Pumpkin Brookies with M&M’s – Inspired by Superheroes

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As always, all opinions are mine alone.

Now that Fall has arrived, it’s time to prepare for the next big holiday. Yup, that’s right folks.. Halloween!

Now, I’m not really one for the creepy ghoulish stuff. It’s just really not my style, but I love the fun and lightheartedness that comes with kids costumes, candy, and Fall weather. Since we’re not really into the creepy costumes, often we head for more lighthearted stuff and when you have boys as many boys as I do, superheroes are often the answer.

We are big fans of Marvel superheroes, often catching the latest movie or using the characters as part of a fun party theme. But we’ve also been longtime fans of the Halloween costumes too! Check out some blasts from the past.

D-Man and RoRo dressed up as Spiderman and Iron Man just last Halloween. They had so much fun as superheroes walking through the streets together trick-or-treating. It was RoRo’s first year walking and holding his candy bag and he was a pro by the end of the night. They still dress up in these costumes a few times a week just for dress up fun. Best investments EVER!

D-Man was adorable for his first Halloween dressed as The Hulk.

Even my oldest, Boobie, did the superhero thing way back when. This photo was almost 15 years ago! I can’t believe how grown he is now in comparison to this. This was the coolest costume and our favorite photo for YEARS! I love how in character he was as Wolverine from the X-Men.

Well, this year we’re still not sure what the kids will dress as, but they’re super excited about the Disney Infinity 2.0 Marvel Edition that just came out on September 23, 2014! D-Man and RoRo just love video games, and seeing some of their favorite superheroes in this game is surely going to inspire this years Halloween costumes. Be sure to head to Walmart to purchase your Disney Infinity Games and you can receive a $10 Walmart Gift Card with purchase of a Starter Pack. Offer valid from 9/23 – 9/27.

All this talk of Halloween and Superheroes got me brainstorming and next thing you know I whipped up this cool Halloween/Superhero themed treat. I had this great idea of creating pumpkin brookies and instead of chocolate chips in the cookie portion using M&M’s instead. Now you know I love using M&M’s in my desserts and this would even be a great way to use up your extra candy once Halloween has passed.

If you’re not familiar with brookies, they are essentially a cookie and a brownie combined. Typically it would be a chocolate chip cookie, but I wanted to change it up for the holiday. Brookies remind me of some of the greatest Marvel movies, where a few already fabulous superheroes (brownie + cookie) combine forces to become even better together (brookies!) – just like my little Superman and Iron Man!

I’m here for it, are you?

Now, of course, these have a Halloween twist which is why I added the pumpkin. The pumpkin and spices definitely add that Autumn warmth to these cookies without overdoing it, and the combination with chocolate is perfect for the pumpkin and chocolate lovers out there. These are reminiscent of my pumpkin spice bread muffins when we add chocolate chips to them.

Ingredients for the Pumpkin Cookies with M&M’s:

• 1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened to room temperature
• 1/2 cup granulated white sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon maple extract
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 1.5 cup PLUS 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 1.5 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 cups milk chocolate M&M’s

Ingredients for the Brownies:

• 1 package Fudge brownie mix
• 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 1 egg

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the butter with the sugars. Cream until smooth, then add the egg and extracts. I chose vanilla and maple to add a little depth, but you can make it one whole teaspoon of vanilla extract if you like.

Add the pumpkin and fold it into the mixture.

In a separate bowl, add in the flour, baking soda and spices. Mix well.

Pour the flour mixture into the pumpkin and mix until just combined.

Gently fold in the M&M’s, then set the bowl aside while you work on the brownie portion.

Combine the brownie mix and flour, stirring with a wooden spoon.

In a smaller bowl, combine the melted butter and the egg. Mix them together then slowly pour into the brownie mixture. Stir until combined.

Spray a muffin pan with non stick baking spray, I prefer the silicon muffin pan for this because it is much less likely to stick.

Take the brownie mixture and roll into a ball that’s about 1/2 and inch big. Flatten it out like a disc and then press it into the muffin pan. Gently scoop about a teaspoon or so of pumpkin dough into the center of the brownie. This will make a lot of cookies! You will probably get about 3-4 dozen from this mixture.

Press a few extra M&M’s into the top of the pumpkin dough, then bake in the preheated over for about 15-18 minutes.

Once done, remove from muffin pan and place on cookie racks to cool.

Serve with plenty of milk.

Enjoy!

#InfinityHeroes | #CollectiveBias

Who’s your favorite Marvel Superhero?

Get inspired with Disney’s Infinity 2.0 featuring Marvel Superheroes available for X-Box, PS4 and Wii U now available at Walmart, and don’t forget about that gift card if you get it right away!