Calling All Chocolate and Peanut Butter Lovers: Buckeye Brownies Await!
Serious Eats / Morgan Hunt GlazeFudgy, cakey, or chewy, studded with nuts or swirled with marshmallow fluff—I love just about every variation of brownie imaginable. One of my favorite riffs on a classic brownie is this buckeye brownie recipe. They’re inspired by Ohio’s favorite candy, the buckeye: a classic treat made with a creamy peanut butter and confectioners' sugar filling that’s rolled and portioned into bite-sized balls, then chilled and partially dipped in chocolate. The treats are called buckeyes because they resemble the nut of the Ohio buckeye tree—the state tree of Ohio. (And the tree nuts, which, by the way, are poisonous, are so named because they resemble a deer's eye.) Buckeye candies are purposefully jaw-clenchingly sweet, rich, and SO good that we feel their flavor combination shouldn’t be limited to just candy. Here we reimagined buckeye candies into a dessert bar with a fudgy chocolate brownie base with a thick middle layer of a creamy sweetened peanut butter and and a top layer of dark chocolate ganache. They’re special enough for almost any celebration or even your next potluck. To create the best version possible, our test kitchen colleague Jasmine Smith whipped up batch after batch of buckeye brownies. Jasmine’s recipe nails every layer: an intense chocolatey brownie base, a smooth peanut butter filling, and a dark chocolate ganache topping. Here’s how to make them.Serious Eats / Morgan Hunt GlazeTips for Making Buckeye BrowniesUse Dutch-processed cocoa powder in the brownies. For the most chocolatey and rich brownies possible, use a high quality Dutch-processed cocoa powder rather than natural cocoa powder. In her Dutch-processed cocoa powder taste test, Stella Parks explains that cocoa powder is the dry matter left behind after the oily cocoa butter is extracted from cocoa beans that have been fermented and roasted for maximum flavor. This powder is naturally acidic. Natural cocoa powder is sold as is, while Dutched cocoas include an additional step to neutralize that acidity (a process developed by a Dutch chemist, hence the name). Most Dutch-processed cocoas contain nearly twice the fat of natural styles, and often come from better quality beans. The result is a slightly alkaline cocoa powder that's higher in fat, lower in starch, and more aromatic all around, with a mahogany color and a flavor profile that emphasizes cocoa's darker, nuttier, earthier tones. The brands Droste and Valrhona Dutch cocoa powders are two excellent choices. If Dutch-processed cocoa powder is unavailable, most supermarkets will still carry a dark unsweetened cocoa powder that will work fine—your brownie layer will be a bit less rich, but still delicious.Add coffee to the brownie mix. Jasmine found in her recipe testing that a little bit of strongly brewed coffee (just three tablespoons) whisked into the brownie batter goes a long way. You won’t taste coffee in the baked brownies, but the bitterness of coffee balances the sweetness of chocolate, keeping the brownies from becoming cloying. At the same time, coffee enhances the chocolate flavor, making it more complex and intense. Leftover strongly brewed drip coffee works well, or 1 1/2 teaspoons instant espresso powder with three tablespoons of water also works well here.Cream the butter and the peanut butter filling. Adequately creaming the butter with the peanut butter and confectioners' sugar with an electric mixer or stand mixer with a whisk attachment traps tiny air bubbles in the filling—something that would be very challenging to achieve and require a lot of arm strength if done by hand. Without proper whipping to aerate and lighten the filling, the butter and peanut butter would form an ultra-dense paste. Butter is best beaten when it’s at soft but cool room temperature—ideally 65ºF or 18ºC. At this temperature, butter is pliable enough to beat with the sugar.Serious Eats / Morgan Hunt GlazeStick with a bittersweet chocolate bar for the best flavor. When preparing the brownie and ganache, don’t be tempted to swap in milk chocolate or any other chocolate with less than 70% cacao or you risk creating a dessert that's way too sweet and falls short on chocolatey flavor. The terms bittersweet and dark are often used interchangeably on packaging, so make sure to double check the chocolate is labeled somewhere between 