Chocolate, Peanut Butter, Butterscotch Brownies

Photo from The Southern
Lady Cooks blog

It's Book Club night, and Sherrie is hosting. That means it's my turn to bring dessert! Knowing these ladies have a serious love affair with chocolate, I figured I couldn't go wrong with something chocolatey.

This recipe is a fairly recent addition to my ever-growing collection. It popped up in my Facebook feed, and after giving it a quick read, I knew it would be a perfect fit for our book club gathering.

Of course, I made a few adjustments. Shocking, I know!

First up, I needed to make this gluten-free, so I swapped in a gluten-free brownie mix. I used this one, and I have to say, it's pretty darn good for a gluten-free option.

A couple of other changes along the way:

1. No marshmallows. I completely overlooked them on the ingredient list and didn't have any in the pantry. Honestly, with how rich these brownies are, I didn't miss them one bit.

2. No frosting. I skipped this too, and for the exact same reason. These things are RICH! Adding another layer of sweetness seemed like overkill.

I also used an 8x8 pan instead of the recommended 9x13. I didn't catch that little detail until after I had everything prepared. But now I'm questioning the serving size. How on earth does a 9x13 pan only serve eight people? An 8x8 pan generally gives me nine pretty generous portions. 

Chocolate, Peanut Butter, Butterscotch Brownies

Recipe from The Southern Lady Cooks

Serves 8

• 1 box Duncan Hines Chewy Fudge Premium Brownie Mix family size for a 9X13
• 2/3 cup Roasted Peanuts and Honey Crunchy Peanut Butter Can use just regular crunchy peanut butter
• 1 cup chocolate chips
• 1 cup butterscotch chips
• 1 cup walnut pieces
• 2 cups miniature marshmallows

Brownie icing or topping:

• 2 tablespoons cocoa
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 3 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring
• 1 1/3 cups confectionery sugar

Prepare brownie mix according to package directions for fudgy brownies. Spread the mix in the bottom of a 9 x 13 dish sprayed with cooking spray. Melt the peanut butter in the microwave for about 40 seconds until spreadable.

Then spread on top of the brownie mix. Next, spread chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, and walnuts over the peanut butter. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 25 minutes.

Remove and add marshmallows and put back in oven for 7 to 10 minutes to allow marshmallows to start to melt on top. Remove from oven and let cool, then add icing.

Brownie Icing Instructions:

Mix together cocoa, margarine, milk and vanilla with mixer. Add sugar, mix well. If icing is too thick to spread, add a little more milk. Spread over cooled brownies.