Peanut Butter Brownies

"Submitted by Foster Orthodontics, Anderson"
Serves 10-12 | Prep Time 20 min. | Cook Time 35 min.Why I Love This Recipe
"The best part is when you finally get to sink your teeth into that first bite of fudgy, peanut butter swirl brownie decadence. The richness and sweet chocolate depth of the brownie contrasts beautifully with the creamy, salty peanut butter. These are definitely not diet food…but they are worth it."- Katiebird Bakes
Ingredients You'll Need
4 oz. Dark Chocolate (Ghirardelli chopped; about 3/4 cup)
½ Cup Unsalted Butter
½ Cup Granulated Sugar
½ Cup Brown Sugar (packed)
2 Large Eggs
1 Tsp. Pure Vanilla Extract
⅔ Cup All-Purpose Flour
¼ Cup Cocoa Powder
1 Tsp. Salt
½ Tsp. Espresso Powder
¼ Cup Natural Salted Creamy Peanut Butter** (warmed until pourable)
Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Grease an 8×8 square pan or line with parchment paper. Set aside.
In a large bowl set in the top of a double boiler, or in the microwave in 30 second increments, melt the dark chocolate and butter, stirring occasionally, until smooth and glossy. Turn off heat, whisk in granulated and brown sugar, and let cool slightly.
Whisk in the eggs one at a time until fully combined, followed by the vanilla.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, salt, and espresso powder.
Add dry ingredients to the wet and stir together just until a stiff batter forms (this is thicker than normal brownie batter!).
Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Dollop small spoonfuls of the peanut butter evenly over the batter, then swirl with a toothpick until desired pattern is reached.
Bake brownies for 35-40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few crumbs attached.
Let brownies cool for a few minutes, then transfer to the fridge on top of a tea towel to cool completely in the pan.
Notes:
*If you’d like, you can substitute ¼ cup of chickpea/garbanzo bean flour for ¼ cup of the all-purpose flour. The results are the same!
**For best swirl, use a natural peanut butter with only peanuts and salt as the ingredients. The more liquid texture of natural peanut butter produces the best swirl. Shelf stable peanut butter can be substituted if desired.
Brownies will keep, well-wrapped in the fridge for utmost fudginess, for up to 5 days.
Pairs Well With
A Large Glass of Milk or Almond milk