70 to 75% cacao. Also skip the chocolate chips, which usually have ingredients to help them keep their shape that also prevent them from melting well into a ganache.Refrigerate the brownies before slicing. Once layered and assembled, the bars need at least one hour in the refrigerator to achieve a firm and sliceable texture. If you try to remove the brownies from the pan without refrigerating them, the soft peanut butter filling will ooze out when trying to slice. I like to assemble the brownies and refrigerate them a day before serving them. Yes, it's hard to wait to eat them, but it's worth it!For the Brownies: Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a 13- x 9-inch metal baking pan (at least 2 inches deep) with cooking spray. Line with parchment paper, leaving at least 2 inches overhang on two opposite sides to remove brownies from pan. Spray parchment paper with cooking spray. Set pan aside.Serious Eats / Morgan Hunt GlazeIn a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Once melted, whisk in granulated sugar and brown sugar until smooth, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and whisk in 1 cup of the chopped chocolate until melted, about 30 seconds. Whisk in cocoa powder, coffee, vanilla, and salt. Let mixture cool for 5 minutes. Working quickly to avoid cooking eggs, add one egg at a time to the chocolate mixture and whisk vigorously after each addition until incorporated. Add flour and 1/4 cup of the remaining chopped chocolate, folding until just combined. Serious Eats / Morgan Hunt GlazePour brownie mixture into the prepared baking pan, and spread into an even layer. Bake until slightly risen and the top appears somewhat shiny, 30 to 35 minutes.Serious Eats / Morgan Hunt GlazeRemove from oven, and place pan on a wire rack to cool completely, about 1 1/2 hours. Serious Eats / Morgan Hunt GlazeFor the Peanut Butter Filling: In a large bowl with an electric mixer or in a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, beat butter on medium-high speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Add peanut butter, and beat until light and creamy, about 1 more minute. Gradually add the powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, and beat until fully incorporated, about 2 minutes, stopping to scrape down sides of bowl as needed. Add heavy cream, vanilla, and salt; beat until combined, about 30 seconds. Dollop peanut butter mixture over cooled brownies, and spread into an even layer. Refrigerate, uncovered, while preparing the chocolate ganache. Serious Eats / Morgan Hunt GlazeFor the Chocolate Ganache: In a small heatproof bowl, add chopped chocolate and set aside. In a microwave-safe liquid measuring cup or bowl, microwave cream until hot, but not simmering, 30 to 60 seconds. Add butter to cream, and stir until melted. Pour cream mixture over chocolate in bowl, and let sit for 1 minute. Add kosher salt, and stir until smooth and all chocolate is melted. Remove brownies from refrigerator, and pour the ganache over the peanut butter filling. Use an offset spatula to spread into an even layer. Refrigerate again until chocolate ganache is firm and set, about 1 hour. Serious Eats / Morgan Hunt GlazeRun a sharp knife around the edges of brownies (inside the parchment) to release from the pan. Use the parchment sling handles to remove the brownies from the pan and place on a cutting board. Sprinkle evenly with flaky sea salt. Cut into squares, and serve.Serious Eats / Morgan Hunt GlazeSpecial Equipment13- x 9-inch metal baking pan, medium saucepan, electric mixer or stand-mixer with whisk attachmentNotesIf using salted peanut butter, use half the amount of salt in the brownie batter.Make-Ahead and StorageThe peanut butter filling can be made in advance and stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 2 days. The assembled brownies can be stored at room temperature, covered, for up to 2 days.
Welcome to Billionaire Club Co LLC, your gateway to a brand-new social media experience! Sign up today and dive into over 10,000 fresh daily articles and videos curated just for your enjoyment. Enjoy the ad free experience, unlimited content interactions, and get that coveted blue check verification—all for just $1 a month!
Account Frozen
Your account is frozen. You can still view content but cannot interact with it.
Please go to your settings to update your account status.
Open Profile Settings