Cookie dough brownies

As if brownies weren't delicious enough, Jen of Beantown Baker just had to go the extra mile and add cookie dough on top of these.  Um, yes please!

One of the best things about this sweet treat is that there are no raw eggs in the cookie dough, so it's completely safe to eat. Your pregnant friends will thank you for this one!

My husband actually prefers to have a thinner layer of the cookie dough so the bars aren't too thick or sweet. Others liked the bars just as the recipe states, so adjust according to your personal preferences. Either way, you can't lose with brownies and cookie dough!

Ingredients

Brownies:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
• 2 1/4 cups sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1 1/4 cups Dutch-process cocoa
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon espresso powder (optional)
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups chocolate chips

Cookie Dough:

• 3 sticks butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 9 tbsp milk
• 3 cups flour
• 3 cups mini chocolate chips (you can use regular semi-sweet chips if you can't find the mini ones)

Directions

Prepare Brownies:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9" x 13" pan.

In a saucepan set over low heat, melt the butter, then add the sugar and stir to combine. Return the mixture to the heat briefly, just until it's hot, but not bubbling; it'll become shiny looking as you stir it. Heating this mixture a second time will dissolve more of the sugar, which will yield a shiny top crust on your brownies.

Transfer the sugar mixture to a medium-sized mixing bowl, if you've heated it in a saucepan. Stir in the cocoa, salt, baking powder, espresso powder, and vanilla.

Whisk in the eggs, stirring until smooth. Add the flour and chips, again stirring until smooth. Spoon the batter into a lightly greased 9" x 13" pan.

Bake the brownies for about 30 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, or with just a few moist crumbs clinging to it. The brownies should feel set on the edges, and the center should look very moist, but not uncooked. Remove them from the oven and cool completely on a rack.

For cookie dough:

Cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy.  Beat in milk. With mixer on low, add flour and mix until well combined. Stir in mini chocolate chips.

To assemble:

Spread the cookie dough onto the cooled brownies. You can put the pan into the freezer for about 30 minutes if you're impatient! Chill the brownies until the cookie dough is firm. Cut into bars and serve.

Source:  Beantown Baker