Behold! No, seriously, this is freaking amazing! I had SO much fun with this recipe. I usually make chewy brownies with chocolate ganache but this time I wanted to do a fudgier take on them and, of course, a peanut butter frosting. I used both dark and milk chocolate, the latter to balance the bitterness. When you bite into these babies, you get a fudgy, delicious, creamy, chocolatey taste with fluffy, light peanut butter frosting and crunchy chocolate chips. Yum? Yum.
The top is crinkly, the inside, crunchy (hello, chocolate chips!) and the frosting, well, peanut buttery. I don’t think I need to say anything else!
You can use the frosting for cupcakes, cakes, you name it. If you’re doing this, add extra icing sugar. You might need to add a tablespoon or two of milk if the frosting is too thick, but for this recipe you shouldn’t need any milk.
Fudgy Chocolate Brownies with Peanut Butter Frosting
Supplies:
¾ cup cake flour
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
½ cup butter (120g)
230g dark chocolate, roughly chopped, for melting
200g milk chocolate chips
1 cup white sugar
3 large eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla paste or essence
½ teaspoon salt
Making it happen:
1. Preheat your oven to 160°C (320°F). Line a 9×9 square baking tin with parchment paper, making sure it covers the sides and leaves an overhang. You’ll need this to remove the brownie slab in one go.
2. Sift flour, cocoa powder and salt in a bowl. Set aside.
3. Melt the butter and dark chocolate in a pan on medium heat, stirring frequently, until melted. Set aside.
4. Add the sugar to the melted chocolate and butter, whisking until it’s fully combined. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, whisking well after each addition. Add the vanilla and whisk to incorporate.
5. Slowly add the dry ingredients, whisking until well combined. Scrape down the sides as necessary.
6. Add the milk chocolate chips and stir to throughly combine.
7. Bake on the middle shelf for 30-40 minutes until a toothpick comes out clear. The top will be crinkly and the sides will be pulling away. Don’t stress if it has cracks.
8. Once cooked, remove from the oven and rest on a wire rack for 10 minutes then remove the slab from the baking tin, lifting the sides of the parchment paper up, and let cool for an hour.
Once completely cool, cut the brownie slab into 16 blocks.
9. F̶r̶o̶s̶t̶ smother with peanut butter frosting.
10. Add sprinkles (optional).
Peanut butter frosting:
1 cup creamy peanut butter
60g butter, room temperature
1 cup icing sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
2 tablespoons milk if necessary
1. On low speed, beat the butter until it’s soft and creamy, about 1-2 minutes. Add the peanut butter and beat until well combined, scraping down the sides.
2. Add the icing sugar, and beat until well incorporated. Add vanilla essence and beat until well combined. (If it’s too thick, add 2 tablespoons of milk. I did not find it necessary for this recipe but it’s entirely up to you. If you need more frosting, add more icing sugar.)
Eat, Play, Clove 