Sometimes things don’t go as I planned. What I assumed would turn out to be the most amazing thing on the face of the planet, besides Brenna actually sleeping through the entire night of course, left me disappointed and underwhelmed to say the least. Say HELLO to my newest dissatisfaction; these Boom Chicka Popcorn Brownies didn’t even come close to my hopes and dreams. Sure the brownie part of the actual brownie was yummy as sin, given that it had an extra saltiness that brought out the flavor of the chocolate, but the popcorn part of the brownie just seemed all wrong to me. It felt like I was turning into one of those people who dare to mix popcorn and candy when they go to the movie theatre. I am not one of those people. First of all, popcorn should only be eaten by itself. I would never dare to insult it by forcing it to share the dance floor with my M&M’s or TWIZZLERS. Second of all, popcorn that is baked inside of brownie batter turns blechy; yes blechy is the only word that can appropriately describe the texture.
Thus you think I dwell too long in my disgruntled frame of mind, fear not, for there is always a silver lining. Say HELLO to the Lindt Sweet Popcorn HELLO Bar, my newest obsession. This candy bar has it all; chocolaty goodness, with just the right amount of saltiness, and crispy little bits of popcorn that gladden your tongue to the point of extreme euphoria. So my suggestion for you, and really this is not a suggestion but an outright demand, ditch the Boom Chicka Pop Sea Salt Popcorn in this recipe. It’s just so wrong to waste good popcorn, and just as horrendous to defile what would otherwise be the most splendid brownie.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 Cup Unsalted Butter
- 1 1/2 Cups Granulated Sugar
- 1/4 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 1/4 Cup Cocoa Powder
- 1/3 Cup Water
- 1 (3.5-oz.) Lindt Sweet Popcorn HELLO Bar, Finely Chopped
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 1 Egg
- 1 Cup All-Purpose Flour
- 4 Cups Boom Chicka Pop Sea Salt Popcorn, Divided
- 1/3 Cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
- Sea Salt
Direction:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Line an 8×8 pan with tin foil, and then coat well with cooking spray; set aside.
- Over high heat, in a medium saucepan, melt the butter, sugar, kosher salt, cocoa, and water together, whisking until completely melted.
- Stir in the chopped candy bar, and whisk until completely melted.
- Remove from heat, add the vanilla, and whisk well.
- Temper the egg with a 1/4-cup of the mixture, and then pour the egg into the pan and whisk until combined.
- Fold in the flour, just until incorporated, with a silicone spatula.
- Pour 1/2 of the batter into the prepared pan, and then push 3-cups of the popcorn down into the batter, in an even layer.
- Top with the remaining batter, making sure that none of the popcorn peeks through the surface.
- Bake for 30 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, and then place the reserved 1-cup of popcorn on top of the brownies in an even layer, pushing them gently down into the brownies.
- Melt the chocolate chips, drizzle the melted chocolate over the popcorn, and then top with sea salt.
- Allow to come to room temperature, before attempting to cut into squares.
Suggestions:
- If you do decide to ignore my warnings, and go ahead with the use of popcorn in this recipe, be aware that any popcorn exposed during baking will burn. It will smell terrible. Don’t do it. Please. Learn from my failure. Make sure the brownie batter completely covers every last piece of popcorn.
- Buy an extra Lindt Sweet Popcorn HELLO Bar to try; it’s unique. Share it with your friends.
Improvements:
- Replace the popcorn with nuts.
- Ditch the popcorn for the love of all that is holy.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 Cup Unsalted Butter
- 1 1/2 Cups Granulated Sugar
- 1/4 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 1/4 Cup Cocoa Powder
- 1/3 Cup Water
- 1 (3.5-oz.) Lindt Sweet Popcorn HELLO Bar, Finely Chopped
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 1 Egg
- 1 Cup All-Purpose Flour
- 4 Cups Boom Chicka Pop Sea Salt Popcorn, Divided
- 1/3 Cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
- Sea Salt
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Line an 8x8 pan with tin foil, and then coat well with cooking spray; set aside.
- Over high heat, in a medium saucepan, melt the butter, sugar, kosher salt, cocoa, and water together, whisking until completely melted.
- Stir in the chopped candy bar, and whisk until completely melted.
- Remove from heat, add the vanilla, and whisk well.
- Temper the egg with a 1/4-cup of the mixture, and then pour the egg into the pan and whisk until combined.
- Fold in the flour, just until incorporated, with a silicone spatula.
- Pour 1/2 of the batter into the prepared pan, and then push 3-cups of the popcorn down into the batter, in an even layer.
- Top with the remaining batter, making sure that none of the popcorn peeks through the surface.
- Bake for 30 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, and then place the reserved 1-cup of popcorn on top of the brownies in an even layer, pushing them gently down into the brownies.
- Melt the chocolate chips, drizzle the melted chocolate over the popcorn, and then top with sea salt.
- Allow to come to room temperature, before attempting to cut into squares.
