Domino’s makes another foray into dessert arena

This week, I reached out for a Marbled Cookie Brownie, the latest “take aim” at the elusive dessert category, served up by Domino’s, with 11,900 restaurants in all 50 states and lots of countries around the crazy, spinning globe.

For a pizza chain known to crank out new products at Kardashian warp speed, Domino’s was slow to embrace the dessert game. Marbled Cookie Brownie is Domino’s first dessert unveiling since Chocolate Lava Crunch Cakes in 2009.

If you’re a fan of duets and mashups, this will have you dancing in the aisles. It’s two for the price of, well, more than one, but not quite two.

Here’s the Marbled Cookie Brownie breakdown: chewy, thick chocolate chunk cookies and rich fudge brownies smushed together for one gooey, decadent dessert.

Total calories: 190 (per brownie piece). Fat grams: 9. Sodium: 120 mg. Carbs: 25 g. Dietary fiber: 1. Protein: 2 g. Manufacturer’s suggested retail price: $6.49.

Or $5.99 if you pair it with another item on Domino’s “Mix and Match” menu, let’s say with Specialty Chicken, a medium one-topping pizza, Stuffed Cheesy Bread or one of Domino’s much-underrated baked sandwiches.

Other pizza chains, like the Hut and ‘s, have been serving brownies for years, so Domino’s had to come up with a newsworthy twist – Marbled Cookie Brownies. For the visual, think of Schnitzer’s marbled rye on “Seinfeld.” It’s a blend of two wonders – chocolate chunk cookies and brownies. They’re gently swirled, so each maintains its identity. You won’t see world’s colliding – another “Seinfeld” memory.

The difference between chocolate chunk cookies and chocolate chippers – the size of the chocolate pieces. And when it comes to cookies, size matters. Oh, does it ever.

Marbled Cookie Brownies take a ride on Domino’s conveyor pizza belt and get boxed up warm for delivery. If you don’t live next door to a Domino’s, your brownie may stand a minute or two in your home oven. Like most chocolate things, including ice cream, the Marbled Cookie Brownie is best served a little warm.

The Marbled Cookie Brownie is cut into nine “shareable” pieces. When Domino’s says “shareable,” it means you take one piece and let other people have a piece.

But when I hear “shareable,” I’m thinking I’ll eat four or five pieces now and the rest after the football game.

Dessert is a tough road for pizza chains. Most classic, serious pizza joints don’t even think about offering dessert choices. OK, maybe New York pizzerias have cheesecakes from the bakery down Mulberry Street. But if any entrée doesn’t need a sweet ending, it’s pizza. Dessert is right there in the box, the last slice of pie, or the crusts that some heathen pizza fans toss back.

An extra slice, or a sugary treat to wrap up the meal? I’m usually a slice guy, but this Marbled Cookie Brownie was a heck of a closing act.