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Fudgy S'mores Brownies
Homemade brownie and dessert bars are my specialty. I even wrote an entire cookbook on them, so you can trust me when I say that this s'mores brownies recipe tutorial is the perfect option to satisfy your brownie craving (especially if you're looking for different brownie flavors)! These brownies have all of the key s'mores ingredients: a graham cracker base topped with a rich and fudgy chocolate brownie layer in the middle and a toasted marshmallow meringue frosting on top... what's not to love?!
This different brownie recipe yields 16 brownies, which is perfect if you want to share with friends and family. However, if you're looking for other s'mores dessert bars, s'mores donuts, or even s'mores cupcakes, I've got you covered!
Ingredients & Substitutions
These s'mores brownie bars don’t require a ton of ingredients; here’s what you’ll need to make them:
- Graham Crackers: You'll need 4½ sheets of graham crackers to line the base of your pan. I like using cinnamon graham crackers, but honey graham crackers are also yum!
- Butter: The one and only. You'll need it for the brownies.
- Granulated Sugar: This recipe uses only granulated sugar, however, you could substitute half of it for light or dark brown sugar if you wanted!
- Eggs: Two large (room temperature) eggs are all you need!
- Vanilla Bean Paste: You can use an equal amount of vanilla extract instead.
- Baking Powder: Just ¼ teaspoon to help with the brownie texture.
- All-purpose flour: Only ½ cup of all-purpose flour is needed!
- Cocoa powder: Because this recipe doesn't use melted chocolate, I recommend using Dutch-processed cocoa for that deep, chocolatey flavor. However, your regular unsweetened cocoa powder will work just fine too!
- Salt: Brownies made without salt taste a little plain, so don’t skip it.
How to Make S'mores Brownies
These S'mores Brownies are extremely simple to make, and the results are unreal. Trust me! This recipe has two essential components: the brownie layer and the marshmallow meringue topping!
The brownie layer contains your standard brownie ingredients; you know... butter, flour, eggs etc. This particular brownie recipe uses only cocoa powder, which makes for a deliciously chewy brownie that comes together quickly.
To assemble and bake the S’mores Brownies, you’ll first line an 8×8 pan with parchment paper; this will help remove the brownies once they have cooled. After the pan is lined with parchment paper, arrange graham crackers in a single layer on the bottom of the pan. You’ll need a total of 4 1/2 graham cracker sheets to cover the bottom of an 8×8-inch pan.
Next, you'll mix your brownie batter, then pour and carefully spread the batter onto the graham crackers and bake at 350°F (180°C) for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with moist crumbs. Then you'll let the brownies cool completely while you make the marshmallow meringue frosting.
Recipe Troubleshooting & FAQ
Can I double this S'mores Brownies recipe?
Yes! You can easily double the recipe, and bake in a 9×13-inch pan. You can adjust the ‘servings’ slider from 16 to 32 in the recipe card to get the proper measurements.
Is the Marshmallow Meringue stable?
Because of the addition of cream of tartar, the topping is relatively stable. It can definitely be piped, and it holds its shape relatively well. However, you may notice that it might lose a little of its volume over time, especially if you choose not to torch it.
Help! My brownies came out dry. What did I do wrong?
If you used cup measures as opposed to weight measures, your ingredients were probably a little off. As weird as this sounds, measuring cups aren’t as accurate as you think. For example, somebody who scoops the measuring cup into the flour will have way more than somebody who uses a spoon to scoop the flour into the same-sized measuring cup. This is why you should really be measuring by weight with a kitchen scale instead—it’s much more reliable and completely eliminates any inconsistencies.
Alternatively, if you measured your ingredients by weight and the brownie still came out too dry, you might have overmixed your brownie batter or overbaked the brownies. Overmixing the batter will allow air to get trapped in the batter and will result in dry, cakey brownies. Overbaking is pretty self-explanatory; make sure you remove the brownies when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with moist crumbs sticking to it. If it comes out clean, you've overbaked them!
Watch How to Make These S'mores Brownies:
Note: All of the recipes on my blog are carefully developed using gram measurements as it’s the most accurate way to bake. Cups are not only inaccurate, but they vary in volume worldwide! In any event, if you look at the recipe card underneath the ingredients list, you can click “US Customary” and it’ll convert to volume measures!
Remember to tag me @mikebakesnyc on Instagram and leave a rating + review below if you make these S'mores Brownies! Happy baking!
S'mores Brownies Recipe Tutorial
Ingredients
- 4½ graham cracker sheets
- 60 g all-purpose flour
- 200 g granulated sugar
- 25 g cocoa powder
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 113 g unsalted butter melted
- 2 large eggs (≈ 100g)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
- 1 batch marshmallow meringue frosting (see notes)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Grease an 8x8–inch (20x20–cm) pan with butter or nonstick cooking spray and then line the pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on all sides. Grease the parchment with butter or nonstick cooking spray. Line the graham cracker sheets in an even layer on the bottom of the pan, then set it aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, salt, and baking powder then set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the butter, eggs, and vanilla until well combined. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Pour the brownie batter into the prepared pan and evenly spread it on top of the graham crackers.
- Bake for 28-30 minutes, then test the brownies by inserting a toothpick into the center of the pan; if it comes out with wet batter, the brownies are not done. If there are only a few moist crumbs, the brownies are done. Keep checking the brownies every 2 minutes until you have moist crumbs.
- Remove the pan from the oven and allow the brownies to cool completely in the pan.
- Once cooled, frost with marshmallow meringue frosting. Once topped with the marshmallow meringue, brownies can be left at room temperature for up to 8 hours. Cover and store leftover brownies in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days.
Sally
Reduced the sugar cause it sounded like a lot and brownies were still way too sweet...and I have a big sweet tooth. Maybe other brands of sugar are sweeter? First recipe from you that wasn’t perfect out the gate ?
Jen
Would you use brown sugar or regular white sugar if you did not have golden sugar?
Michael Johnson
Granulated sugar!
Katie
Are there any other options to toast the topping if I don’t own a blowtorch?
Michael Johnson
Unfortunately, there's not! You could use regular marshmallows instead of the meringue topping and place the brownies under the broiler for a minute or so for a similar effect! Otherwise, I would just invest in a small kitchen torch; they're relatively inexpensive. This is the one I use!
Linda
These.were.amazing! Best new recipe I have tried in a long time.Thanks for sharing!! So happy I followed you on Instagram!
Marika
Can't wait to try this? Is the topping sticky like marshmallow fluff or smooth like a Swiss meringue?
Michael Johnson
It's a little sticky, but much closer to Swiss meringue
Megan
These were amazing! I bought domino golden sugar just for this recipe and I’m already planning on making them again this week.
Lauren
OMG! Made these today. Love them. Thanks Mike.
Super easy and oh so delicious. They will not las long....
Michael Johnson
So glad to hear! 🙂