The BEST Peanut Butter Brownies! Fudgy brownies filled with peanut butter cups, topped with a peanut butter swirl. RECIPE VIDEO below!
Anyone else need a pan of Peanut Butter Brownies to make it through the week?
This here is what dreams are made of. Do you see that peanut butter swirl? Those chunks of peanut butter cups? That fudgy goodness?
So much to love.
If you’ve been around for a while you know that there is no shortage of brownie recipes on this site. Classic Fudgy Brownies, Coconut Brownies, German Chocolate Brownies, Mug Brownie, Strawberry Brownies, Almond Sea Salt Brownies, Brownie Cookies... and the truth is I’m not stopping anytime soon. If loving brownies is wrong, this girl does not want to be right.
Peanut Butter Brownies
Here’s how we make this recipe:
We whip up a super easy homemade brownie batter, then stir in chopped peanut butter cups. The brownie batter gets poured into a pan, then we generously dollop and swirl peanut butter all over the top of the batter.
Put the pan into the oven and then, (sigh) wait the longest 30 minutes of your life while they bake. Tick tock, tick tock.
After baking, you can let the brownies cool like a normal human (this is recommended), or you can throw caution to the wind and burn your mouth and fingertips diving into a piping hot freshly baked Peanut Butter Brownie. You know what I did. 😉 #totallyworthit
Tips for Making Brownies:
- Line the pan with foil for easy removal. Once the brownies have cooled, you can lift the whole batch right out of the pan using the foil. It makes for super easy cutting.
- Add some chocolate chips into the batter. This guarantees you melty-fudgy bites every time!
- Do not overbake them. I can’t stress this enough! If you insert a toothpick into the center it should have moist fudgy crumbs on it, but no batter. As soon as that happens, pull them out. Since all ovens bake differently, set your timer for earlier than the recipe calls for and keep checking them until they’re done.
Check out my step by step video to see how easy this recipe is. If you love chocolate and peanut butter, this one is for YOU! Enjoy every bite!
More PEANUT BUTTER Recipes:
Peanut Butter Brownies Trifles – Peanut Butter Ice Cream Pie – Peanut Butter Cup Magic Cookie Bars – Peanut Butter Cup Cupcakes –Peanut Butter Bars – Special K Bars
Note: This recipe originally appeared in 2015. I have updated the photos and added a video, but the recipe remains the same.
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Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup powdered sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon salt**, see note
- 1 cup all purpose flour*
- 1/2 teaspoon espresso powder or instant coffee, optional
- 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
- 3 large eggs
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons water
- 2/3 cup chopped peanut butter cups
- 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter, not natural**
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 9x9 pan with foil, leaving a couple inches of overhang on two sides (this will allow you to lift the whole tray of brownies out of the pan for easy removal). Butter or spray it.
- In a large bowl combine cocoa powder, sugars, salt, flour, espresso powder, and chocolate chips. Whisk until combined. Add eggs, oil, and water and stir with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon until combined. Fold in peanut butter cups (the batter will be thick).
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Drop dollops of peanut butter on the top of the brownies, and use a knife to swirl it around.
- Bake for about 30 minutes. The brownies are done when the top is dry and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out without raw batter on it (there may be some fudgy crumbs on the toothpick - that's OK). Be careful not to over bake. Remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack. Cool completely.
Laura
I followed all directions except using a 9in round pan and I checked at 45 minutes and the middle was still raw and the edges burnt.
Celebrating Sweets
Hi, Laura. The pan size was the problem. A 9inch round pan is around 20% smaller than a 9×9 square baking pan (which is the recommended pan size). Using a smaller pan would require an increased bake time which would cause the middle to take longer to bake through. Sorry you had trouble.
https://www.joyofbaking.com/PanSizes.html
Kasey
These brownies are absolutely fantastic! I love baking and wanted a good peanut butter brownie and this is a keeper for sure! I love all of the ingredients-love adding the instant coffee and powdered sugar! I used an 8×8 pan and it did take longer to bake but that was no issue whatsoever. I am going to make this recipe again without the peanutbutter and just add more chocolate chips (just to be able to have different versions!) I’m in love!!
Allison
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Tricia
I made these for my best friends birthday, I just substituted gluten free flour (because I’m allergic to wheat). Even gluten free these were AMAZING! We both could not stop eating them. I made them in an 8 x 8 pan so they had to cook a little longer. I just kept checking on them, no big deal.
Allison
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for taking the time to comment. 🙂
ashley
can u make these in a 9 by 13 inch pan?
Allison
I haven’t tried it. If you do you’ll need to double the recipe.
Lindsay
I doubled it and it was perfect!
Allison
Perfect! Thanks for taking the time to comment. 🙂
Morgan
Exactly the recipe I needed! My husband loves chocolate and peanut butter and I really wanted to make him something special for his birthday this year. I’m so glad I found this recipe. It was easy to follow and turned out delicious!! Thanks so much for sharing this recipe with us!
Allison
Thanks for the kind review. I’m glad you enjoyed it! 🙂