Peanut Butter Brownies Bites

These tempting towers of fudgy chocolate and peanut butter are heaven on a stick! The peanut butter fudge sauce is great as a dip and can also be used as a delicious fudge sauce over ice cream. Add the frosting to the brownies for a truly decadent chocolate experience!

YIELDS 30 MINI SKEWERS

BROWNIES

• 5 eggs

• 1¼ cups flour

• 2 cups sugar

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• ¾ cup cocoa powder

• 1 tsp baking powder

• ¾ cup oil

• ¼ cup peanut butter chips

CHOCOLATE FROSTING (OPTIONAL)

• 1 cup confectioners’ sugar

• ¾ cup + 2 Tbsp cocoa powder

• ⅔ cup oil

• ¾ cup water

ASSEMBLY

• 60 mini pretzel twists (I used the Haddar ones that come in mini packages)

• 1 8-oz (225-g) pkg mini marshmallows

PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE FUDGE SAUCE

• ¼ cup brown sugar

• 2 Tbsp peanut butter

• 2 Tbsp cocoa powder

• 1 Tbsp margarine

• 3 Tbsp soy milk

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Combine all brownie ingredients in a large bowl and pour into a 9x13-inch (20x30-cm) baking pan. Bake for 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted inside comes out mostly dry (if there are a few moist crumbs, that’s okay).

While the brownies are baking, prepare the frosting if desired: Mix together frosting ingredients in medium-sized mixing bowl until smooth. Add a few drops of water if it’s too thick, or a bit more confectioners’ sugar if it’s too runny. Spread frosting over cooled brownies and cut into 1½-inch (4-cm) squares. (You should have 30 squares.)

To assemble the skewers: Skewer 5 mini marshmallows in a cluster and slide upward. Add 2 mini pretzel twists and then stick the skewer into a brownie square.

To prepare the fudge sauce, heat all sauce ingredients in a small saucepan. Stir until dissolved and allow to simmer for 3–4 minutes. Remove from heat and drizzle brownie sticks with sauce. If desired, serve extra fudge sauce in small bowls for dipping.

(Originally featured in Family Table, Issue 718)