These decadent buckeye brownies are a new twist on an old favorite, and are simple to make, using a boxed brownie mix.

My family is from Ohio, and even though I have lived in Florida most of my life, I am still an Ohio girl at heart (born in Dayton and grew up in Columbus). Therefore, I have eaten Buckeye candy all my life. We make it every Christmas to give as gifts, and everyone loves it. These super rich brownies are a pretty close second.

Buckeye trees are plentiful in Ohio and are the state tree. The nut is chocolate brown with a tan center. It is named a buckeye because it looks like the eye of a deer.  Buck eye! Get it?

Here’s what they look like:

The Ohio State University is known as the Buckeyes and their mascot is Brutus Buckeye. So everyone in Ohio is familiar with buckeyes, and one of the best things of all is buckeye candy.  It is not made from the nut, but is a creamy peanut butter ball dipped almost to the top with dark chocolate, giving it the appearance of the nut itself.

Here is what our batch from this Christmas looked like. Yum!

But, this isn’t about the candy.  That is another post. This is about scrumptious brownies covered with a fluffy layer of peanut butter filling topped with a smooth dark chocolate ganache. A twist on my beloved buckeye candy.

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Decadent buckeye brownies ingredients:

Brownies:

1 box brownie mix, with ingredients according to package for 13×9 sized pan. (Mine called for 2 eggs and 2/3 c. oil)

Peanut butter filling:

3/4 c. butter, melted (1 and a 1/2 sticks)

1 1/2 c. creamy peanut butter

1 tsp. vanilla extract

3 c. powdered sugar

Ganache:

10 oz. mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

6 Tbsp. milk (I used 1%)

Directions:

Brownies:

Prepare the brownie mix according to package directions.

Line the baking dish with parchment paper so the brownies are easy to remove and cut later. Pour the brownie batter into it.

Peanut butter filling:

Make the peanut butter filling as the brownie bake.

In a glass mixing bowl, melt the butter.

Combine the melted butter and peanut butter until smooth.

Stir in the vanilla.

Add the powdered sugar a cup at a time.  It will be really hard to mix it if it is added all at once.

Mix the filling using a spoon.  It will be a bit stiff.  Mix until there are no powdered sugar lumps and the filling is creamy.

Note: You can either mix by spoon, with your hands (which is what I do when I make my buckeye candy), or with a mixer (but I find this thick filling really gums up my beaters).

Remove brownies from oven when done baking. Immediately drop spoonfuls of the filling onto the brownies.

Spread out the filling evenly all the way to the edges to make sure the brownies are completely covered.

Ganache:

Sorry!!! In the first picture I took of all the ingredients, I realized later I had grabbed a bag of milk chocolate chips out of the pantry and those are what are in that picture.  The ones pictured above are the correct ones to use! (They come in a 12 oz. bag, but we use the leftovers as garnishes for ice cream sundaes and hot chocolate.) Get the mini morsels if you can, they melt much smoother than the bigger ones.

For the ganache, in a small microwave safe bowl, combine chocolate chips and milk. Heat for one minute. Stir until smooth. If there are still lumps, microwave an additional 10 seconds. Pour the ganache over the peanut butter layer and spread until evenly distributed.

Refrigerate the brownies in the pan for at least 2 hours so they firm up.

Take the brownies out of the pan by lifting out the parchment paper. Cut them while still cold.

NOTE: These brownies are VERY rich, so cut them into smaller bars than you would for regular brownies.  They are called decadent buckeye brownies for a reason! 🙂

Buckeye brownies – printable recipe.

So, even if you haven’t ever tried buckeyes before, these decadent buckeye brownies are a great way to get started!!! Let me know what you think! I will post how to make buckeye candy soon, too!

Happy eating!

~ Pam

Looking for another easy yet decadent chocolate dessert?  How about crock pot molten lava cake? Yum!

P.S. Want even more yummy desserts? Fill out the form below to get a downloadable copy of recipes for my 10 favorite easy desserts!