S'more Brownie Pie

Here is the 3rd pie I made for my sis's birthday. I'd already made the banana cream and chocolate peanut butter pies when she asked if I hadn't made any dessert for her yet would I please make her something s'mores flavors. Well, how could I not make her another dessert when she specifically asked for something? I've had this s'more brownie recipe in my file for a couple years and thought they seemed easy and most likely delish. I pretty much followed the recipe except I started with a store-bought graham cracker crust. Things were going along smoothly until I got to the part where you broil the marshmallows for 2-3 minutes (note: I don't have a culinary torch but am getting one now, read on to see why). 

I put the marshmallow topped brownies in the oven to broil, walked over to the microwave to start heating the hot fudge, walked back to the oven and - can you see where this story is headed? - the entire top of the brownies was on fire. ON FIRE!!! I'm talking flames shooting off the top and black smoke poured out of the oven when I opened the door! And even after I shut the door flames were flickering out the top! YIKES!!! Oh my gosh that has never happened to me and I've been baking a loooooong time. I slammed the door shut, turned off the oven, ran around opening windows and doors (no problem, it was only like 95' that day), turned on the exhaust fan, ran to get 2 floor fans and proceeded to blow out as much smoke as possible before the smoke alarm went off. I then got myself together and thought about what else I could do as I'm watching the pie still ON FIRE, but did know enough to not open the door again and give it more air. It slowly put itself out. Whew. As a side note: Dave brought the leaf blower in from the garage and we had the genius idea that I could open the door to remove burning pie and he'd blow the smoke out the window but common sense ruled and we left the door closed LOL!!! 

Next chapter is my friend Teri walked in and asked what smelled so good? HAHAHAHA. I said, it probably smells like a campfire in here LOL. When the oven cooled off I pulled the pie out and it looks like I threw the whole thing into a fire - I wasn't going to take it to my sisters obviously, but then I thought 'what the heck - some people like burned marshmallows so I'm taking it'. If nothing else I'd get some laughs. Sure enough - it was the hit of the pies, everyone wanted to try it and said it was perfect. The burned top made it taste exactly like a s'more and for some reason the ashes (while super ugly) gave it the perfect flavor!

This is a very long post but I wanted to share my struggle and ultimate success with you. Moral of the story - sometimes what looks like a nasty campfire disaster actually tastes delicious  ;) 

Here's the exact recipe I followed, found here at bronners.com, with my photos following:

S’MORE BROWNIES

Serves 12

Ingredients:

Graham Cracker Crust
– 10 graham crackers, crushed finely
–  1 stick of melted unsalted butter
–  Parchment Paper

Brownies
– 1 box of brownie mix (choose whichever brand you prefer)
– 1 cup marshmallow crème
– 1 jar of hot fudge
– 3 Tbsp water
– 2 cups miniature marshmallows

Instructions:1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a 9×9 square baking dish with parchment paper.
2. Mix together crushed graham crackers and melted butter until well combined. Press into bottom of baking dish. Place dish in the freezer for 10 minutes to set.
3. Mix brownies as directed on the box.
4. Take the baking dish out of the freezer and pour brownie batter on top of crust. Bake in oven as directed on the box.
5. Once brownies are done, let cool for 30 minutes.
6. Use a wooden dowel to poke holes into brownies about 1-2 inches apart. You can go all the way down until you hit the crust.
7. Microwave marshmallow crème uncovered on high for 30-45 seconds or until soft in a microwavable bowl. Add water, stir until smooth and pourable. You might need to add more water to get the smooth consistancy.
8. Pour marshmallow crème over brownies and let sit for another 15-20 minutes.
9. Top brownies with miniature marshmallows. Before setting your oven to broil, make sure you have your oven rack about 4-6 inches from heat. Set oven to broil.
10. Broil the brownies with marshmallows 2-3 minutes; keep an eye on them! Depending on your oven, it might take less time for the marshmallows to lightly brown. (In the video, we use a culinary hand torch; you can do this as well instead of broiling).
11. When marshmallows are lightly browned, remove from oven and top with hot fudge.