Spooky Spiderweb S’mores Brownies
These s’mores brownies have it all: a crisp graham cracker crust, a layer of dense and fudgy brownies, and a stretchy spiderweb marshmallow top! Whether you’re baking for a party or need a dessert for spooky season, these brownies are the perfect treat to make—they’re impressive, deceptively easy, and (most importantly) delicious!
Spooky Spiderweb S’mores Brownies
I saw this spiderweb decoration all over social media and immediately knew I wanted to give it a try! For my take, I wanted to incorporate the marshmallow element into the actual recipe, and what better muse to have than a s’more?
To recreate that classic campfire treat, I took my base brownie recipe and added a graham cracker crust and marshmallow topping. The chocolate s’mores element, of course, comes from the fudgy brownie layer, and I also added a dash of flaky salt to top it off. The resulting dessert is dangerously decadent, chewy, and nostalgic, with the perfect balance of sweetness—so without further ado, let’s get into how to make it!
Ingredients You’ll Need
Chances are, you already have most ingredients for these brownies in your pantry. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Unsalted butter. Butter keeps the brownies soft and chewy.
- Granulated sugar. If you want a richer brownie, substitute half of the granulated sugar for brown sugar.
- Eggs and egg yolk. Since egg yolks have more fat than the white, adding an additional yolk makes the brownies extra chewy and fudgy.
- Vanilla extract. Like most baked goods, vanilla enhances the flavors of the other ingredients.
- Melted chocolate. The recipe calls for semisweet chocolate, but you can also use a milk or dark chocolate as well. Try to use a good-quality bar if you can!
- All-purpose flour. Flour absorbs water in the batter and will hold the brownies together.
- Unsweetened cocoa powder. A combination of melted chocolate and cocoa powder gives us the perfect balance of softness and fudginess.
- Kosher salt. To balance the sweetness.
- Graham crackers and marshmallows. No s’more is complete without graham crackers and marshmallows! For this recipe, any sized graham cracker and marshmallow will do—you just need enough to cover the bottom of your baking dish and to top the brownies.
Recipe Variations and Adaptations
Brownies are a blank slate for endless mix-ins and decorations. You can use whatever you have in the pantry, but here are some of my favorite recipe variations!
- Chocolate chips and marshmallows. To capitalize on that s’mores vibe, add more mix-ins to the batter!
- Reese’s. If you’ve never had a s’more with Reese’s cups instead of Hershey’s chocolate, then you’re missing out—the peanut butter adds the perfect amount of saltiness to cut through all that sugar! To recreate it as a brownie, just stir in some chopped Reese’s, chocolate chips, and peanut butter chips to your brownie batter, then decorate the top with a marshmallow web and Reese’s pieces.
- Halloween Oreos. Orange creme-filled Oreos add the perfect spooky theme to these brownies. For this variation, check out my recipe for Cookies & Scream Brownies and add a marshmallow spiderweb decoration.
- Candy corn. I’m not a huge fan of candy corn, but I can’t deny that it adds such a cute and festive Halloween vibe! For this version, make the brownies as normal, then sprinkle candy corn over the marshmallow web and press to adhere.
Recipe Tips + Tricks
Though this recipe is super easy, here are some of my top brownie-baking tips and tricks:
- Make sure the butter and sugar are hot. Mixing the sugar with hot butter is what gives you the trademark crackly top of a brownie—you’ll know the mixture is right if the butter and sugar form a smooth, almost ribbon-like batter.
- Use a chopped chocolate bar instead of chocolate chips. Most chocolate chips have a coating that prevents them from fully melting. If you want pools of melty chocolate throughout your brownies, use a chocolate bar instead of chocolate chips!
- Don’t overmix. If you stir the brownies too much, you’ll produce too much gluten in the batter and your brownies will become cakey.
- Don’t overbake. The brownies are done once a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs attached (not any raw batter). Taking the brownies out at this point allows them to cook more in the pan as they cool, which preserves their dense and chewy texture.
How to Decorate S’mores Brownies
My favorite part about this recipe is the decoration! The spiderweb looks intense, but it’s actually incredibly easy to make (though I can’t promise it won’t get messy)!
- Melt the marshmallows. To get that spiderweb effect, we’ll melt the marshmallows and let them sit until cool enough to handle—you still want them to be warm, otherwise the marshmallow hardens and gets too difficult to handle.
