was close to 100 degrees in LA this past week, and there was no way in hell I was Brownie Peanut Butter Cupsabout to turn my oven on. So, I had to wait for the temps to cool down.

Fortunately for me (and my coworkers), the weather this week has been much more bearable, thus allowing me to turn on my oven to make these brownies. Which by the way, are good. Very good. Looking at them one might think SUGAR RUSH!!!, but they’re not terribly sweet, and the saltiness from the peanut butter center (oh yes, they have peanut butter inside) is a really nice contrast. I love sweet and salty together.

I think next time I make these, I will use mini muffin tins and make them bite size. Other than that, I wouldn’t change a thing. Except perhaps eat them while they’re still hot with a nice scoop of ice cream. Mmmm.

Photos of the process here.

Ingredients
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 tablespoon water
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup peanut butter chips plus about 1/3 cup more for garnishing
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips plus about 1/3 cup more for garnishing
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

Preparation

  1. Preheat oven to 350°. Spray or grease 12 muffin cups.
  2. In a large microwave-safe bowl, combine sugar, butter, and water. Microwave on high for 1 minute or until butter is melted. Stir in 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips until melted. Stir in egg and vanilla extract. Add flour and baking soda, stirring until blended. Allow to cool to room temperature. Then, stir in 1/2 cup each peanut butter chips and semi-sweet chocolate chips. Spoon batter by heaping tablespoonfuls into muffin cups.
  3. Bake for 13-15 minutes or until top is set and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out slightly wet. Place pan on wire rack. Centers of brownies will fall upon cooling. If not, tap centers with the back of a teaspoon to make a hole.
  4. Place peanut butter in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high for 45 seconds, then stir. While brownies are still hot, spoon about a tablespoon of peanut butter into the center of each brownie. Top with semi-sweet chocolate chips and peanut butter chips. Cool completely in pan.

Recipe from Bake or Break.

May 21, 2008 | Filed Under Brownies and Blondies | 14 Comments 

Chocolate Caramel Brownies

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It’s rainy and cold here, and I wanted to bake but didn’t want to make anything complicated. I sorted through my messy recipe folder and decided today was the perfect day for a somewhat “cheat” recipe. Yes, it calls for a box mix. I know, for shame! Reading through the recipe, it appeared very simple so I decided to give it a go.

Chocolate Caramel Brownies Chocolate Caramel Brownies Chocolate Caramel Brownies Chocolate Caramel Brownies Chocolate Caramel Brownies

Chocolate Caramel Brownies Chocolate Caramel Brownies Chocolate Caramel Brownies Chocolate Caramel Brownies Chocolate Caramel Brownies

Well, apparently I wasn’t paying enough attention and somewhat messed up the caramel. When the recipe said to add the “remaining evaporated milk” to the caramel, I added the rest of the can, not the rest of the 1 cup it called for. Whoops. Fortunately, I realized this as the caramels were (not) melting, so I dumped out a large portion of the milk and continued with the melting. I think there was still too much in there, because the caramel was a little runny, but it definitely tastes good!

Ingredients
1 pkg. (18.25 oz.) chocolate cake mix
1 cup chopped nuts
1 cup NESTLÉ® CARNATION® Evaporated Milk, divided
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, melted
35 (10-oz. pkg.) caramels, unwrapped
2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels

Preparation
Preheat oven to 350° F.

Combine cake mix and nuts in large bowl. Stir in 2/3 cup evaporated milk and butter (batter will be thick). Spread half of batter into ungreased 13 x 9-inch baking pan.

Bake for 15 minutes.

Heat caramels and remaining evaporated milk in small saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly, until caramels are melted. Sprinkle morsels over brownie; drizzle with caramel mixture.

Drop remaining batter by heaping teaspoon over caramel mixture.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until center is set. Cool in pan on wire rack. Cut into 24 squares.

My notes:

  • Unwrapping the damn caramels takes about as much time as making the brownies. Seriously.
  • Your caramel will probably look different, unless you mess up like I did.

Recipe from VeryBestBaking.com.

January 6, 2008 | Filed Under Brownies and Blondies | 6 Comments 

Chipster-Topped Brownies

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Ever been in the mood to bake but couldn’t decide between brownies or cookies? Well, thanks to Dorie, now you don’t have to.

I had been eying this recipe for quite a while, but never had all the ingredients or the time to fuss. Fortunately, I did today and oh my god are these good!

Chipster-Topped Brownies Chipster-Topped Brownies Chipster-Topped Brownies Chipster-Topped Brownies

Then again, what’s not to like about a brownie with a chocolate chip cookie on top?

