I have been making mint brownies for many, many years. They are my most requested recipe. They have joined in the fun at classroom get togethers, kids parties, picnics and many a holiday gathering.
Wrap half a dozen in parchment, tie with ribbon and you’ve got yourself the perfect little gift card holder. Great for teachers or tucked in the mailbox as a nice little holiday surprise for the mailman.
They are a doddle to make, a dream to store in the fridge for days and can be frozen and kept on hand for any and all last minute surprises or midnight sweet cravings.
They also travel without fuss, making them, in essence, the most perfect of recipes and the most gracious of desserts.
At Christmas, in a nod to the holidays and my childhood roots, I make them with After Eight Mints, but for the rest of the year I make them with Junior Mints.
And because everything is merely melted and then dumped into one pot, it makes them great for anyone who doesn’t usually care to bake and even greater for anyone who doesn’t like to clean up a big mess after cooking.
These are a truffle style brownie, fudgy and dense—as opposed to cakey—and benefit from being stored in the fridge and eaten cold. Our personal preference is for keeping them in the freezer and eating them extra cold and chewy!
After Eight Mint Brownies
- butter – 3 sticks
- bittersweet chocolate, chopped – 8oz
- eggs – 6
- sugar – 3 cups
- peppermint extract – 1T
- salt – 1/2tsp
- flour, all-purpose – 2 cups
- chocolate chips, semi-sweet – 1-12oz bag
- After Eight Mints – 1 box OR 3 – 3.5oz boxes of Junior Mints
- Pre-heat the oven to 350˚F
- Line a 9×13 pan with parchment paper or heavy duty foil.
- Melt the butter and chocolate in a large pan over low heat. Be sure to do this low and slow and just until everything has melted. Do it too fast or too long over high heat and you’ll end up with a gritty, fatty separated mess. The fats in the butter and chocolate need to remain cohesive.
- Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the eggs, sugar, peppermint extract and salt until thoroughly mixed.
- Whisk in the flour and chocolate chips until combined
- If using the Junior Mints, stir those in now.
- If using the After Eight Mints, tip half of the brownie mixture into the prepared pan, layer the After Eights over the top and then pour in the remaining half of the brownie mixture. If using the Junior Mints you can pour the entire amount into the pan.
- Bake for 45 minutes.
- Allow to cool completely and then refrigerate for several hours or overnight before cutting into squares.
