What's Baking: S'mores Brownies

I'm heading down to Chicago this weekend to meet up with some of my favorite girls -- a group of eight women I met at grad school -- geez, I just did the math! -- ten years ago. We try to get together a few times each year (earlier this year we met up for a mini-vacay at the beach), and this time we're meeting up to celebrate our friend's impending birth of her first child. Since I'm driving down to Chicago, I figured I might as well bring along a dessert to share. (Food and wine are a highlight of many of our get-togethers). I've had my eye on s'mores brownie recipes of late. (Darn you, Pinterest!) Though many of the recipes I looked at relied on boxed brownie mix, I opted to take it up a slight notch by baking the brownies from scratch. This makes up for all the super-processed ingredients on top, right? All in moderation.

S'mores Brownies (printer-friendly version)
aka Where My Girls At? Brownies
makes 12 large brownies

For the brownies:
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, roughly chopped
1 stick unsalted butter, cut into cubes
1 1/3 cups raw granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon flaky sea salt
2/3 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

For the s'mores topping:
2 cups miniature marshmallows
4 graham crackers, broken into chunks
1 Hershey’s Milk Chocolate Bar, cut into 12 segments

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8x8 baking pan with cooking spray; set aside.
2. Set up a double broiler by placing a bowl over top a simmering pot of water. (The bowl should fit the pot tightly and should not touch the water.)
3. Add the chopped chocolate and cubed butter to the bowl. Stir to combine.
4. Once the chocolate and butter is nearly completely melted, remove the bowl from the pot. Continue stirring the chocolate mixture until smooth.
5. Stir in the sugar. Whisk in the eggs, one at a time. Whisk in the vanilla and salt.
6. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to fold in the flour.
7. Spoon the batter into the prepped pan.
8. Bake for 25-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the brownies comes out clean.
9. Let the brownies cool for a minute. Heat the oven to 500 degrees and set to broil.
10. Cover the brownies evenly with the mini marshmallows. Sprinkle the graham cracker chunks over top the marshmallow layer.
11. Place in the oven, 4-5 inches from the broiler. Broil for about 30-45 seconds, or until the marshmallows are golden brown. Watch carefully to prevent burning.
12. Remove the brownies from the oven. Place the chocolate segments over top the graham cracker/marshmallow layer. Allow the brownies to cool before cutting into squares.