I’ve had a craving for my favourite brownie recipe recently — an almost overpowering desire to sink my teeth into a fudgy moist square of chocolate heaven. But this blog is all about discovering new recipes so I didn’t want to just make the same old brownies, as delicious as they are. So I decided to turn them into Rocky Road brownies, by adding a gooey topping of toasted marshmallows, peanuts and mini milk chocolate chips.
I must say that these brownies are very fudgey. Since it was an experiment, I was unsure about how long I should bake the brownies before adding the topping. The problem is that once the topping is on they have to go back into the oven. Put the marshmallows on too soon and you’ll either burn the topping or have a gooey centre. Put them on too late you could be left with dry, burnt edges. So, knowing that brownies taste good even if really gooey I erred on the side of caution and perhaps underbaked these brownies a little bit.
pretty!
The original recipe suggests baking them for 20-25 minutes. No chance. I baked them for 25 then put the topping on and popped them back in for another 5 minutes, but still they are very fudgy in the centre (not that this is a bad thing). But you need to be sure that they are completely cool before you cut them, even pop them in the fridge before cutting them. Otherwise it would be easier to eat them with a spoon. So for the purposes of this recipe, I’ve increased the times a wee bit, but the best test is to insert a tooth pick into the centre. When you remove it, it should have moist crumbs clinging to it — not wet goo!
Still, despite the logistical challenges the topping was definitely worth it. The marshmallows puffed up beautifully, turning a crisp golden brown. The saltiness and crunch of the peanuts were an expected delight with each bite. And the milk chocolate chips add an extra little sweetness which makes these brownies hard to beat.
Look how fudgy these lovely things are!
You’ll also notice that the measurements are in grams and not cups. The original recipe was from the Green & Blacks chocolate cookbook, a British cookbook. I’m sure you can convert to cups etc but weighing out the ingredients is actually very convenient!
So without further ado, Rocky Road Brownies!
Rocky Road Brownies
makes around 30 brownies, depending on how hungry you are!
Ingredients:
- 300 g unsalted butter
- 300 g dark chocolate (minimum 60%, broken into pieces)
- 5 large eggs
- 450 g granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 200 g plain flour
- 1 scant teaspoon salt
Topping:
- 100 g mini marshmallows
- 125 g peanuts (mine were salted peanuts, which gave the brownies a nice salty sweet taste, but completely optional)
- 50 g mini milk chocolate chips
Directions:
- Line a roasting or baking tray with foil or baking paper and grease lightly. In a bowl (placed on top of, but not touching, a pot of simmering water) melt the butter and chocolate together until completely melted. Remove from heat.
- In a large bowl, beat together sugar, eggs and vanilla extract until thick and creamy. The mixture should easily coat the back of a spoon.
- Add the butter chocolate mixture to the egg mixture and beat until well incorporated.
- Sift the flour and salt together, and add to the wet ingredients. Mix with a spoon/spatula until the mixture is just combined.
- Pour mixture into the tray and bake for 25-30 (at least) minutes at 180C. Check the brownies by inserting a toothpick into the centre. It shouldn’t come out wet, but should have some moist crumbs clinging to it. Brownies can be a bit flexible depending on how fudgy like them.
- Sprinkle peanuts, marshmallows, and chocolate chips over the brownies. Return to the oven until marshmallows are puffed and golden brown, 3-5 minutes. Once done, cool on wire rack. Cool completely before cutting into squares with a sharp knife.
- Feast.
