chocolate covered pretzel peanut butter brownies

Oh, these brownies. I saw them on Pinterest and couldn’t stop thinking about them! Lately I’m loving the salty-sweet-crunchiness that comes with adding pretzels to baked goods. And I think saucepan brownies are the bee’s knees. Geoff is such a peanut butter fan that he would probably eat cardboard if I smothered it in peanut butter frosting, so of course he was a fan! These are so decadent that a small piece is definitely sufficient, but every bite is a wonderful mixture of flavor and texture. I used semi-sweet chocolate chips in both the brownies and the chocolate pretzels, and it worked great! I also used a 9 x 9 pan instead of an 11 x 7, and increased the baking time to about 40 minutes.

Chocolate Covered Pretzel Peanut Butter Brownies
Sally’s Baking Addiction

Brownies

1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter
8 ounces coarsely chopped bittersweet (or semi-sweet) chocolate
1 1/4 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt

Peanut Butter Frosting Layer

1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter, softened to room temperature
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 – 2 cups confectioners’ sugar

Easy Chocolate Covered Pretzels (or use store-bought chocolate covered pretzels)

25 mini pretzel twists
2 oz semisweet chocolate

Make the chocolate covered pretzels first.  In a medium bowl, break up and melt the 2 oz of chocolate in the microwave for 30 seconds.  Stir. Continue microwaving  in 10 second intervals until completely melted.  Toss the pretzels into the melted chocolate and stir around until they are mostly coated.  They don’t have to look perfect because you will break them up any way.  Chill the pretzels while you make the brownies.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 11 x 7 inch baking pan (or 13 x 9 inch baking pan for thinner brownies) with cooking spray. Set aside. Melt butter and semi-sweet chocolate in a medium saucepan on medium heat, stirring constantly (about 6 minutes). Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature (about 15 minutes).

Stir sugar into cooled chocolate/butter mixture until combined.  Add in the eggs one at a time, whisking until smooth after each addition. Whisk in the vanilla. Gently fold in the flour and salt.  Pour batter into prepared pan, smoothing the top with a knife. Bake for approx 35 minutes, until a toothpick comes out *almost* clean.

While the brownies are baking, prepare peanut butter frosting layer. Using an electric handheld or stand mixer, cream the butter and peanut butter on medium speed until completely smooth and no more chunks of butter are visible.  Slowly mix in confectioners’ sugar, starting with just one cup.  Add more confectioners’ sugar if needed.  You want a very thick frosting layer.  I used about 1.5 cups.

Once brownies are done in the oven and completely cooled (about 1 hour of cooling time), frost with peanut butter frosting.  Chop up your chocolate covered pretzels and layer them on top of the frosting, gently pressing them down so that they stick.  Refrigerate brownies for about 30-60 minutes until the frosting “sets” on top of the brownies.  Cut into squares and enjoy!