These s'more brownies take everything you love about the classic campfire treat and wraps it in the rich, chocolaty embrace of a brownie - Earthy graham cracker crust, deeply rich brownies and all the billowy, toasted meringue.
What's rich, chocolaty and toasted all over? These s'more brownies, that's what!
These may very well be THE BEST brownies I've ever had. And I've had a lot of brownies... Honestly, more than I care to admit...
Need convincing? How about:
- Oooooodles of billowy, toasted meringue. Like a whole inch of it.
- That homemade, slightly-nutty flavored graham cracker crust, though.
- Dark chocolate brownies so dark, they're black. LITERALLY. BLACK. Just like my soul...
Jump to:
Selecting your chocolate
The best kind of chocolate for these brownies is one with a high percentage of cacao bean.
Why? Because the higher the percentage of cacao, the richer the chocolate flavor. It also means the chocolate will be less sweet, which is ok because we'll be adding our own sugar.
For these reasons, I recommend using a chocolate that's between 60-70% cacao.
Step-by-step instructions
First, make the graham cracker crust.
Beat the butter until smooth. Add the brown sugar and honey and continue beating until combined.
Add remaining ingredients and beat until the dough forms a ball.
Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to an 8"x8" square.
Place in your pan, trimming any extra from the edges.
A few tips for graham cracker crust making success:
- The the graham cracker dough can be made 2 days in advance and a baked shell filled with ganache can last up to a week. Both should be refrigerated.
- Sometimes this dough winds up a little dry. If that happens to you, you can easily fix it by dampening your hands with water and kneading that little bit of moisture into the dough. The dough has reached the right consistency when it forms one cohesive ball without being sticky.
- The secret to easily transferring the graham cracker crust to the pan is to roll it out on a piece of parchment. Pick up the parchment paper and gently turn it out over the pan.
Second, make the brownies.
Combine the butter and chocolate in a bowl and place over a pot of simmering water. Stir continuously until melted.
In a bowl, whip the eggs and sugar until light and fluffy (3 minutes). With the mixer on low, pour the chocolate/butter into the egg mixture, beating until just combined.
Fold in the flour, salt and vanilla extract.
Pour into a parchment paper lined 8"x8" pan.
Bake at 350F for 30-35 minutes. The brownies should be just starting to brown but set in the middle. Allow to cool in the pan.
Third, make the meringue.
In a bowl, whisk together the egg whites and granulated sugar.
Place over a pot of boiling water, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is hot and the sugar has dissolved.
Whip the mixture on high until the meringue is billowy and holds soft peaks.
Add the vanilla and whip until just combined.
Spread over top of the cooled brownies and toast.
A quick tip for a common meringue problem:
Sometimes, no matter what you do, your meringue won't whip up to those gorgeous, billowy peaks. The most common culprit: Grease.
Any bit of grease in your mixing bowl, no matter how miniscule, can keep your meringue from reaching soft or stiff peaks. To avoid this, make sure to give your mixing bowl a fresh clean before making the meringue.
Substitutions
- Semi sweet chocolate: Don't have a chocolate with 60%-70% cacao? Semi sweet chocolate (which is usually around 50% cacao) will work, too, but will result in a slightly less rich flavor.
- Graham cracker crust: While I like to make my graham cracker crust from scratch, you can also substitute store bought graham crackers for the crust. Simply line the bottom of your pan with whole graham crackers, cover with batter and bake per the recipe instructions.
Using a box mix
The cost of groceries these days is no joke - You could probably upgrade a box of brownie mix for less than cost of the chocolate in this recipe. So if you want to save yourself some money (and time) by going that route, I'm here for it.
Here's how to adapt this recipe to a box mix:
Choose a box mix of your choice and follow the instructions to make the batter. This recipe makes an 8"x8" brownie, so keep in mind that you'll have to increase the amount of graham cracker crust/meringue you'll need if you select a 9"x13" box mix.
Pour the batter over your graham cracker crust and bake as directed on the box.
Top the cooled brownies with the meringue.
Expert tips
- Bringing cold eggs to room temperature quickly: If you need to bring your eggs to room temperature quickly for this recipe, fill a bowl with hot water from your tap and place the eggs in it for about 5 minutes.
- Not sure if your brownies are done? With white chocolate brownies, it's important to not let them get more than just lightly browned. When a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with gummy bits of crumbs but no raw batter, they're done. If in doubt, it’s better to under bake brownies than over bake them.
- Browning the meringue without a torch: If you don’t have a culinary torch on hand, you can brown your meringue in the oven under the broiler. Just be sure to keep an eye on it so it doesn’t burn.
- Easy slicing: Brownies are easiest to slice when they've been refrigerated for at least a few hours and up to overnight.
Storage
Once frosted with meringue, these brownies are best when eaten the day they're made. They can also be stored in an air tight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
Unfrosted brownies can be wrapped and frozen for up to 3 months.
Recipe
S'more Brownies
Crisp graham cracker crust, rich chocolate brownies and a billowy, toasted meringue.
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 12 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Graham cracker crust:
- ¾ cup all purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons whole-wheat flour
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 3 oz salted butter, at room temp.
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon honey
Brownies:
- ½ cup unsalted butter, cubed
- 6 oz chocolate between 60-70% cacao
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- ¼ cup baking cocoa
- ¾ cup all purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Meringue:
- 3 egg whites
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Graham cracker crust:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter for the graham cracker crust until smooth.
