These bars are like the lovechild of a brownie and a chocolate chip cookie!
Gooey, fudgy, rich, decadent, peanut buttery, chocolatey, melt-in-your-mouth chocolate chip brownie bars – I could go on with adjectives, but you really need to try them to understand!
This recipe was created to say thank you.
I found out last week that my book made the list of Amazon’s Top 20 Best Cookbooks Of 2015. Seeing my name included on that list when I opened the email was such a shock… I think I probably screamed… and maybe scared the neighbors… I can’t stop smiling… and still can’t believe it!!!
Please forgive me for mentioning the book again… there is no way I can keep this exciting news to myself! Making Amazon’s Top 20 Cookbooks of the year is by far one of the MOST exciting things to happen in all the time I’ve been blogging. And I can’t ever thank you enough.
Before the book came out, my publisher had warned me that because not everyone eats dessert, cookbooks with only desserts rarely sell as well as non-dessert books and that I should keep this in mind and not get my hopes up too far. Neither of us ever expected this amount of incredible success; we have been stunned at how many people have been buying the book.
It’s completely crazy!!!!
Words are failing me once again, and therefore I wish to express my thanks to you all in my usual favored way: through—what else?—dessert!
Thank you to everyone who reads this blog.
Thank you to everyone who has ever made one of the recipes or mentioned the site to a friend.
Thank you to everyone who has bought the book.
But mostly, thank you to everyone simply just for reading. I know full well it’s because of YOU that I’m able to do what I love every day, and I never want to take that for granted. I wish I could send a batch of chocolate chip brownie bars to each of you as a thank-you for making this all possible. Thank you again and again and again. Thank you, a million times over. ♥
Okay, brownie time!
Gooey Chocolate Chip Brownie Bars
Adapted from Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bars
Gooey Chocolate Chip Brownie Bars
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1 cup peanut butter OR allergy-friendly alternative
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp flour (almond flour, white, spelt, sorghum, oat, and Bob’s gf all work here)
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp cocoa powder
- 2/3 cup sugar or xylitol
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (mini are best, but regular will also work)
- optional chocolate chips for the top
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 F and grease an 8×8 pan. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the first 3 ingredients until smooth. Add all remaining ingredients, and stir. Only if it’s too dry after stirring to resemble a thick brownie batter, very slowly add a little milk of choice (or water) until the desired texture is reached. Smooth evenly into the prepared pan, then press in some extra chocolate chips if desired. Bake 20 minutes, then remove from the oven. It will look a little undercooked, so do not touch the pan for at least 15 minutes. After this time, it will have firmed up and you can cut without crumbling. After a day, leftovers should be stored in the fridge for freshness.
Links Of The Day:
Chocolate Quinoa Breakfast Cups, from the Hello Breakfast Cookbook
You’re shocked it’s doing so well? Really? I’m not? It’s an amazing cookbook!!!
Don’t use xylitol, it will poison and kill your pets if they get ahold of any of it!!!
Could I still make these brownies without the peanut butter and applesauce?
These are so good! A friend and I just made these brownies for our exercise science “healthy” bake sale!!!
Excited to make these brownie bars. Wondering if I can substitute maple syrup for the sugar and cacao nibs for the mini chocolate chips? Thanks for the recipe!
These were wonderful. Only sub I did was I switched out the flour for protein powder. Nice and chocolaty
Can unsweetened cocoa powder be used?
Yes 🙂
Hi Katie! My brownies came out really dry, do you think I cooked them too long? I have been craving gooey brownies and I know your recipes usually hit the spot! Any ideas/suggestions would be appreciated. Thank You!
Could I substitute the sugar with honey or maple syrup?
SO DELICIOUS!! gooey and fudgey and oh so chocolatey. my substitutions included: almond flour, coconut sugar, organic cacao powder and cacao nibs (for the choc chips), and they still turned out brilliant! wouldn’t even believe they contained ingredients that were “better” for you. Probably could’ve done without the cacao nibs though so will not add them in next time (even the choc chips I feel are not a necessity in this recipe, purely based on personal preference) but still by far the yummiest “healthy” dessert I’ve made
I used sun butter, unbleached white flour, sugar, and added about 2-3 tbsp unsweetened vanilla almond milk…these are AMAZING! My boyfriend thinks these are even better than traditional brownies full of butter, oil, and eggs. The nut butter taste is subtle, but kind of goes away the more you eat. Another incredible recipe!
I was having a rough day and decided to make these to cheer me up and they are heavenly. So delicious and so easy. Will NOT share! 😀
Can applesauce be omitted?If not is there something else that I can use?
Just made these and followed the directions exactly. They are so delicious!!!! Tried them warmed and cold from the fridge and both were delicious!! Nothing short of regular brownies! I would definitely make them again!!! Thanks for a fantastic tasting and easy recipe!!! 🙂
I made these tonight and they turned out wonderfully rich and delightful! I used Hershey’s extra dark cocoa powder and since I didn’t have enough peanut butter, used a combination of peanut butter (~2 tablespoons), almond butter (~2 tablespoons), and the nutella for the rest. Since Nutella is already sweet, I didn’t add the whole 2/3 cup sugar, and instead put in tablespoon by tablespoon until it tasted sweet enough for me (around 4-6 tablespoons?). Delicious, and since I love rich things I can’t get enough!
Oh wow, these were without a doubt the best brownie I have ever made (and I like to bake). Just bought your cookbook, can’t wait to try more recipes (I did also make the sinless PB cookie as well, really, really good, but these brownies are incredible, sooo gooey and moist)