Rocky Road Brownies

Rocky road brownies take the iconic ice cream flavor (chocolate, marshmallow, walnuts) and bake it into fudgy bars with a clever construction trick. Whole marshmallows get laid sideways across the pan first, then the thick, fudgy chocolate batter spoons over and around them. As the brownies bake, the marshmallows melt into chewy, gooey pockets buried inside the dark chocolate.

Using both melted unsweetened chocolate and unsweetened cocoa powder is what gives these brownies their depth. The melted chocolate adds richness and structure; the cocoa adds intense, concentrated chocolate flavor. Together they push the chocolate further than either alone.

The milk chocolate chips folded into the batter are the smart contrast. Where the unsweetened chocolate is dark and bitter, the milk chocolate chips melt into sweet pockets that balance everything out. Plus you get the chunky walnuts for crunch and the buried marshmallows for chew. Texture city.

Pro Tips

• Leave a 1.5-inch border of marshmallow-free space around the edges of the pan, the recipe specifies this. Marshmallows touching the pan walls leak, burn, and stick.
• Don’t skip the chill before serving. Marshmallow brownies are sticky and tear when warm. Refrigerated brownies cut into clean, sharp squares.
• Test for doneness with a toothpick that comes out moist from melted chocolate, NOT raw batter. The marshmallows make a clean toothpick impossible.
• Use a wide metal spatula to transfer the cooled brownies. Smaller utensils crack the brittle chocolate top.

Variations

• Use pecans instead of walnuts. Pecans are sweeter and pair beautifully with chocolate and marshmallow.
• Add a half cup of crushed graham crackers to the batter for a s’mores-rocky-road hybrid.
• Drizzle the chilled brownies with melted dark chocolate and sprinkle with extra mini marshmallows for a bakery-window finish.