Fat M&Ms Brownies

Chocolate. The quintessential Valentines Day necessity. Since tomorrow’s the big day (and it’s already late the night before), you may be scurrying to come up with a sweet treat to celebrate. Look no further!

These brownies have been on my mental must-bake list for a couple months now, ever since I bought the Fat Witch cookbook. I had bought a bag of plain dark M&Ms to snack on and bring a little holiday color to our home. Alex said he doesn’t like them because there are too many red ones and they taste different because of the dye. Really? Hmmm, I don’t think so. Well, to avoid eating the whole bag myself, I thought it’d be best to throw them in the batch.

If you are lucky enough to have access to a Trader Joe’s, and don’t already have this in stock at your home, pick it up right now. It is the best baking chocolate and this huge bar (17.6 oz!) is a steal for $4.99. Milk chocolate is also available, and bittersweet, too, if I remember correctly. Seriously, one of TJ’s best products. It is smooth and rich- definitely of high caliber.

These brownies are super rich and fudgy! I kept finding little pockets of chocolate throughout as I nibbled along.  They are quite thick, so you can cut them into bite-size pieces if you need to stretch the recipe. If you don’t have the chocolate bar, a 1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp. of chocolate chips would work great. The M&Ms are also just an added bonus. Instead, you could add a 1/2 cup chopped nuts, any kind of chips or nothing more at all!

Fat M&Ms Brownies, inspired by Fat Witch Brownies

14 tbsp. unsalted butter (1 3/4 sticks)
4 oz. bittersweet or dark baking chocolate
1 1/4 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt

Grease a 9×9-inch baking pan with cooking spray or butter. Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Melt the butter and chocolate in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring frequently. Set aside to cool. Cream the sugar, eggs and vanilla together. Add the cooled chocolate mixture and mix until well blended.

Measure the flour and salt and then sift together into the chocolate mixture. Mix the batter gently until well combined and no dry ingrenends are visible. Stir in any extras (nuts, M&Ms, chips, etc).

Spread the batter evenly in the prepared baking pan and bake about 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center come out clean. Remove from the oven and cool on a rack for an hour. Cut just before serving.