Oreo Brownies

I know Fall officially only just started, but it seems like it’s already gone on forever.

Summer was easy… well… how about this… Summer was less taxing on the Mom-Taxi. But Fall is different. School starts in Fall, and while it seems that I might just have a little bit more free time during the week (that is, when I’m not working, doing laundry, getting ready for bake sales, doing my volunteer stuff, and feeding people… as well as lots of Mom-Taxi to and from after school activities), the weekends are always JAMMED.

Fall Weekends = Sports

We do Soccer, Volleyball and Cross Country in our family.

It’s amazing that we manage to get it all in. Like so many families… it becomes a bit nutty…. 3 kids, 3 different sports, 4 different teams.

And it all happens at once.

Now… physicists would tell us that it is, in fact, impossible to be in all of these places at once.

To those eggheads I say HA!

With the help of the Time Travel App on my phone I can manage anything.

(kidding… )

Weekends around here are barely controlled chaos, but, like all moms, I do my best….. double check the calender, enter our destination into the little map program so that I end up in Manteca and not Modesto, fill up the BIG coffee cup, and load the cooler with “healthy” snacks.

I also bring along treats… Oreo Brownies taste sooooo good. They are a great way to celebrate a win, and a wonderful pick-me-up when there’s a loss. Plus they are a snap to make, and they travel well.

And for all the moms and dads on the sidelines week after week… in all weather… it’s a small reward for making it all happen yet again.

Oreo Brownie Recipe

Easy, and extra YUMMY Brownies

• Serves: from 1 to 24
• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour

This is an easy Brownie recipe. It doesn’t require a load of special tools or unusual ingredients.

Plus it’s fast! You can go from nothing to eating in under an hour (less if you want to bypass the whole baking thing … the batter really is good)

I do use a food processor to make the Oreo Crumbs… but that’s not necessary. You can either have a child help you smash the Oreos into crumbs… or grab a hammer and work out some aggression yourself (put Oreos in a plastic baggie… put the baggie into another baggie… unless you need to sweep up anyway…. then pound with something heavy until you have crumbs… a hammer, a saucepan, that ugly vase that Aunt Betty gave you… you get the idea.)

I’ve included step-by-step photos below, so you won’t go wrong.

Enjoy

Ingredients

• 1 cup Butter
• 4 oz Unsweetened Chocolate
• 1 1/2 cups Granulated Sugar
• 3 Eggs
• 1 1/2 cups Unbleached Flour
• 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
• Crumbs from 6 Oreos
• 6 -8 Broken Oreos

Instructions

Preheat Oven to 350
Prepare a baking pan by laying a sheet of aluminum foil into it… make sure that the piece is long enough to hang over the ends. Press it in. Then give it a spritz with the non-stick spray stuff.

In a microwave safe bowl (I usually use my glass measuring cup), melt the butter and chocolate (about 2 minutes on high) (cover the chocolate/butter in the microwave, unless you really need to clean the microwave anyway) Stir until smooth.

In a medium mixing bowl… combine the eggs, sugar, flour, baking soda …. stir until all mixed up. Add the Oreo crumbs and the melted chocolate. Stir with a spatula until combined. Don’t go bananas stirring… you just want it all to be brown.

Pour into prepared pan.

Now… break up the rest of the Oreos (you can use your hands for this) and sprinkle them uniformly over the batter. Well… as uniformly as you want. If you accidentally make one spot heavier in Oreo bits than the rest… that’s ok. Just make sure to claim it for yourself when it comes out of the oven.

Now eat

Kidding!!

Into the oven for 30 minutes.

When the timer goes off…pull it out… and let it cool on a rack for 15 minutes.

Then……

You can pull the foil out of the pan, and cut the brownies…. if you do this carefully, you can use the foil to move the brownies into a container to take with you…

or

you can just eat them.

Step-By-Step

Chocolate and Butter Go into a Microwave Safe Container

Melt together…. COVER IT

Stir Until Smoooooth

Turn Oreos into Crumbs

Put All Ingredients In A Bowl

Mix Until Just Combined

Line a Baking Pan with Foil

Leave the ends over the handles… give it a spritz with non-stick stuff

Spread the Batter Evenly

Sprinkle the Batter with Crumbled Cookies

Now Put the Batter into the Oven

Or…. take the batter and a spoon, and head for a quiet place

Oreo Brownies Look Like this When They are Done

After Cooling a Few Minutes You Can Remove the Foil From the Pan

Cut on the Foil

You can transfer the Brownies into a Carrier Using the Foil

Potluck or Soccer Tournament

Oreo Brownies are easy to take with you.

Bake them on Foil… and then shift them into carrier boxes…. to take along.

Playing Hard, Playing Well

Having Fun Doing It

Soccer tournaments… sigh… for those of you who have never experienced one… go like this. Generally, you play 2 games one day (most often Saturday), and then one more game the next day. Depending on the outcome of these games… and using some arcane formulas and an abacus… they may get to go on to play a championship game. Or worse… the consolation game. Consolation games are a fancy way for the Tournament directors to keep everyone on the fields for an extra few hours so we all hit massive traffic on the way home.

Generally the weather is awful. It’s either hot, or cold, or raining, or windy. Once we had a tornado warning (this is California… ). There is a lot of down time between games. I’ve learned to pack books, video games for the sibs, chairs, blankets, a tent, umbrellas, rain boots, water and FOOD.

Parents sit on the sidelines. Our job is to drive and cheer. And we do it well.

My daughter’s Soccer team played game 3 of a tournament today. They needed a win to go ahead, anything else would send them home.

It was a hard fought game… probably the best they ever played….and it ended in a tie. They went into the second half down by 2 goals against a team that was bigger, stronger and more physical. But they kept their heads up… played hard… and scored 2 goals to tie that game.

The tie felt as good as a win.

I’m so proud of them.