Nutella Pretzel Brownies

I am a huge fan of brownies and Nutella, so when I saw this recipe I had to try it out. These brownies have a pretzel base, with Nutella mixed into the brownie batter and then used as a frosting. They were delicious! The base held together well, didn’t crumble as some bases do, and had just the right amount of crunch. The brownie layer was dense and rich, just the way I like it. Grab a bag of pretzels (I used Snyder’s of Hanover butter snaps), a jar of Nutella and get baking!

Nutella Pretzel Brownies

Ingredients:

Pretzel crust:
1 1/2 cups pretzels
1/3 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons of unsalted butter, melted

Brownies:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup flour
1/3 cup Nutella
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

*Plus extra Nutella for frosting & extra pretzels for garnishing

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (176 degrees C). Grease an 8×8 baking dish and set aside.

2. To make the crust: place pretzels in a food processor and pulse until ground up. Add sugar and pulse until combined, then add the melted butter and continue pulsing until well combined.

3. Place the pretzel mixture into the prepared baking dish and press down firmly. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden and the crust feels firm.

4. While crust is baking, make the brownies: cream butter and sugar together. Add eggs one at a time and blend well.

5. Add vanilla and Nutella, stirring in well. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt. Whisk the dry ingredients into the mixture until well combined.

6. Pour the batter into the baking dish and bake in the oven for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow brownies to cool for at least 45 minutes prior to frosting them with Nutella and garnishing them with pretzels.