Banana Split Brownies

How's this for a dish—all the joy of a banana split without the mess. Everything in my recipe fits into one pan of delectable brownie bars.

Banana Split Brownies

Average Rating: 3.857142

TOTAL TIME: Prep: 45 min. Bake: 40 min. + cooling
YIELD: 2 dozen.

Ingredients

  • 8 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
  • 3/4 cup butter, cubed
  • 3 large eggs, room temperature
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup maraschino cherries, chopped

  • TOPPING:
  • 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
  • 1/2 cup mashed ripe banana (about 1 medium)
  • 1/3 cup strawberry preserves
  • 1 large egg, room temperature, lightly beaten
  • 1/4 cup chopped salted peanuts
  • Optional: Sliced bananas and additional chopped maraschino cherries

Instructions

  • 1. Preheat oven to 350°. In a microwave, melt chocolate and butter; stir until smooth.
  • 2. In a large bowl, beat eggs and sugar on high speed 10 minutes. Stir in vanilla and chocolate mixture. Gradually stir in flour. Fold in cherries. Spread into a greased 13x9-in. baking pan.
  • 3. For topping, in a small bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Beat in mashed banana and preserves. Add egg; beat on low speed just until blended. Spread over brownie batter; sprinkle with peanuts.
  • 4. Bake until topping is set and a toothpick inserted in brownie portion comes out mostly clean, 40-45 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack.
  • 5. Cut into bars. If desired, serve bars topped with banana slices and additional cherries. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Nutrition Facts

1 brownie: 262 calories, 16g fat (9g saturated fat), 57mg cholesterol, 101mg sodium, 31g carbohydrate (23g sugars, 2g fiber), 4g protein.