Write-in Recipe

Chocolate Crunch Brownie Sundae

This is my first post with a recipe that someone has sent to me to try out.  My friend Jen sent me a recipe for Chocolate Crunch Brownies.  In keeping with the theme of the blog, I tweaked it some and then turned into my own creation. 

Thanks Jen!

Ingredients:

1 cup butter 1/2 cup salted butter 1/2 cup unsalted butter softened (I nuke mine ‘cause

  I’m not patient enough to wait for it to soften)

2 cups sugar

4 eggs beaten

1/2 cup Dutch processed cocoa

1 1/2 cup flour

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 jar (7 oz) marshmallow crème caramel (or butterscotch if you prefer)

1 cup creamy crunchy peanut butter

2 cups semisweet chocolate chips  *see cheats

3 cups crisp rice cereal (Rise Krispies)

+ vanilla ice cream

+ chocolate syrup (cooled)

+ whipped cream

+ cinnamon

+ Nesquik (powder)

+ chocolate shavings***      

          

Pre-eat your oven to 350°

Mix your cocoa, flour and salt in a small bowl.  In a large bowl, mix the butter and sugar with a hand mixer until smooth and fluffy.  Gradually add the dry mix to your butter mixture and continue blending until a smooth batter has formed.  Pour the batter into a 9 x13 greased baking dish and bake for 28 minutes.  Cool on a wire rack**

Spread the caramel on the surface of the room temperature brownies and warm a small sauce pan on Low heat on your range.  Put your chocolate and peanut butter and melt it, stirring constantly.  When liquefied (and nutty), add the Krispies and mix.  Spread the crunchy mixture over the caramel.  Put in the fridge to cool.

Cut your cooled brownies into whatever shape you want and plate them—if you’re a fancy-pants, decorate your plate too.  Scoop your ice cream (I used sugar free) onto your brownies.  Cover ice cream with chocolate syrup, whipped cream, a sprinkle of cinnamon & Nesquik and chocolate shavings.

Smile, then feel guilty---this is a bad thing for waistline watchers but good for sweet lovers.

Notes:

How dumb is it that [Nestle] Quik is now called Nesquik? Lame.

I cut some unhealthy corners but this is such a non-healthy thing that I can’t label anything a Healthy Tweak today.

***I made chocolate shavings from a chocolate Easter egg by using a mini cheese grater that I got at my cousins Jerry and Andrea’s wedding.

Tweaks:

I cut out 1/2 of the salted butter and substituted unsalted. 

I hate marshmallow anything---my brother David may not even read this blog anymore due to it even being mentioned in this post he hates it so much—so I substituted caramel (a fat-free one).

I used crunchy peanut-butter (I used “all natural” from Smart Balance) instead of creamy to further support the crunchy claim made by the title of the recipe.  Even Snap, Crackle and Pop need support sometimes.

Cheats:

*I only had about a cup of chocolate chips in my cabinet, so I broke up one of my leftover chocolate eggs that I got from my bf’s mother at Easter.  Filled the void perfectly.

**Refer to one of my Just the Tip posts for my wire rack cheat.

Verdict: Success

To call this recipe Neighbor-worthy, would be in an insult.  It is so much better than that.  They will all have to spend an extra week working this iff at the gym, but SO worth it.

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