brownie bites

One of my guilty sweet pleasures is granulated sugar-coated brownie bites from the grocery store bakery. They're the kind of thing you'll find in the break room at work, and they shouldn't be good, but they're totally addictive. Well, I recently saw a post on The Kitchn (Apartment Therapy) about making them at home. What a cinch! Why didn't I think of it first? You start with a good, basic brownie recipe. (They used a KAF recipe, so who am I to argue?) When they're still warm, you cut them in tiny pieces, then toss them in sugar, 20 or so at a time, in a ziploc bag. They are delicious! The edges are ever so slightly crunchy from the sugar - even the cut sides - so they're perfect for you crust-lovers. And best of all, you can easily get 75 or 80 from one 9x13" pan, so they're great for a party!

Here's how to do it:

Brownie Bites

75-80 bites

1 cup unsalted butter

2 1/4 cups (15.75 ounces) sugar plus more for coating brownie bites

1 1/4 cups (3 3/4 ounces) cocoa

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 tablespoon vanilla

4 eggs

1 1/2 cups (6 3/8 ounces) flour

1 cup chopped walnuts, chocolate chips, or mini chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease or parchment a 9x13" pan.

In a medium-sized glass bowl (or a small pot on the stove), melt butter. Add sugar and stir to combine, then reheat briefly until the mixture looks shiny when stirred.

Stir in cocoa, salt, baking powder, and vanilla. Whisk in eggs, stirring until smooth, and then add the flour and nuts/chips (if using), again stirring until smooth. I used mini chocolate chips for a little extra chocolate flavor. I wanted the sugar coating to take center stage, not the chips, so I thought regular chocolate chips might be too big.

Spoon the batter into the pan and bake for 28 minutes. The edges will look set, and the middle will have a crust on top but not appear fully set. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack.

Remove the brownies from the pan (either pull them out using the parchment, or invert them onto a cutting board) and cut them into small, bite-sized pieces. They don't have to be perfect, but I'd aim for about an inch square. The Kitchn folks suggested using a bench scraper, and it actually worked much better than a knife; the brownies stuck less, and the cuts were nice and clean. At this point, I coated about 20 of them in sugar, and the remaining 3/4 of the brownies waited until after dinner. To be honest, it didn't seem to make much difference.

Scoop about 1/2 cup of sugar into a large ziploc bag. Place about 20 brownie bites in the bag, seal, and shake the bag gently to coat the brownies on all sides. I used a large slotted spoon to remove them to a cooling rack set over a baking sheet (just so I didn't get sugar all over). Let them finish cooling, and then store them in a tupperware.

ETA: I entered these in Meg's Valentine's brownie contest.