Filed under: Brownies & Blondies
October 7, 2022

S’mores Blondies

A base of brown butter blondies made with ground up graham crackers, dark chocolate ganache on top and a toasted marshmallow topping. 

4.88 from 8 votes
Yield: 16 bars
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Brown butter blondies made with ground up graham crackers, dark chocolate ganache and a toasted marshmallow topping.

 

 

Recipe overview 

I promised these back in the very early days of summer (back when I still talking endlessly about lemon curd) and then I all but dragged my feet to post the recipe. I was a bit dissatisfied with the blondie portion at first, then remade it about sixty times until it was this: dense not cakey, and tasted like a toasty graham cracker but had the charm of a chewy blondie. 

On top is a layer of dark chocolate ganache and on top of that is, well I mean I did a meringue because you know I did. But happy to report that I tried them again with homemade marshmallows and again with store bought and they all work!

Whichever marshmallow/meringue journey you choose I just hope you find a bar in these that brings in all the flavors of a hot melty smore in very different, cooler, chewier textures. 

 

smores blondies

 

Key Recipe Ingredients

Graham crackers: Literally any kind you like. I’ve even used digestive cookies and it worked well. I think the ones coated with cinnamon are particularly flavorful here. These will be ground into a powder and go right into the blondie batter. 

Butter: Unsalted, no need to soften it as we’ll be browning it for this recipe. It’s fine to use a dairy-free butter (but be sure it’s the kind that browns well, I’ve heard good things about mykonos). 

Chocolate: I think a semi-sweet chocolate works best for ganache but if you like it dark you can use up to 78% cocoa solids. Milk chocolate made with this recipe will give you a ganache that doesn’t firm up and is rather soft. If you want to use milk chocolate reduce the heavy cream to 150g. 

Heavy cream: Heavy whipping cream or heavy cream. If you want to make these dairy free, use coconut cream. 

 

How to make S’mores Blondies, layer by layer 

  1. Graham cracker blondies

We’re going to brown the butter! I do this partially for flavor but it has a texture benefit as well: removing some of the added moisture, since a big chunk of our dry ingredients is already a cookie. If you don’t brown the butter you’ll have much softer, cake-like blondies. 

Once the crackers are ground, it’s as simple as whisking everything together as each ingredient incorporates. Then bake! 

  1. Chocolate layer

This will be as simple as chopping chocolate, then warming heavy cream and pouring it over the chocolate. Giving it a little stir at first will help circulate the warm cream, letting it rest for a minute will help the melting begin. Stirring it until smooth will give you a shiny, thick, gorgeous ganache.

Marshmallow layer

There are three ways to do this: make homemade marshmallows (the most laborious), make a meringue (finicky but probably produces the best result aesthetically, if you are meringue fan) or use store-bought mallows (will torch and broil easily but probably not taste the best).

Here’s some recipes to help you choose: 

Homemade marshmallow layer from these S’mores Brownies (just the top layer)

You could also make the top layer chocolate marshmallow, from this recipe (halve it) or brown butter marshmallow, from this recipe (also halve it).

Basic Swiss Meringue (use the 3 egg white option with 3/4 cups sugar)

 

 

S’mores Blondies Recipe



S'mores Blondies

Brown butter graham cracker blondies topped with dark chocolate ganache and toasted marshmallows.
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Yields: 16 bars
4.88 from 8 votes

Ingredients

Graham Blondie Layer

  • 113g or ½ cup butter
  • 170g or ¾ cup brown sugar
  • 1 egg plus 1 yolk
  • ½ tsp fine sea salt
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 100g or ¾ cups all purpose flour
  • 130 g graham crackers or 1 packed cup graham cracker crumbs

Second Layer: Chocolate Ganache

  • 200 g dark chocolate 70% cocoa solids
  • 200 g heavy cream

Third Layer: Marshmallow

Method

  • Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line an 8” square baking pan with parchment paper.

To make the graham blondies

  • Brown the butter (place it in a frying pan and cook as it melts then sputters and spits until you can see brown bits at the bottom stir with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon until the butter has gone almost silent and there’s lots of brown bits, immediately remove from heat less it burn). Let cool slightly.
  • Grind the graham crackers into a powder using a food processor.
  • Add the sugar, salt and vanilla to the butter and whisk to combine. Add the egg and yolk and whisk well, for a full minute. Use a rubber spatula to mix in the graham crumbs and flour.
  • Spread the batter into the pan, using the back of the spatula or your hands to flatten it into an even layer. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until browned on the edges. Let cool fully while you make the ganache.