Ingredients
For the brownie layer:
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into chunks
1 2/3 cups sugar
4 large eggs
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped

For the cookie layer:
1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 ½ sticks (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ cup (packed) light brown sugar
2/3 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped into chips, or 1 cup store-bought chocolate chips

Getting ready:
Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9-x-13-inch baking pan, line it with wax or parchment paper and butter the paper. Put the pan on a baking sheet.

To make the brownie batter:
Put both chocolates and the butter in a bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water. Stirring occasionally, heat just until the ingredients are melted, shiny and smooth. If the mixture gets too hot, the butter will separate from the chocolates. Remove the bowl from the heat.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the sugar and eggs on medium-high speed for about 2 minutes, until pale, thick and creamy. Beat in the salt and vanilla extract. Reduce the speed to low and mix in the melted chocolate and butter, mixing only until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, then, still on low speed, add the flour, mixing only until it disappears into the batter. Using the spatula, fold in the walnuts, and scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Set aside.

To make the cookie dough:
Whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.

Working with a stand mixer in the cleaned bowl or with the hand mixer in another large bowl, beat the butter and both sugars together on medium-high speed until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes. One at a time, add the egg and the yolk, beating for 1 minute after each addition. Beat in the vanilla. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients, mixing only until they disappear into the dough. Still on low, mix in the chopped chocolate. Drop the cookie dough by spoonfuls over the brownie batter an, using a spatula and a light touch, spread it evenly over the batter.

Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until the cookie top is deep golden brown and firm and a thin knife inserted into the brownie layer comes out with only faint streaks of moist chocolate. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool to room temperature.

When the brownies are completely cool, carefully run a knife between the sides of the pan and the brownies, then invert them onto another rack, remove the paper and turn right side up onto a cutting board. Cut into bars about 2 inches by 1 inch. (You can cut larger bars if you’re serving to cookie lovers with Texas-size appetites.)

My notes:

  • I used semi-sweet chips instead of bittersweet.
  • I omitted the nuts.
  • I baked mine for a total of around 35 minutes. I figured 50-55 seemed really long, so I initially checked them at 25 minutes then continued to add five minutes and check them again until they were done.

Recipe from Baking: From My Home To Yours by Dorie Greenspan.

September 8, 2007 | Filed Under Brownies and Blondies | 13 Comments 

Hershey’s White Chip Brownies

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Today has been one of those days. I have laryngitis thanks to a stupid cold, and the boy I had two [apparently not so] wonderful dates with appears to have disappeared off the face of the earth.

So, I made brownies.

White Chip Brownies White Chip Brownies White Chip Brownies White Chip Brownies White Chip Brownies

I decided to turn to Hershey, as their chocolate cake recipe is my favorite ever, and I figured the brownies would be delicious as well. And delicious they are! Moist, chewy, and rich. I think this may be my new fave.

Ingredients
4 large eggs
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup HERSHEY’S Cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups (12-ounce package) HERSHEY’S Premier White Chips

Preparation

  1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking pan.
  2. Beat eggs in large bowl until foamy; gradually beat in sugar. Blend in butter and vanilla extract.
  3. Stir together flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; add to egg mixture, blending thoroughly.
  4. Stir in white chips. Spread batter into prepared pan.
  5. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until brownies begin to pull away from sides of pan. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into bars.

Makes about 32 brownies.

Recipe from The Baking Bible.

August 7, 2007 | Filed Under Brownies and Blondies | 10 Comments 

White Chocolate Brownies

I’m back! I finally have time to try new recipes. And with that…

I love chocolate, even white chocolate. I know, I know, white chocolate isn’t really chocolate, blah blah blah. But I don’t care. It’s still sweet and tastes good. Who cares about the technicalities when talking about desserts?

White Chocolate Brownies White Chocolate Brownies White Chocolate Brownies White Chocolate Brownies White Chocolate Brownies
White Chocolate Brownies White Chocolate Brownies White Chocolate Brownies White Chocolate Brownies White Chocolate Brownies

I also love Tartelette’s blog. Everything she makes is beyond gorgeous, and her recipes are always to die for. While these brownies do taste amazingly delicious, sadly, they look absolutely nothing like hers. Fortunately, these are just going to my guinea pigs at the office, and they’re more concerned about taste than aesthetics anyway.

Ingredients
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
8 ounces white chocolate
2 eggs
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tablespoon vanilla
1 cup flour
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preparation
Preheat oven to 350.

Grease and flour an 8 inch square baking pan, or line with foil.

Melt butter and 4 oz of white chocolate together in top of double boiler over hot water. When melted remove from heat and add the remaining white chocolate. Stir to blend well. Set aside. Beat the eggs and sugar until pale and thick.Add white chocolate and butter mixture, vanilla and flour. Beat just until smooth. Add chocolate chunks and mix in by hand, being careful not to overmix.

