Cookie Dough Peanut Butter Brownies: The Completion

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As promised, this is Cookie Dough Peanut Butter Brownies: Part 2. They were a HUGE hit at the family affair and bonus: they traveled quite well during the 7 hour drive there & 7 hour drive back (there were thankfully some leftovers for me to share with the folks back home). Sometimes you gotta worry about those pesky details like dessert durability!

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And the second thing I promised—the peanut butter filling recipe. As a bonus for you I've added a downloadable recipe card with the recipe to the post so scroll on down! This filling can be used to kick any recipe up a notch—brownies, cake, etc. It's actually pretty similar to making frosting. Here we go.

Peanut Butter Filling via Martha Stewart

• 4 tbsp (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

• 1/2 c confectioner's sugar

• 3/4 c smooth peanut butter

• 1/4 tsp salt

• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Combine ingredients in bowl & blend well. Add to brownie batter by the spoonful and swirl with knife to create marbled-pattern.

::: Click here to download recipe card PDF :::

Mmm, deliciousness. The peanut butter filling really does add the perfect touch--it's a little hint of salt in a sweet, rich, chocolatey treat. I added one batch of peanut butter filling to the brownies, but personally, I would maybe even add 1.5 batches. But I'm 110% obsessed with peanut butter, so that could be why. :-)

Cookie Dough Peanut Butter Brownies. Right here. Right now.

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I have a family thing this weekend. I have to bring something. The problem is, there's travel involved. UGHGH. What to make?? What to do?? I need to make something ahead since I have to work then travel, and SINCE it has to travel, it has to be sturdy--none of this delicate, fancy business. Plus, I work, so it's not like I have all this time—I need something easy peasy. I suppose there's always the option of going to the store and buying something, but yuck. Who wants that?? Gross. I'm cringing just thinking about it.

That's when I remembered something I saw on Bakerella. No, I can't take full credit here. And I think Ms. Bakerella found this through Betty Crocker if I'm not mistaken. Here's the deal. It's a box of brownie mix + a box of chocolate chip cookie mix. You make the brownie mix according to the instructions & pour the batter in a 13x9 pan. Then you make the cookie dough and drop the sweet little blobs right into the unbaked brownie batter. You bake them together, et voila! Chocolate chip cookie dough brownies. Top them with a rich chocolate ganache and you got yourself a winner. I made them about a year ago for a friend's birthday. I assure you, they won the hearts of all who ate them.

BUT THIS TIME. Oh no, this time I did something a little bit different. I made a peanut butter filling. So first it's brownie mix, then I dropped in the peanut butter filling & swirled it for peanut butter marble brownies, THEN dropped in the chocolate chip cookie dough. HEEEECK YEAH, baby.

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You then bake according to the instructions. The brownie boxes say 350°. The cookies say 375°. I opt for 350° so nothing cooks too quickly & burns.

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Unfortunately, this is going to have to be a two-parter. A cliffhanger! I've coated them in ganache and they're in my fridge, however, photos of a big pan of ganache aren't quite as exciting to stare at, oh no. So this weekend, once I finally rip into these little delicious monsters, I plan to take the finished process photos and post away. I'll also give you the recipe for the peanut butter filling, I promise. Until then, to be continued... ;-)

Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownie Tart

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Hey, looky there! What's that? It's a big chocolately ball of goodness, that's what it is. Here we have what I call a Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownie Tart. I saw the original picture of it on Tastespotting, and that led me to the recipe here. The recipe calls it a "Chocolate Truffle Dessert," which also works. But I was making mine for a party where I would not be able to explain to people what it is. Therefore, the more straight-forward the better. Chocolate? Peanut butter? Brownie? Check, check, & check. Serve me up a piece of that, s'il vous plait!

This is a multi-layered gob of deliciousness. Layer 1 = brownie. Layer 2 = chocolate ganache (don't get scared, it's just chocolate, cream & butter melted together). Layer 3 = peanut butter sauce (homemade). Layer 4 = chocolate whipped cream (yes, homemade). Layer 5 = chocolate garnish/flourishes. The edges are Pepperidge Farm Pirouette cookies. Layer 3, the peanut butter layer, is my personal addition to the recipe. For the most part, I followed the recipe closely (which is RARE for me), but I wanted to do something to make it my own. Plus...I love me some chocolate, but that's a helluva lotta chocolate if you know what I'm sayin. The peanut butter sauce adds a little something extra to help balance that all out. The great thing about this is that while it's rich, it's not overly sweet. You won't feel the enamel on your teeth start to fade away. Also, since it's rich, you don't need to eat a lot, meaning it may be small but it serves many!!! This was made in an 8" springform pan.

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So I made this little guy for my work Christmas party. My goal was to make something nice & quasi-fancy, but not kill myself over it. This is perfect for that. You know why? That brownie layer? Yeah, that's a box mix. (I know, GASP!) Normally, I'm very anti-box mix, but the problem is a lot of people can't tell the difference. Box mixes can produce decent stuff. ESPECIALLY when it comes to brownies. Cake is one thing. But brownies? Brownies, in my opinion, are HARDER to make from scratch b/c the box mixes have done such a good job of getting that perfect mix of fudgey-chewy-moist-melty texture with a chewy edge and a delicate flakey top... it's just hard to duplicate. And the time difference between a box mix vs scratch... well, you can guess. Box mix is faster...much faster.

Next time, if I DO have the time, I'll probably do the brownie layer from scratch. Then I can really kick it up a notch and go wild! But for now, especially w/ all the crazines of the holidays, a box mix will work just fine. :-)