Fudgy Peanut Butter Brownies
Incredibly gooey and delicious, these peanut butter chocolate brownies are irresistible! They keep well and can be frozen.
Servings 9 medium squares
Ingredients
For the brownie base:
- ¾ cup semisweet chocolate coarsely chopped
- ¾ cup unsalted butter
- ¾ cup white sugar
- ¾ cup packed brown sugar light or dark
- 3 eggs at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- few drops almond extract optional but recommended if you have some
- 1 ½ tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
For the peanut butter swirl:
- ⅔ cup creamy peanut butter
- 5 tablespoons powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla optional
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream double also works
Instructions
For the brownie base:
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC).
- Butter or spray an 8-inch square metal pan (don't use a glass pan). Line it with a piece of parchment paper covering the bottom and two sides. Two sides will remain unlined.
- Melt ¾ cup semisweet chocolate, chopped, and ¾ cup unsalted butter together in a large glass bowl. I do it in the microwave oven, stirring every 10 seconds, until the chocolate is smooth. You can also do it over a pot of boiling water, being careful the bottom doesn’t touch the water, stirring until it's melted.
- Mix ¾ cup white sugar and¾ cup packed brown sugar into the chocolate mixture until well integrated. This helps bring the temperature of the chocolate down before adding the eggs.
- Add 3 eggs, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, a few drops almond extract if using, and 1 ½ tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder. Mix until well combined.
- Add 1 cup all-purpose flour in 2 parts and stir until well combined, but don't overmix.
- Spread the batter into the prepared pan.
For the peanut butter swirl:
- In a medium bowl, mix together ⅔ cup creamy peanut butter, 5 tablespoons powdered sugar, ½ teaspoon vanilla, and 2 tablespoons heavy cream. Make sure no lumps remain.
- Drop spoonfuls on top of the brownie base, then swirl lightly with a knife, ensuring you leave whole chunks of peanut butter mix intact. Otherwise, it all blends together, and it won't have the same effect.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes, depending on the pan you use, until a cake tester or toothpick comes out with very fudgy crumbs, the top looks dry, and the center still jiggles. It's important not to overbake them.
- Let cool on a wire rack completely.
- I find that they are better the next day. I keep them wrapped in plastic.
- These bars can be frozen, well wrapped, for a month at least.
Notes
Don't use a glass pan as the brownies will never quite set in the middle. Use a metal pan.
Peanut butter: I always make them with commercial peanut butter, the traditional type, but they do work with natural peanut butter also.
Swirl: when marbling or swirling the peanut butter mixture do so lightly. We want two distinctive batters to appear.
Pan size: it's very important to ensure a fudgy and gooey brownie that bakes well.
Lining the pan: I strongly recommend you only use a strip of parchment paper wide as the pan. It will only cover the bottom and two of the sides. If you line the whole with a square of paper and end up folding it in the corners, chances are the brownie will stuck in the corners because it is very fudgy.
Baking: brownies, in my opinion, should be slightly underbaked to ensure that soft and gooey bite we all love. That means the center should still jiggle when they are removed from the oven.
Keeping: I suggest eating brownies the next day that they are baked. The flavor is deeper and the texture has time to settle. These can be frozen, well wrapped, for a month at least.
Almond butter brownies variation: Almond butter for the peanut butter, same amount. Cocoa nibs for the cocoa powder: I finely grind 2 tablespoons of cocoa nibs and substitute it for the cocoa powder. Coconut sugar: I use it instead of the brown sugar. The rest of the recipe remains the same.
