Peanut Butter Brownies

5 from 9 votes

This peanut butter brownie recipe is so fudgy, rich, and has a peanut butter swirl on top of the brownies that you are going to love! These peanut butter brownies are 100% made from scratch and 1000% delicious!

Prep Time25

Cook Time25

Total Time50

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: servings

Calories: 319kcal

Author: Heather Perine

Equipment

Ingredients

For peanut butter swirl:

½ cup (107 g) creamy peanut butter
¼ cup (30 g) confectioners sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
⅛ teaspoon salt

For the brownies:

½ cup plus 1 Tablespoon (80 g) all-purpose flour spooned and leveled
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon baking powder
2 large eggs at room temperature
¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
¼ cup (50 g) packed light brown sugar
¼ cup (60 ml) canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ cup (4 Tablespoons, 57 g) unsalted butter
4 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chopped
2 Tablespoons (13 g) Dutch process cocoa powder

Instructions

Prep oven and pan. Position a rack in the center of your oven and preheat the oven to 350°C (180°C). Line an 8x8 square pan with parchment paper, or grease with non-stick cooking spray.
Make peanut butter swirl. In a small mixing bowl, stir together the peanut butter confectioners sugar, butter, vanilla and salt until smooth and combined. Set aside.
Combine dry ingredients. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and baking powder. Set aside.
Combine wet ingredients. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the granulated sugar, eggs, brown sugar, oil, and vanilla.
Combine butter and chocolate. In a small saucepan on the stove, over low heat, melt and stir together the butter and chopped chocolate. Stir frequently to keep the chocolate from burning. Remove from the heat and stir in the cocoa powder, whisking to combine.
Add chocolate mixture to sugar mixture. Whisk the chocolate/butter mixture into the sugar/egg mixture until smooth and combined.
Add dry ingredients. Stir, using a spatula (or wooden spoon) in the dry ingredients until just combined.
Bake brownies. Spread batter into the prepared pan. Dollop the peanut butter mixture on top and swirl with the tip of a butter knife. and bake for about 25 to 28 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs clinging to it. Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool completely before cutting into bars and serving.

Notes

Storage: Leftovers can be kept, covered, at room temperature for 3 days.
Mix-ins: If you want more peanut butter flavor go for it! I would chop up the peanut butter cups before adding them. And I would add 1/2 cup of any of the extra mix-ins.
Freezing: Brownies freeze beautifully. Freeze any leftovers, just make sure they are cooled completely, for up to 3 months. Make sure they are wrapped and stored well so they don't get freezer burn. And then thaw at room temperature, uncovered before enjoying.
My brownies are cakey/dry: This is due to possibly due to a few things. You may have overmixed when you added the flour. Be sure to not mix the batter too much or they will be cakey. You may have also added too much flour. See my tip above on how to measure correctly. And if they are dry you may have overbaked them. Be sure to test with a toothpick for moist crumbs, set your timer, and use an oven thermometer for best results.
Line The Pan. For easier remover I recommend lining the pan with parchment paper or tin-foil. Make sure to give it a spray with cooking spray after.
Don't Swirl Too Much. You want thick, noticeable swirls which will come from less swirling NOT more.
Test With A Toothpick. To check the doneness of the brownies, test with a toothpick. You should see no raw batter but you want want a few moist crumbs clinging to it.
Don't Overbake. The middle may still look slightly soft and that's OK. And when you do a toothpick test, you don't want to wait until the toothpick is completely clean or this will mean that they are overbaked and will be dry. Be sure to set your timer, and every oven is different so be sure to check a little early!

Nutrition