How To Give Stale Brownies A Second Chance In Your Next Pie

If you've ever left a tray of brownies out on the counter, or in the fridge, only to later discover that they've become too hard to even bite into, don't panic. There's an easy, and totally delicious, way to give stale brownies a second chance by utilizing them in your next homemade pie. Specifically, you can render and transform dry brownie chunks or squares into chocolatey crumbs and then grind them up to make pie crust, just like you would with graham cracker or cookie crumbs. For easy incorporation into your next pie recipe, just follow the 3-ingredient formula for a perfect cookie-based pie crust, substituting stale brownie crumbs for the best cookies for flavorful crumb crusts. 

While cookies like Oreos, chocolate grahams or animal crackers, and Thin Mints are classics when crafting these types of crusts, you'll find that using stale brownies for the job adds a rich chocolatey flavor with beautifully balanced notes of vanilla, alongside some additional saltiness and sweetness too. Repurposing stale brownies in this way reduces unnecessary food waste too, and it combines the best of two decadent dessert worlds — brownies and pies — in one delectable treat. 

You can use dry brownies to make crust for a variety of pies, from banana pudding pie to black forest cream. All you need to do is crush the dried-out brownies into fine crumbs by hand or using a food processor, then mix them with sugar and melted butter as normal before pressing them into a pie tin or dish and finally pairing with your favorite creamy custard, pudding, or other no-bake pie fillings.

Once you try incorporating stale brownies into your next pie crust, you'll see that there's really no need to throw away a perfectly good dessert just because it's dried-out, or even slightly burnt. If you're not in the mood for pie, you can try making a chocolate caramel tart, using brownie crumbs for the crust. Or apply the same baking principles to transform these stale chocolate dessert bars into cheesecake crust. To do so, just prepare the brownie crumb crust and press it into a springform pan. Then, bake and cool it before adding cream cheese filling. You can even add stale brownie chunks directly into your pie or cheesecake filling to create a seriously indulgent chocolate lover's dream. You'll also find that custard fillings rehydrate the dry brownie pieces as the pie's flavors and textures meld together. 

When in doubt, you can always brush or soak dry brownies with a touch of milk to soften them before folding into pie or cake filling. Alongside repurposing past-their-prime brownies into pie crust or filling, you can also use pulverized brownie crumbs as a decorative and tasty topping for sundaes, cupcakes, and birthday cakes. Salvage the crumbs, or use whole chunks of dried-out brownies to soak up extra moisture in hot fudge sundaes, layered dessert trifles, or chocolate pudding cups. Really, don't let a little staleness stop you from getting creative with your desserts, and giving them some fresh, new life.