Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Brownies

Brownies are a huge hit with all the members of my family, me being the only exception. Since I’m not a huge fan of chocolate, I never really developed a taste for them. However, when I found a recipe for peanut butter cookie dough brownies, I had to try them. Always one to add my personal touches to recipes, I decided to make things easier on myself and use packaged cookie mix instead of making that layer from scratch. Also adding peanut butter baking chips, these were a huge hit. And while I only had one brownie, it was easily one of the best I’ve ever tasted.

Brownie Layer:
1/2 cup butter
2 - 1-oz. squares semisweet chocolate
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup, plus 2 Tbsp. flour, divided
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Layer:
1 - 8.6-oz. package (snack size) peanut butter cookie mix
1/4 cup peanut butter chips

Ganache Layer:
3/4 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup dry roasted peanuts

Preheat oven to 350°. Spray the bottom and sides of an 8-by-8-inch pan with cooking spray. For the brownies, in a microwave-safe dish, heat the butter and chocolate squares until the butter is melted (about 2 minutes). Stir until combined, then mix in the vanilla. Meanwhile, beat the sugar and eggs in a large bowl and add in the chocolate mixture. Stir in the flour, baking powder, salt and chocolate chips. Spread the brownie mixture evenly into the prepared pan. Bake until the brownies pass the toothpick test (about 25 minutes). Allow to cool. For the peanut butter cookie dough layer, prepare the cookie mix as directed on the package. Stir in the peanut butter chips. Spread over the cooled brownie layer.

To make the ganache, in a small, microwave-safe bowl, heat the chocolate chips and heavy whipping cream for 1 minute, stirring after 30 seconds. Continue stirring until the chips are melted and the mixture is smooth. Spread the ganache over the peanut butter layer. Sprinkle with peanuts. Refrigerate until the dough and ganache are set (about 1 hour).