Brownie Torte--or Betty "Crack"-er??! You decide!

So I offered to bring a dessert to my friend Shelley's Labor Day cookout--and promptly left town until 2 hours before the party.  After wrestling the 2-year-old terrorist into his crib for a "snap" (short nap, in our busy house!)...I surveyed the pantry for emergency dessert ingredients.

Ah, thank you Betty!  The Triple Chocolate Chunk Brownie mix greeted me with a sly wink, and I knew we would be rockin' some chocolate for the partygoers.

I am a recipe "fixer", never following the directions to the letter.  I'm always adding some applesauce, or popping in some paprika to switch stuff up a bit when I cook or bake.  So imagine my glee when I noticed, Betty had done the switcharoo for me!

Here's what we did:  after following the directions for mixing the brownies, I foil-lined the pan and oiled it before spreading in the batter.  The brownies cooked and cooled perfectly, and I split them into 2 long halves.  I melted some tub chocolate frosting in the microwave for 30 seconds, and spread half the frosting onto one length of brownie.  I stacked the other half on top, poured on the rest of the frosting, and topped with a few chopped up Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.  After chilling it for a half hour, I noticed the frosting had oozed, so I propped strawberries around the torte for a pretty finish.

We sliced and served it to glowing reviews!  Try it at your house, and watch what happens.  I'm thinking about serving another one this week, but maybe I shouldn't.  After all,  us recipe-fixers shouldn't have to resort to a re-torte!