Peanut Butter Brownies

These little treats are an absolute must if you're in the mood for something sweet and different. Perhaps you have some friends or family visiting, have planned a night in watching a movie with them, and wanted to welcome them with something homemade? The great thing about this bake is that not only is there few components to it, so it's very in-expensive, but if you're short on time, it won't take up much of your morning/afternoon/evening. The result is brownies that you will want again and again. If you're not a fan of peanut butter, however, you can always substitute this with mint Aero (200g) or banana (I would only use 2 bananas as this can overly-moisten the overall result.). Very messy, very gooey, very addictive!

Total time : 50 mins (20 mins prep, 50 mins bake).


Ingredients

200g peanut butter (or 200g mint Aero/ 2 bananas)
200g dark chocolate bar, finely broken up
250g sugar (muscovado is okay, also golden caster sugar)
3 eggs, medium-sized
100g self raising flour

Method.

1. To begin with, put to one side 50g of your peanut butter and dark chocolate, previously broken into smaller pieces, and pre-heat your oven to 170c. Prepare a 20cm by 20cm cake tin by rubbing butter on the inside all around, and line with brown baking paper with the ends overhanging the tin. You can use these ends to pull the finished brownie tile out of the tin.

2. Melt the rest of the peanut butter, dark chocolate and all of your sugar gently in a pan until all melted and combined. You will need to stir this constantly. Then remove this from the heat, and one by one, beat the eggs into the mixture and allow plenty of air to get in. A tip I would strongly recommend - if baking in the morning, leave your eggs out of the fridge overnight, or at least for a couple of hours before using - this will allow them to get to room temperature and will have a better result with the consistency of your bake. I do this with all my bakes and results in a much better, lighter and airy mixture. Finally stir in the flour and make sure all is well combined.

3. Once all well-mixed, pour evenly into your baking tin. Melt your remaining peanut butter in your microwave for max 30 secs or over some heat in a pan, then you can either pebble-dash it over your mixture, streak it, criss-cross it, dot it, whatever you like. Then bake for 30 minutes. It should develop a crust by the end of the baking period.

4. Once removed from the oven, allow a little time for the brownie to cool. To help this process, remove from the tin and place on a wire rack. While it is cooling, melt the rest of your dark chocolate, the same way you did the rest of your peanut butter, and drizzle/dot/criss-cross over your cooled brownie tile. Once the chocolate has set, cut your tile into 9 or 12 pieces. Serve and enjoy!