Chocolate Frosted Brownies


I made these a few weeks ago when I was craving a BYU brownie. These were fabulous via mels kitchen cafe. The only thing I would change is a little less butter in the frosting and more powdered sugar to make it a bit more fluffy. Also Maybe a tad less salt in the frosting and brownie itself. Regardless, these were heaven and the company was in love as well!

Chocolate Frosted Brownies
YIELD: MAKES 12-16 BROWNIES
Note: This recipe can be doubled for a 9X13-inch pan. Bake for about 5 minutes less than the recipe states below and increase as needed while you check for doneness (cause there's nothing worse than an overcooked brownie).
INGREDIENTS
    For the Brownies:
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 3 ounces unsweetened chocolate chopped (about 1/2 cup)- I just used semisweet chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • For the Frosting:
  • 6 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3-5 tablespoon milk or cream
DIRECTIONS
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8-inch-square baking dish with foil, letting the excess hang over the edges (this helps to make "handles" for lifting out the brownies after they have cooled). Lightly grease the foil; set aside.
  2. In a medium-size microwave-safe bowl, combine the chocolate and butter for the brownies. Microwave for 1-minute increments at 50% power, stirring in between, until the chocolate and butter are melted and smooth. Whisk in the granulated and brown sugars. Whisk in the eggs and the vanilla extract. Add the flour, baking powder and salt. Fold the dry ingredients into the chocolate mixture with a rubber spatula until combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.
  3. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes, until a thin knife or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. Remove the brownies from the oven and allow them to cool completely.
  4. For the frosting, using an electric mixer (handheld or stand mixer), cream together the butter, cocoa powder, and salt on medium speed for about 2-3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the powdered sugar. Mix on low speed to incorporate the sugar. Add the vanilla and milk, starting with a couple tablespoons and adding more as needed to adjust the consistency. Increase the mixer speed to medium-high, beating until smooth and fluffy.
  5. Spread the frosting onto the cooled brownies. Store the brownies in an airtight container, or tightly wrapped, at room temperature or in the refrigerator (I highly, highly, highly prefer my brownies chilled in case you care) for 3-5 days.

Rocky Road Brownies

This makes a great gift that was recently given to me by a friend as a mix-in-a-jar.  And they were hands-down the best brownies I've ever eaten.  I mean, c'mon, they're made with buttermilk.  How can you go wrong?  Move over, Ghiradelli Brownie mix, I found my new favorite.


Rocky Road Brownies
recipe from Deer Lake Cookie Recipes 

 If giving as a gift, add these dry ingredients to a tall Mason jar in this order (bottom to top):

1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup miniature marshmallows
1/2 cup unsweetened dark cocoa powder
3/4 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
Recipe Note: put the marshmallows in a resealable plastic food storage bag; seal bag. Use marshmallows as the final layer in jar.

 Wet Ingredients (include a note with your jar to add these ingredients):

 1/2 cup butter
1 egg (lightly whipped with a fork in a small bowl)
1/4 cup buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla

 Preheat your oven to 355 degrees. Lightly grease 8X8-inch baking pan.  Remove marshmallows from plastic food storage bag in jar; set aside.

 In a large bowl, add in Rocky Road dry mix from jar. Next, add in egg, buttermilk, melted butter and vanilla; stir until blended.
Spread batter evenly into your prepared pan. Bake 25 to 32 minutes or till it sets up. While hot; sprinkle miniature marshmallows over brownies. Now bake for an additional 3 to 5 minutes or until marshmallows are puffed and slightly melted. (Watch those rocky road brownies close, nobody likes burnt brownies.) Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into squares.

Brownie Ice Cream Sandwiches

Don't buy another ice cream sandwich again...this one is absolute perfection.  Its absolutely delicious and very easy to make.  After my kids ate these for the first time they said, "this is my new favorite thing to eat" and "these are better than the ones you buy at the store" (note to Blue Bell).  My friend, Amy Foulger, made these for us after Tessa's surgery and I've made three batches since.  So good.
Brownie Ice Cream Sandwiches
Amy Foulger via Martha Stewart

1 stick unsalted butter, melted (plus more for pan)
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp. fine salt
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 pints ice cream, softened (mint oreo is our favorite)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Butter a 10X15 pan (or double recipe and use a regular cookie sheet instead) and line with parchment paper so there is an overhang on the short sides.  Butter paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk together butter and sugar, then whisk in eggs and salt.  Add flour and cocoa and mix until just smooth.  Spread in pan.  Bake until brownie is dry to the touch and edges start to pull away from the pan, 10-12 minutes (mine took more like 20 min.).  Let cool 5 minutes.  Using paper overhang, transfer brownies to a wire rack and let cool completely.  

Transfer brownie to a work surface and cut in half crosswise.  Place both halves on plastic wrap.  Slice and spread ice cream onto one of the halves.  Once evenly spread, invert the other brownie half on top and wrap with plastic wrap.  Freeze for two hours, or overnight.  Enjoy!

