Cocoa Brownies with Peanut Butter Chips

We were having friends over to celebrate my girlfriend’s upcoming birthday. I made her favorite dinner and also wanted to make her a special dessert. She absolutely LOVES rich chocolate and peanut butter. After looking through some old recipes, I decided to do my cocoa brownies. I added peanut butter chips instead of walnuts and they turned out fantastic. They were extremely rich, decadent, and a huge hit – especially with the birthday girl.

Cocoa Brownies with Peanut Butter Chips:

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 sticks of unsalted butter
• 1 1/3 cup of white sugar
• 3/4 cup PLUS 2 tbsp of cocoa powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 cup of peanut butter chips

How to Make Cocoa Brownies with Peanut Butter Chips

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and make sure the rack is in the lower third of the oven. Coat an 8-inch baking pan with cooking spray or line it with parchment paper.

In a large heat-proof bowl, combine the butter, sugar, cocoa, and salt. Set the bowl in a large skillet of water and simmer over medium-low heat. Stir occasionally until the butter is melted and the mixture is hot to the touch. The mixture will look slightly grainy.

Remove from heat and cool until warm. Add vanilla and stir with a wooden spoon. Add the eggs one at a time mixing thoroughly after each one. When the batter looks well blended, smooth, and shiny, slowly add the flour and stir until it’s combined thoroughly, then stir vigorously for 30 strokes.

Stir in the peanut butter chips. Pour into the baking pan and place a few more peanut butter chips on top.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let cool completely then lift up the ends of the parchment paper (if used) and transfer brownies to a cutting board where you cut them into bite-sized pieces. Enjoy.

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