Buckeye Brownies

Every year on Valentine's Day, I would dream about a sweet someday out there...when I would have a Valentine of my very own. Some years those dreams were kind of bitter and longing...and I'd wear black and eat a Blizzard to make it through. Some years I pushed myself to be a better person and I used the opportunity to love on others. But regardless of my mood that day, I always wondered what that Valentine's Day would feel like.

By the time it rolled around, Ryan and I were already married {for two months!} and we were a few days away from going on our first marriage retreat. We decided we would save our eating-out pennies for the trip {and besides, who wants to deal with the crowds on the day itself, right?} - and for our first Valentine's Day, we would cook for each other and eat at home. Ryan would grill the main course, and I would concoct dessert.

We are, you remember, commuters, so I couldn't do anything too extravagant. Not unless we wanted to eat at midnight. {No thank you.} I found this recipe on Pinterest and made it for our first Valentine's Day.

We may or may not have taken the entire 9x13 with us on the marriage retreat and eaten a significant amount of it whilst in our hotel room.

These are SO GOOD. They are ridiculously easy, as well, but you do need to make sure you have a chunk of time to make them, because each layer needs a little time to cool. Totally worth it, though. It's just layers of happiness in a pan.

Buckeye Brownies

* 1 brownie mix {and whatever the mix calls for to make the brownies}
* 2 cups powdered sugar
* 1/2 cup plus 6 Tablespoons butter, softened
* 1 cup peanut butter
* 6 ounce package semi-sweet chocolate chips

Prepare brownie mix according to package directions. Bake and let cool. Mix powdered sugar, 1/2 cup of butter and 1 cup peanut butter and spread over cooled brownies. Refrigerate for an hour. Melt 6 tablespoons of butter and chocolate chips together in sauce pan on the stove {low heat}. Spread on top of peanut butter mixture and let cool until chocolate sets up. Cool and serve.

A Few Tips

* I use the cheapest brownie mix I can find and it works really well. If you wanted to dress this recipe up even more, you could use a fun brownie mix that has chocolate chunks in it, or add nuts or toffee bits or anything else just to step it up a notch.

* I have made this with both creamy and crunchy peanut butter and I prefer the crunchy. I like the little bit of crunch in all the smoothness of the other ingredients. You can choose what you like best!

* I completely melt the butter for the middle layer just to make it easier to mix.

* If you do not remember to cool the brownies before you add the peanut butter layer, you'll have trouble spreading the peanut butter evenly, and brownies will peel up. Not that this has happened to me.

* You could use milk chocolate chips, but MAN this would be a crazy rich recipe if you did.

* I would not recommend refrigerating these overnight once they are made, because if you try to cut the brownies when the top chocolate layer is cold, it will crack. Again. Not that I know this from experience.

* Cut them small. Then you can eat more and not feel as guilty. HA!!!!