The Best Brownies

We served these after Christmas dinner with this hot fudge sauce. It was one of the more delicious desserts I've ever eaten- and even got rave reviews all around. These brownies have the perfect amount of richness- crumbly on the outside and totally moist on the inside. Next time you crave a brownie, ditch the box mix and make these instead.
picture courtesy Mel's Kitchen Cafe

The Best Brownies
Mel's Kitchen Cafe

2 sticks (8 oz) butter
8 oz good-quality semisweet chocolate chips (I used Nestle chips from Costco)
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
5 large eggs
1/3 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder (I used regular cocoa powder)
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 cup all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 13×9 inch metal pan with foil and spray foil with cooking spray. Alternatively, you may use parchment. These are pretty sticky at first! Melt butter and chocolate in a 3-qt heavy saucepan over low heat, stirring, until smooth. Add 1 cup of the sugar to the hot chocolate mixture. Remove from heat and let cool to lukewarm. Whisk in remaining 1 cup sugar and vanilla. Whisk in eggs 1 at a time until mixture is glossy and smooth. Whisk in salt and cocoa powder, then add flour and stir until it disappears (do not overbeat). Spread in pan and bake until a pick inserted in center comes out with crumbs, 25 to 35 minutes (I had to cook mine about 45 minutes). Cool to room temperature then chill for an hour or more. Lift from pan, place on a cutting board, cut into squares.

Makes 1 13×9 inch pan (yield depends on how big you cut your brownies, but they are rich, so small is fine.

Easy Brownies

Another allrecipes find! I needed to find a great, easy, fast recipe for brownies when we had some friends over for brownie sundaes a couple of weeks ago. These were the ones! So yummy.
pic courtesy Allrecipes.com
Easy Brownies
Recipe from Allrecipes.com

  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 1 cup white sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour an 8 inch square pan. In a large saucepan, melt 1/2 cup butter. Remove from heat, and stir in sugar, eggs, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat in 1/3 cup cocoa, 1/2 cup flour, salt, and baking powder. Spread batter into prepared pan. Bake in preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Do not overcook.

Triple layer brownies

I am not going to lie. I found this recipe on the back of the brownie box. I was in a bind one night and needed a quick dessert. I was out to impress. I wasn't about to take JUST brownies! :) So I was desperate for a recipe and a fast, easy one. One where I had all the ingredients on hand. This is just that type of recipe and it looks like you spent hours. And it's so yummy.

Make brownies according to recipe in 9x13 pan.
Cool. Top brownies with vanilla frosting from tub. Then put a layer on chipped peanuts on top. In a sauce pan melt two cups of semi-sweet chocolate chips and 1 cup of peanut butter together. Then pour that mixture over crushed rice cereal. I used Special K but it actually called for Rice Krispies. Smooth that mixture over brownies.

Black and White Cheesecake Squares

Pic courtesy of My Kitchen Cafe

Wow. These were soooo devilishly good. They might set you back a couple pounds on your New Year's diet, but if you are going to indulge, I would definitely reach for these babies. I made them last night for a game night and they went over hugely. They are really, really rich (think 2 1/2 cubes of butter and 2 cups of sugar) so thankfully, you really can't eat that many at a time.

Black and White Cheesecake Squares
from My Kitchen Cafe

Nonstick cooking spray
2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 sticks butter, softened
2 cups granulated sugar
3 large eggs
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.

Sift flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl. In another bowl, cream butter and granulated sugar with a mixer until smooth. Add 2 eggs and 2 teaspoons vanilla, and beat until smooth, scraping down sides of bowl. Reduce speed to low; add flour mixture. Increase speed to medium; beat until incorporated.

Reserve 1 cup of dough; cover, and refrigerate. Press remaining dough into bottom of prepared dish. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Bake until base is set and edges are puffed, 22-25 minutes (don't overbake or this brownie layer will be too hard and crumbly). Let cool in dish on a wire rack.

Mix cream cheese, confectioners' sugar, and remaining egg and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla in a medium bowl. Spread over cooled base; crumble reserved dough on top. Bake until filling is set, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool in dish on wire rack. Cut into 24 squares. Squares will keep, covered and refrigerated, for up to 3 days.

Perfect One Bowl Brownies

Merry Christmas! I made these brownies the other day from The Sister's Cafe and they were delish. I've always a strong supporter of brownies from a box because it just didn't seem like homemade brownies were ever as moist and chocolatey as boxed ones. But, I tried this because I needed something fast, easy, and last-minute. "Mmmm good," is all I and everyone that tried them had to say.

Perfect One Bowl Brownies
from The Sister's Cafe

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
4 eggs
3/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 3/4 cup flour
1 cup chocolate chips (or however many you like)


Preheat oven to 350. In a medium bowl melt butter in microwave, then stir in oil, sugar and cocoa. With a wooden spoon stir in the remainder of the ingredients except for the chocolate chips. Spread into a 9x13 pan sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the top (I like my chocolate chips better mixed in, but whichever you prefer). Bake in a preheated oven for 25-30 minutes. If your toothpick comes out clean you have cooked them too long! DO NOT OVERCOOK!