- Add the brown sugar and honey, and continue beating until smooth.
- Add the remaining ingredients for the crust and beat until it pulls away from the sides and clumps into a single ball.
- Wrap in plastic wrap and allow to chill for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 days.
- On a lightly floured surface, work the dough for the crust with your hands until malleable.
- Roll the dough out on a piece of parchment paper until it's 8"x8".
- Gently flip the dough into the pan (a second person would be helpful here) and press it into the bottom and sides. Trim away any excess.
Brownies:
- Combine the butter and chocolate in a medium size bowl.
- Place over a pot of simmering water. Stir occasionally until melted.
- In a separate bowl, whip the eggs and sugar (both brown and granulated) until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes).
- With your mixer on low, pour the chocolate/butter into the egg mixture, mixing until just combined.
- Fold the flour, baking cocoa, salt and vanilla in.
- Pour the brownie batter over your graham cracker crust and bake at 350F for 30-35 minutes.
- Allow to cool completely in its pan.
Meringue:
- Whisk together your egg whites and granulated sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer placed over a pot of boiling water (a double boiler).
- Whisking occasionally, heat the mixture until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is hot to the touch.
- Move the bowl to your stand mixer, add the vanilla, and whisk on high (using the whisk attachment) until billowy, and the meringue holds a stiff peak.
- Once the brownies have cooled completely, remove the brownies from the pan and cover completely with the meringue mixture.
- Use a culinary torch to toast the top.
Notes
-
- Bringing cold eggs to room temperature quickly: If you need to bring your eggs to room temperature quickly for this recipe, fill a bowl with hot water from your tap and place the eggs in it for about 5 minutes.
-
- Not sure if your brownies are done? With white chocolate brownies, it's important to not let them get more than just lightly browned. When a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with gummy bits of crumbs but no raw batter, they're done. If in doubt, it’s better to under bake brownies than over bake them.
-
- Browning the meringue without a torch: If you don’t have a culinary torch on hand, you can brown your meringue in the oven under the broiler. Just be sure to keep an eye on it so it doesn’t burn.
-
- Easy slicing: Brownies are easiest to slice when they've been refrigerated for at least a few hours and up to overnight.
-
- Storage: These brownies are best when eaten within 3-4 days and can be stored at room temperature in an air tight container. They can also be wrapped and frozen for up to 3 months.
Graham cracker crust recipe based on Miette (2011), pg. 150
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 428
- Sugar: 57.6g
- Sodium: 135mg
- Fat: 18.8g
- Saturated Fat: 11.8g
- Carbohydrates: 63.1g
- Fiber: 1.3g
- Protein: 4.5g
- Cholesterol: 85mg
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Update notes: This post was originally published in March of 2018 but was republished with an updated recipe, instructions, photos and tips in April of 2023.
Abby says
S'mores are one of my biggest dessert weaknesses! Your combo of dark chocolate brownies and homemade marshmallow topping has me drooling.
Leslie Haasch says
Okay, it's official - I NEED a kitchen torch just to make these! This is making me drool, and I just finished breakfast. Dessert is totally okay as lunch... right?
The Simple, Sweet Life says
It must be dessert time somewhere so I'm going to go with yes. 😉 And my kitchen torch is hands down one of my favorite kitchen tools. Of course, once you get one, you pretty much spend the rest of your time looking for ways to use it. Consider yourself warned. 😉
Kate says
I have had s'mores brownies once before and hooooooly smokes, were they amazing. These look just as wonderful as the ones I tried. They look so tempting!
Nicole | Culinary Cool says
A full inch of marshmallow topping, you say? Count me in! Who needs go wait until summer to have s'mores!!
Sprinkles and Sprouts says
Marshmallow on top of brownie!!!! MAN!!!
Can you believe I have never had s'mores! (I KNOW I KNOW!!!)
But these are just stunning looking, especially that crispy browned top! I love a chance to use my culinary blow torch!!!!!
The Simple, Sweet Life says
YOU'VE NEVER HAD S'MORES?! Girl, if I could, I'd mail you a tray of these right now!
Sharon says
Oh my! These brownies are layers and layers of goodness. I could just dive right into that marshmallow topping!
Kathryn @ FoodieGirlChicago says
You can never go wrong with something that combines chocolate and caramel! Makes me want to go buy a new kitchen torch right now!
karyld2016 says
Oh these look so decadent! I love making s’mores, but I’m loving this twist so you can eat them year round!
Kim from Three Olives Branch says
What a fun idea! They look beautiful too. S'mores is such a classic flavor combo, this is so smart!
The Simple, Sweet Life says
You're too sweet Kim! Given half a chance, I'd pretty much s'more anything (s'more can totally be a verb, right?)!
VeronikasKitchen.com says
Oh YES! This is one of my most favorite desserts! A beautiful marshmallow on top of the brownie! What can be better than that ?)))))
The Simple, Sweet Life says
I certainly can't think of anything! 😉
Fork in the Road says
These look absolutely sinful! I'm a HUGE fan of s'mores and these will definitely be happening when my next sugar craving strikes.
Stacey says
Well yes please!!! Brownies and S'mores all at one time, OMG! They are gorgeous!
The Simple, Sweet Life says
Thank you! Go big or go home, am I right? 😉