A Confession [Peanut Butter Brownies]

Food blogger confession time:

Sometimes I have bad thoughts towards Pinterest.

I mainly just hate the way people will say "This is great!" (head tilt) "Did you find it on Pinterest?". Girls do it AND guys do it; and, honestly, its really really annoying.

I love the true purpose of Pinterest. You should've seen my pre-Pinterest internet bookmark lists. Recipes upon recipes; it was truly a mess. But now, the world has changed. Yes, I'm organized, but hesitant. The way people ask if a dessert or DIY project is from Pinterest actually makes me feel a little ridiculous and almost discredited; its not fair! I read blogs, I have ideas. Yes, Pinterest is awesome and convenient, but I think that some pinners are giving it a bad name [in my head]. They are the "lazy" pinners, participating in social media voodoo. You know, the ones that only repin, and do it a lot? And they're probably not even sure of what they're pinning half of the time. It's sad.


That being said, here are my personal guidelines that, in the perfect Pinterest world, everyone would follow:

1. Give credit where credit is due. Yes, I "google"(sometimes Pinterest search) ideas that I think are original only to find a handful of existing recipes for it. Its not horrible! I now have a recipe to work with and make tweaks, based on my preferences. BUT I try to always mention who inspired me. WHO, as in: not Pinterest. Bloggers are real people, websites are maintained by real people. Similar thinking should apply to repinning--take some time to look at the actually website and then pin the actual webpage, versus just pressing "repin".
2. Sometimes, you need to take great things for what they are: great things. Yes, I found something on Pinterest, but I made the effort to search for it and actually make/do it myself. In a world where everyone is ordinary, lets celebrate creativity, risk taking, and commitment to a project!

Pinterest--For these bad thoughts, I am sorry. Forgive me! I guess, in the end, the only thing you can really change is your way of thinking ;)


Oh, and you wanted a recipe? These peanut butter brownies are unbelievable. Yes, it started as an idea in my head, and then two days later Dorothy of Crazy for Crust posted something incredibly similar. Great minds think alike!

I didn't get around to making these until last week, using another brownie recipe I've always had success with. These are dense fudgey brownies, with no leavening agents at all. The peanut butter and chocolate compliment each other perfectly (typical). Seriously though, these are "love brownies"; two flavors in perfect bite-sized harmony...

Make them when you get a chance!

Peanut Butter Brownies

Adapted from Brown Eyed Baker's version of The Baked Brownie

Servings: 24 brownies

Chocolate Brownie Batter

1/2 cup unsalted butter

5 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup light brown sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup flour

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

Peanut Butter Brownie Batter
1/2 cup unsalted butter (or 3 tablespoons butter + 1 tablespoon vegetable oil)
5 ounces peanut butter chips
1/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup, plus 2 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon salt

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a 9x13 pan with parchment paper. In one small mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and cocoa powder for the chocolate batter; in another, whisk together the flour and salt for the peanut butter batter. 

• Chocolate batter: Set a medium bowl over a saucepan of simmering water; fill it with the butter and chocolate chips. Stir occasionally until the chips has melted and the mixture is smooth. Remove from heat, add in sugars and stir until completely combined. Add eggs and vanilla; stir until incorporated but do not over-mix. Fold in dry ingredients until just combined.

• Peanut butter batter: Set another medium bowl over the same saucepan of simmering water; fill it with the butter and peanut butter chips. Stir occasionally until the chips has melted and the mixture is smooth. Remove from heat, add in sugars and stir until completely combined. Add eggs and vanilla; stir until incorporated but do not over-mix. Fold in dry ingredients until just combined.

• Pour chocolate batter into pan and use a spatula to spread it out to the edges. Next pour in peanut butter batter; use the same spatula and swirl the batters together. Bake for about 30 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through, until the edges pull from the sides of the pan and a tester from the center of the pan comes out with a few crumbs. Let cool before cutting and store in an airtight container.