Pour into prepared pan and bake 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack. Cut into squares or bars.

My notes: I thought I had two white chocolate baking bars in my kitchen when in fact, I only had one, so I had to use 4 ounces of white chocolate chips as well.

Recipe from Tartelette.

July 14, 2007 | Filed Under Brownies and Blondies | 7 Comments 

Cobblestone Blondies

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These are good. So. Damn. Good. The first time I made them, I cut off a huge chunk for my sister and told her to share with her boyfriend. I think he only got a few bites.

Cobblestone Brownies Cobblestone Brownies Cobblestone Brownies Cobblestone Brownies Cobblestone Brownies

I know by looking at the recipe you’re probably thinking they must be super sweet, but they’re not–they’re just right. The toffee chips are barely noticeable, and the gooey browned marshmallows on top are just delicious.

Ingredients
1 cup flour
1 cup mini* semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup mini marshmallows
1/2 cup toffee chips
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
6 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preparation
Preheat oven to 350. Grease an 8×8 inch baking dish. In a large bowl, cream together the brown sugar, sugar and butter. Add the eggs and vanilla, beat until fluffy. Add the flour, 2/3 of the chocolate chips**, 1/2 of the marshmallows, all of the toffee bits and the baking powder until thoroughly combined. Pour into a prepared pan and bake 20 minutes or until just set. Sprinkle evenly with remaining marshmallows and chips, return to oven for an additional 5-10 minutes or until a toothpick inserted (not through a marshmallow!) comes out clean.

Rachel’s notes: *Mini chips melt faster, but regular chips would work too. **If you are using regular sized chips, you might want to add the chips after the flour so they don’t get broken up.

My notes: The store was out of the name brand marshmallows so I had to use the generic ones. Not good–they wouldn’t melt or get gooey.

Recipe from Coconut & Lime.

November 29, 2006 | Filed Under Brownies and Blondies | 4 Comments 

Deep Dish Brownies

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Unsatisfied with the last brownie recipe I tried, I stumbled upon this one while browsing desserts online. This is what happens when I don’t feel well…I scour the Internet for recipes to try when I’m feeling better. And feeling better I am, so here they are.

Chocolate Brownies Chocolate Brownies Chocolate Brownies Chocolate Brownies Chocolate Brownies

Some of the reviewers declared this recipe to taste like box mix brownies and they do! They’re chewy and moist, and much more cakey than fudgey. They are delicious. Unfortunately, the top cracked miserably and they didn’t cut well, even when fully cooled. I’m not sure what caused that to happen.

Ingredients
3/4 cup butter, melted
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Preparation

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease an 8 inch square pan.
  2. In a large bowl, blend melted butter, sugar and vanilla. Beat in eggs one at a time. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt. Gradually blend into the egg mixture. Spread the batter into the prepared pan.
  3. Bake in preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes, or until brownies begin to pull away from the sides of the pan. Let brownies cool, then cut into squares. Enjoy!

Notes: The original recipe is different–I heeded the suggestions of many reviewers and omitted the baking powder and used only two eggs. Also, mine were done in about 35 minutes.

Recipe from All Recipes.

September 3, 2006 | Filed Under Brownies and Blondies | 1 Comment 

Brownies

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I love brownies. (Really, who doesn’t?) So I figured what better way to break in my new cookbook than with brownies. Unlike other recipes I’ve tried, this one isn’t a one bowl deal, but it’s still pretty easy.

Brownies Brownies Brownies Brownies Brownies

And, since I’m a big fan of the cake-like brownie, I heeded the suggestion and added 1/2 tsp. baking powder to make them less dense and more cakey. They’re quite good–moist and chocolatey, but not the brownie recipe I’ve been searching for.

Ingredients
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, roughly chopped
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened, plus a little for the greasing pan
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
Pinch salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preparation

  1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan, or line it with aluminum foil and grease the foil.
  2. Combine the chocolate and butter in a small saucepan over very low heat, stirring occasionally. When the chocolate is just about melted, remove from the heat and continue to stir until the mixture is smooth.
  3. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and stir in the sugar. Then beat in the eggs, one at a time. Gently stir in the flour, salt, and vanilla. Pour and scrape into the prepared pan and bake 20 to 25 minutes, or until just barely set in the middle. It’s better to underbake brownies than to overbake them. Cool on a rack before cutting. Store, covered and at room temperature, for no more than a day.

Cookbook Notes: If you line the baking pan with lightly greased aluminum foil, you reduce cleanup time by fifty percent; not bad. These are chewy and dense, dominated by chocolate and nothing else. If you like cakier brownies, add one-half teaspoon baking powder to the flour. I used both of his suggestions.

Recipe from How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman.

August 16, 2006 | Filed Under Brownies and Blondies | 2 Comments