To make the ganache:

  • Chop the chocolate up very, very finely and set in a heatproof bowl. Heat the heavy cream in a pot over low heat, until it’s steaming and bubbles at the sides. Pour it over the chocolate and stir briefly, then leave it to melt the chocolate for a full minute. Stir until completely smooth and shiny. Pour over the cool blondies and set in the fridge to firm up.
  • Once you have your chosen topping on (marshmallow or meringue) use a kitchen torch to toast the top. If you don’t have a kitchen torch you can use your oven’s high broil feature, although you might want to let it cool before slicing.

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Recipe Reviews




  1. The recipe link for the marshmallow recipe is no longer clickable. I searched your site for “marshmallow” with no luck. Any suggestions?

  2. 5 stars
    Made these back in June and they were INCREDIBLE! I opted for topping them with mini marshmallows instead of a meringue and toasted it with a torch, and they still came out perfect! Definitely going to be my go-to summer treat when im in the mood for something rich and decadent.

  3. Such a stellar recipe! I went with a swiss meringue topping. The hosts of the party I took this to almost didn’t share it with the rest of the guests ????. Thank you for the recipe, Sam!

  4. for the swiss meringue option, how big of a batch do you recommend? your meringue recipe as written uses four egg whites; did you use a full batch or half to cover these blondies?

  5. 5 stars
    Happy Saturday….actually just found your recipe through another site where the author is “crushing” over what she sees out in cyberspace. Well guess who is crushing right now? :). Making these tonight. I doubt I will get a response today, but who knows! I am thinking of cutting the dessert into bars without any marshmallow…..thought that leftovers might freeze better. My thought is to take marshmallow cream/fluff and top each serving and then torch. Have no idea if fluff will torch. I may get my answer today before the attempt, or find out for myself 🙂

    • jeff that’s so funny you found this recipe through someone else (I bet it was howsweeteats!) even though you’ve been around here for awhile! Re: the marshmallow fluff question – I have seen a few recipes that have you spread fluff, chill to set it and then torch it with a kitchen torch.

  6. 4 stars
    Attempted this recipe just for fun last night. I’m impressed with the graham blondie taste and texture! I was frustrated by how long it took for the ganache to set up. But once it set up – I enjoyed the slightly chewy texture of it as well. Now the marshmallows…. I’m almost always going to press the easy button on this one! I used regular jet-puffed marshmallows and torched. Could not really eat them the night i made them – even hours after i made them and refrigerated due to the super soft ganache and the torching. The next day chocolate was good (but i still think i’ll reduce the amount of heavy cream next time) blondie was great and the torched marshmallow was a little disappointing. It remained a little too firm. I think I might be forced to try the homemade marshmallow for this one the next time. Someone else mentions using fluff and torching it. I didn’t think fluff would torch? If it does, that could be a solution for the gooeyness I’m looking for from the marshmallow?

    • Maryann, if the ganache didn’t firm up the chocolate you used was probably a semi-sweet or closer to milk chocolate. I use dark chocolate and match the ratio of heavy cream. The other possibility could be that the ganache was burned in the making.

  7. 5 stars
    Made these for Thanksgiving using and they were a hit. Sweet, tart, nutty (from the brown butter) and rich flavors all complement each other. I used marshmallow fluff for the top, which got melty when I torched it so the blondies really had that campfire look and feel.

  8. 5 stars
    Great recipe! Made for a Halloween party. Blondie turned out perfectly. I think I have the taste of a 4 yr old, because next time I think I will do a milk chocolate ganache instead of the dark… though the texture/thickness was perfect for this blondie. Also, I attempted (and failed) the swiss meringue… my sugar granules were definitely dissolved in the finger rubbing test, but once it went in the mixer, it wouldn’t fluff up (too-old eggs maybe?)… so we got store-bought marshmallows and toasted them, which were acceptable (and actually my husband found these perfect flat square shaped ones that worked pretty well), but still made me a little sad. I will have to attempt again.