Chocolate Hazelnut Crunch Brownies

We had a bunch of people over on Canada day so I whipped up a Banana Strawberry ‘Nutella’ Tart for dessert, but when I made the tart I ended up with a whole bunch of leftover chocolate hazelnut spread, what to do, what to do, ah the tough decisions in life With spoon in hand, I made plenty o trips to the fridge and managed to put a big dent in the jar, but as I sat shovelling heaping spoonfuls into my mouth I came across a recipe for Nutella Crunch Brownies, Nutella you say? Brownies you say? Why yes please.

Chocolate Hazelnut Crunch Brownies
Adapted from Crustabakes

Brownie Ingredients:

• 5 ounces dark chocolate (I used 70%)
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) non-dairy butter, softened
• 1/4 cup applesauce, unsweetened
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons flaxseed, ground
• 5 tablespoons water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon instant espresso
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda

Topping Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup store bought or Homemade Chocolate Hazelnut Spread (peanut butter or almond butter would also be good)
• 1 Tablespoon non-dairy butter or coconut oil
• 1 3/4 cups rice cereal

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line an 8×8″ pan with parchment paper (trust me, it will be much easier to get out of the pan).

In a small bowl, mix ground flax seeds and water together and let sit for a few minutes until the mixture turns goopy.

In a microwave-safe bowl, microwave the chocolate and non-dairy butter, stirring every 30 seconds, until melted.

Stir in the sugar, and then beat in the flax seed mixture, espresso, applesauce and vanilla with a whisk. Add in the flour and baking soda.

Transfer the batter into the prepared pan and use the spatula (or your fingers) to spread it out evenly.

Bake for 30-40 minutes or until the edges are set (the center should still be soft), try to avoid over baking it.

While the brownies are baking, make the topping. Combine the chocolate chips, chocolate hazelnut spread, and non-dairy butter in a medium sauce pan. Cook over low heat until melted and the mixture is smooth. Remove from the heat and stir in the cereal.

Spread the cereal mixture evenly over the top of the brownies. Try to do this while it is still really warm otherwise it is a real pain in the ass to spread, seriously.

Refrigerate until set before cutting. If you’re into big gooey messes then feel free to skip this step, I’m pretty sure it’s gonna taste good either way. I put mine in the fridge and forgot about it and ended up with a big solid mass, so half an hour in the fridge is probable all you need before cutting.

These are super rich but also super awesome I might add.

Now excuse me as I fall into a sugar induced coma.

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