This is the peanut butter brownie post I promised you yesterday- I wrote it on my former blog back on 6/23/08. The title? A delicious disaster. How appropriate for the novice baker that I (still) am!

I really wish that, when I steam-burned myself and in my reactionary
shock of pain dropped the large glass bowl into a pot and sprayed
molten chocolate all over the walls, cabinets, our fresh fruit in the
banana hammock, and the dog's food bowl, I had thought to take a
picture of the damage. But alas, I was too busy swearing and chucking
my wooden spoon across the room and into the sink to think about such
nonsense. Let me assure you that it was quite an impressive mess, and
there was dark, buttery chocolate that ended up in places I'm sure I
have yet to discover. How none ended up on me is a mystery. But I did
manage to spy a rogue chocolate dot on the cabinet about an hour after
cleanup:

Disaster aside, I set out today to make peanut butter swirl brownies a la Martha Stewart,
and they are baking in the oven as we speak, and they smell heavenly.
Cody is out picking up some Baja Fresh for dinner which will make for
an interesting smell combo when he gets back, but I digress. Alls I can
tell you is that I can hardly wait to get my paws on one of these
peanut-chocolatey squares, and don't you worry, if I were you I'd
totally be jealous too.

And here we have zee fineeshed product…

Delicioso!

Ingredients

Makes 9 large or 16 small squares

FOR THE BATTER

• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, plus more for pan
• 2 ounces good-quality unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 4 ounces good-quality semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

FOR THE FILLING

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
• 3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter an 8-inch square baking pan
   and line with parchment, allowing a 2-inch overhang. Butter lining (not
   overhang).
   
2. Make batter: Put butter and chocolates in a heatproof medium bowl
   set over a pan of simmering water; stir until melted. Let cool
   slightly. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.
3. Whisk granulated sugar into chocolate mixture. Add eggs, and
   whisk until mixture is smooth. Stir in vanilla. Add flour mixture; stir
   until well incorporated.
4. Make filling: Stir together butter, confectioners' sugar, peanut butter, salt, and vanilla in a bowl until smooth.
5. Pour one-third of batter into prepared pan; spread evenly with a
   rubber spatula. Drop dollops of peanut butter filling (about 1
   tablespoon each) on top of batter, spacing about 1 inch apart. Drizzle
   remaining batter on top, and gently spread to fill pan. Drop dollops of
   remaining filling on top. Gently swirl peanut butter filling into
   batter with a butter knife, running the knife lengthwise and crosswise
   through layers.
6. Bake until a cake tester inserted into brownies (avoid center and
   edges) comes out with a few crumbs but is not wet, about 45 minutes.
   Let cool slightly in pan, about 15 minutes. Lift out; let cool
   completely on a wire rack before cutting into squares. Brownies can be
   stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days.

Helpful Hint

To swirl brownies, work quickly so that batter and filling don't
set. Use two large spoons to drop dollops of filling on the first layer
of batter about one inch apart. Repeat with next layer of batter and
remaining filling. Drag a butter knife back and forth through the
layers with the tip touching the bottom of the pan.