S'more Brownies

It was a cold and snowy Super Bowl Sunday. Finally, Chicago looked like Chicago in the wintertime (though I can't say I was complaining about the lack of snowfall). What better to do on a weekend winter day than to bake! I've found that as the temperatures have plummeted, my sweet tooth has emerged.

As Derek and I were preparing for the Big Game later on in the evening - we stayed cozy and warm but busy in the kitchen. Derek was preparing his famous "jalapeno poppers" - a staple to our Super Bowl experience for several years now. To me, it isn't a Super Bowl if I do not have his amazing poppers hot and fresh from the oven. His version is made is reduced fat cream cheese, shredded cheese, bacon, Cajun spice (and possibly other additions as well) - all stuffed in a half (seeded) japaleno and coated with panko or coarse breadcrumbs (gluten free) and baked in the oven. Delicious. And not quite as sinful as one would imagine a jalapeno popper to be. (basic recipe here)

You know what was sinful though? These guys:

It's Super Bowl after all - a little sin won't kill ya! These were an ode to one of my favorite childhood treats - S'Mores. Those gooey yet crunchy, sweet and smokey treats bring me back to those days that calories and sweets didn't really matter! 

I'll also admit that I took a shortcut version and used a - gasp - brownie mix. Because I was keeping these gluten free - I figured this was the easiest route. Plus - another admission - I had actually made brownies the day prior that I was planning on bringing for the party. These were from scratch - and were both gluten free and vegan. Wahoo! Then I realized I am not necessarily cooking for myself and while I enjoyed the brownies (and then proceeded to polish off that pan ALSO) I didn't think a bunch of football-watching guys would appreciate the health aspect of these brownies. Thus, a second try on the day of Super Bowl - to make something that would be a bit more of a hit. These were simple (relatively) and delicious.

S'more Brownies

Ingredients:

Crust

1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs (we used gluten-free)

1 Tbsp brown sugar

1/8 tsp cinnamon

6 Tbsp butter, melted

Brownie

1 bag (21 oz.) Bob's Red Mill gluten free brownie mix

1 egg

3/4 cup butter, melted

3/4 cup warm (110 degrees) water

2 tsp. vanilla

Topping

mini marshmallows

chocolate bar (Hershey's for nostalgia) broken up

graham crackers broken up

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 F.
2. Combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar, cinnamon and melted butter in a medium bowl. Mix until well combined. 
3. Press evenly into a 9x13 in pan (I used a square pan but a longer, more shallow pan would have been better) and bake in preheated oven for 8 minutes. When you remove the crust from the oven, turn down the temperature to 350 F.
4. Meanwhile, prepare brownies according to mix instructions (or make your own batter from scratch).
5. Pour the brownie mix over the graham cracker crust. Bake for 20 minutes. (Note: if you use a square baking pan, you will need to increase baking time by another 15-20 minutes).
6. Remove brownies from oven and add toppings evenly over top. Return to the oven for another 10 minutes, until the marshmallows start to brown and the brownies are cooked through (though a little goo isn't a bad thing).
7. Enjoy!

And a simple cop-out but delicious treat - Rice Krispies - with stenciled chocolate logos. Good game, great treats!