- Make the spiderweb decoration. To decorate, use your fingers to stretch the marshmallows apart and drape them over the top of the brownies to create a spiderweb effect. I recommend using gloves for this step, since it gets pretty sticky!
- Add other decorations of choice. After the marshmallows have cooled completely, you can add any other decorations of choice. For my brownies, I melted down some white and dark chocolate, then I piped them into spider shapes and ghosts. Once the decorations had set, I placed them on top of the marshmallow spiderweb to adhere.
Can I use boxed brownie mix?
Yes! I’m always partial to homemade sweets, but this recipe is the perfect opportunity to boost a boxed brownie mix—simply follow the packaging instructions as written! If you want to elevate your boxed brownie batter, I recommend using milk or coffee instead of water, melted butter instead of oil, and adding a dash of vanilla extract (because why not)?
Storage and Make-Ahead Instructions
These brownies are the perfect treat to prepare ahead of time! Once the batter has been made, simply pour it into the pan, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for up to 48 hours before baking. You can bake the brownies straight from the fridge (no need to let them come up to room temperature), but they may require a longer bake time.
How to Cut S’mores Brownies
One of the hardest parts about making brownies is cutting them—and adding a sticky marshmallow topping doesn’t help matters! Here are my top tips and tricks for getting perfectly sliced brownies every time:
- Cool the brownies completely. Or better yet, let them chill in the fridge! Unless the brownies are completely cooled, they will crumble and flatten in between slices.
- Use a sharp, straight-edged knife. In my experience, a knife with a straight blade works much better than a serrated knife, since the brownies have less surface area to stick to.
- Run the knife under hot water. A warm knife slices through the brownies much smoother and prevents excess marshmallow and chocolate from sticking.
- Clean in between cuts. Especially because of the marshmallow topping, the brownies will get messy. For the cleanest cuts, rinse your knife in between slices.
still hungry? Check out these other Halloween treats!
- Monster Mash Cookies.
- Cookies & Scream Brownies.
- Brown Butter Monster Cookie Bars.
- Homemade Caramel Apples.
Leave any questions or comments you have down below. Otherwise, happy baking (and happy spooky season)!
Spooky Spiderweb S’mores Brownies
Ingredients
- 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 egg yolk (optional)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 4 ounces good-quality semisweet chocolate chips or a chopped chocolate bar
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 4-5 graham crackers
- 1 cup marshmallows
Instructions
- Prepare the pan. Preheat the oven to 350°F, then lightly grease a 9×9 square baking pan with parchment paper.
- Line the bottom of the pan with a single layer of graham crackers, breaking them as needed to fit, then set aside.
- Make the brownie batter. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a microwave-safe bowl, heat the butter in 30 second increments until melted and very hot (be careful not to let the butter pop or explode).
- Add the granulated sugar to the butter, whisking until well incorporated and very smooth, around 2 minutes.
- Crack in the eggs one at a time followed by the egg yolk, then add the vanilla extract. Whisk the mixture until smooth and lightened slightly in color.
- In a separate small bowl, heat the chocolate in the microwave or over a double boiler, stirring every 30 seconds until melted. Allow the chocolate to cool slightly before adding to the egg and sugar mixture. Whisk well until homogeneous.
- Using a rubber spatula, fold in the dry ingredients until just combined and no streaks of flour remain, then pour the brownie batter over the graham crackers in the prepared pan.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the brownies are puffed and set in the middle; if you insert a toothpick into the center of the pan, a few moist crumbs should stick to it, but not raw batter (the brownies will continue to cook and set as they cool).
- Remove the brownies from the oven and allow to cool. Once completely cooled, lift the brownies out of the pan and onto a cooling rack.
- Decorate. To make the spiderweb decoration, place the marshmallows into a heat-safe bowl and microwave for 20-30 seconds or until melted. Stir until smooth.
- Once cool enough to handle, use your fingers to stretch the marshmallows apart to create a spiderweb effect. Drape the marshmallow web over the top of the brownies and gently press to adhere.
- Repeat until the top of the brownies are covered in webs. When ready to serve, use a sharp knife to slice the brownies into even pieces, running the blade under hot water and wiping it off in between cuts.
- Store any leftover brownies in an airtight container for up to 4-5 days at room temperature.
