Peanut Butter Pretzel Brownies

I know, I know.  I had you at peanut butter.  Or pretzel.  Or brownie, for that matter.  But what's better than one of your favorite foods?  Delicious combinations?  Oh yes.

After reading Jim's post from last time, I know that these otherwise earth shaking confections might not hold the same allure as they would have had Jim never graced us all with his humor, unbearable cuteness and affinity for obscure foods.  Seriously, I was laughing uncontrollably. 

I wish he could write all my posts.  But alas, here I am, another day, another iteration of me pining over flavor combinations and drooling on my keyboard.  And let's not forget my shocking overuse of the word "delicious".  I need help.

But these brownies deserve the spotlight for now.  They've earned it.  They've oh-so-good-naturedly swirled together with that peanut buttery goodness and lovingly supported those pretzel sticks every step of the way.  It's high time we all just throw caution to the wind and appreciate them for what they are.  

Eat them.  Eat them all.

And if you inhale them so quickly that you start to feel bad for not sharing the good word with others, wrap them up and mail them to a friend, like I may or may not have.  They'll appreciate it (hopefully).  

Also, word to the wise.  If:

a) your interest has been piqued by this utterly brilliant flavor mashup, 

b) you can't get enough of P.B.-pretzel-chocolate anything or 

c) you are just too lazy to go to the work of baking (no judgment here),

then you should run, not walk, to the nearest grocery store and pick up a pint of Ben and Jerry's "Chubby Hubby" ice cream.  You'll see.  And if you want the authentic my-style ice cream experience you should eat it in sweat pants on the couch while watching the Colin Firth version of Pride and Prejudice.  Warning, afterwards your estrogen levels may spike to dangerous levels, and your day to day life may seem alarmingly ice cream free in hindsight.

Peanut Butter Pretzel Brownies

(adapted from joy the baker)

Brownies:

1 stick unsalted butter

2 oz. unsweetened chocolate

4 oz. semi-sweet chocolate

1 tsp instant coffee

3/4 c sugar

3 eggs

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

2/3 c flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

dash coarse sea salt

Peanut Butter:

4 Tbsp melted butter

1/2 c powdered sugar 

3/4 c smooth peanut butter

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

handful pretzel sticks

For the brownies, melt butter, chocolates, and instant coffee in a medium sized bowl.  Once mixture has cooled a bit, stir in vanilla.

In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and regular salt.  

Whisk sugar into the chocolate mixture, then whisk in eggs, one at a time until incorporated.

Fold in flour mixture and pour into a greased (and parchment paper if desired) 8x8'' pan.

For the peanut butter, whisk all ingredients except pretzel sticks together until smooth.  Pour evenly into brownies, swirling peanut butter into the brownie batter with a butter knife.

Add pretzels to the top of the brownies and press into the batter ever so gently.  Sprinkle a dash or two of coarse sea salt on top.

Bake uncovered at 325 for 45-50 minutes.  Allow to cool a bit in pan before removal.

Fair warning, depending on how you arrange the pretzels, you may find yourself cutting your brownies into weird long skinny shapes.  They're still delicious, but I sort of wish I'd broken my pretzels in half first or something.  Or maybe layered them inside the brownies.  You should try that.

Fall is coming.  Prepare yourselves.  If you thought the bakestravaganza was upon you, oh buddy.  Just you wait.

I'm going to incorporate pumpkin like you wouldn't even BELIEVE.