Easter Egg Hunt Brownies

Remember I said baking is not my forte?  Yeah.  This week’s recipe is evidence of this fact, as well as a good example of a pet peeve of mine… poorly written recipes.  (If you ever have a hard time with a poorly written recipe, feel free to ask me through our Ask The Chef form and I will see what I can do to help you out with the recipe.)  Because of that, you might want to practice a couple of times before taking this one to a dinner party.  They are very easily adapted for any holiday, so you can have plenty of times each year to practice.  Think red and green M&Ms for Christmas (the marshmallows would kind of look like snow), red and blue for 4th of July, and multi-colored for Mardis Gras or a special birthday celebration!

The Lucky Wife came across this recipe this week through I’m Lovin’ It, and we felt with a little adaptation, it would fit perfectly into our Easter rotation of recipes for the month.  Last week’s was a little less obvious.  It was more of a hint of Easter with the use of eggs as the main ingredient.  This recipe screams Easter!

There were a few problems with the way the recipe is written, so even the picture we did get was not of the final product (we will update with the picture later as technical issues with our computer have prevented us from including it tonight!).  First, the recipe says to sprinkle the candies over the marshmallows immediately after having the marshmallow topping bake over the brownies.  What we found is that the topping is too warm at this point and the candies begin melting and sinking down into the topping.  Part of the reason for this could have been due to our adaptation and the fact that the eggs were heavier than the M&Ms.  The next time we make these, we will let the marshmallow topping cool for a while before sprinkling the candies.  We did name this recipe “Easter Egg Hunt Brownies” because the eggs sunk down into the topping, so if you like that effect, perhaps save half of the candies to sprinkle after it has cooled.

The other problem we ran into was with the chocolate drizzle.  The recipe did not state the technique used, and ours ended up messy.  It was not pretty and if we had been making these for a special occasion, we would have had to remake them or come up with something else to take.  However, the flavor and texture was perfect.  If you want to attempt the drizzle, we would suggest using a piping bag (we used a spoon).  We will do that next time, or we may try chocolate chips next time instead for a different twist.

And now for the recipe, with our modifications (adapted from the original source, Betty Crocker, which includes a picture if you’d like to see one of the original recipe)…

• 1 box (1 lb 2.4 oz) brownie of your choice or your favorite brownie recipe (and whatever ingredients are needed for recipe)
• 2 cups miniature marshmallows
• 2/3 cup pastel-colored miniature Easter egg candies (we used the “Whopper Robin Eggs”)
• 3 tablespoons semisweet or milk chocolate chips
• 1/4 teaspoon shortening

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees or 325 degrees for dark or nonstick pan.
2. Line a 9-inch square baking pan with foil, allowing it to extend over the sides of the pan.  (This will allow for easier removal when it’s time to cut the bars.)  Grease bottom only of pan with cooking spray or shortening.
3. Bake brownies according to instructions on the box or the brownie recipe you are using. If using a box brownie mix, bake for 5 minutes less than time suggested on the box.  (They will get overdone when the marshmallow topping is baked next.)
4. Sprinkle with marshmallows and bake for 5 minutes or until marshmallows are puffed and golden.
5. Allow marshmallow topping to cool for approximately 20 minutes.  Sprinkle half of the egg candies over the topping.
6. In small microwavable bowl, heat chips and shortening uncovered on high for 10 to 15 seconds.  Stir until smooth.
7. Place other half of candies onto topping as desired.
8. Using a piping bag, drizzle melted chocolate over bars and cool completely (about 1 1/2 hours).
9. Lift foil out of pan and cut bars.  (For easier cutting, use plastic knife dipped in hot water.)

Rating scale

1 star – Feed it to the dog

2 stars – Surprise your neighbor

3 stars – Definite keeper

4 stars – Looking forward to leftovers

5 stars – Clean plate and nap time!  Are there enough ingredients left to make it again soon?

The Chef – 4 Stars

The Lucky Wife – 5 Stars

The Well-Fed Daughter (7 months old) – Mommy’s Baby Girl (5 Stars)

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