It’s time again for a small change, no Christmas cookies today – we got enough of those the past few weeks. Today I got some nice supersized brownies for you. Delicious chocolaty sugar bombs that got a little Christmas upgrade. One of these XXL Christmas Brownies might be too much for one person – even for hardcore sugar and chocolate maniacs, but you can always share on of these brownies… as we all know “sharing is caring!” – especially around Christmas ;)
Everything is a bit bigger and decorated to the extreme around Christmas – even the desserts. These brownies are no exception to that rule. Loads of chocolate, sugar, and flavors. Enough calories to get you through a tough winter… probably until March even :P As you might know, I am trying to reduce my sugar-intake for quite some time already, so I made these brownies already with sugar substitutes.
This basically works great, but I have not replaced the entire amount of sugar with xylitol or erythritol – that could cause problems with a sensitive stomach if you eat too much of the brownies – about 3/4 of the amount of sugar can be replaced in the dough without problems though. As for the buttercream, you would have to use a sugar-free or sugar-reduced buttercream if you want to get rid of even more sugar. This Russian buttercream is made with sweetened (sugared) condensed milk, unfortunately, it’s not possible to get rid of that sugar in there ;)
So if you want to get rid of some sugar in this recipe, it’s possible. Anyway. Once you’ve baked the brownie and have come to terms with all the sugar/calories, you can let your imagination run wild and devote yourself to decorating the brownies extensively. I got the idea for the decorations from YouTube – Laurie aka. “The Icing Artist” has a video on her channel where she decorates brownies just like these here. Feel free to check it out if you need some more guidance on decorating the brownies – she is showing all of the steps :)
You can, of course, go a completely different route and create some other decorations – that’s up to you. Just make sure you plan well with the buttercream. You have to eyeball the amount of buttercream you need for each color and color it accordingly – making new colored buttercream because you run out of it will probably lead to different shades in colors. It’s almost impossible to get the same color intensity again… so better have some more right from the beginning ;)
Side note: I’m sure you can see in the pictures that the edges are a bit smeared with buttercream… I was in a rush and a bit sloppy – I have to admit that. Luckily there is an easy fix for that (which I did AFTER I did all the pictures already) – just cool your decorated brownies very well so the buttercream is very firm, then use a sharp knife and cut off the edges – just a tiny bit – and you will have (almost) super clean edges without buttercream all over the place.
INGREDIENTS / ZUTATEN
(8 xxl-brownies)
For the brownies:
8 oz. (230g) semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
3/4 cup (90g) cocoa powder, divided
1 tsp. espresso powder
1 1/4 cups (290g) butter
6 large eggs
1 3/4 cups (350g) sugar
1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup (130g) all-purpose flour
For the buttercream:
1 cup (230g) butter, at room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. salt
14 oz. (400g) sweetened condensed milk
food color (red, black, brown, green, blue, yellow)
(8 XXL-Brownies)
Für die Brownies:
230g Zartbitterschokolade, gehackt
90g Kakaopulver (aufgeteilt)
1 TL Instant Espresso Pulver
290g Butter
6 Eier (L)
350g Zucker
100g brauner Zucker
2 TL Vanille Extrakt
1 1/2 TL Salz
130g Mehl (Type 450)
Für die Buttercreme:
230g Butter, Zimmertemperatur
1 TL Vanille Extrakt
1/4 TL Salz
1 Dose (400g) gezuckerte Kondensmilch
Lebensmittelfarben (schwarz, braun, gelb, rot, blau, grün)
DIRECTIONS / ZUBEREITUNG
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a 9×13 inches (23x33cm) baking pan with baking parchment and set aside. Chop the chocolate and add together with 1/4 cup (30g) of the cocoa powder to a large heatproof bowl. Set aside.
2. Add the butter to a saucepan and melt. Let bubble and cook for a moment, then remove from the heat and let sit until there are no more bubbles coming up, then add to the bowl with the chocolate and mix until you get a smooth chocolate sauce. Set aside to cool down a bit.
3. Add the eggs, both of the sugars, vanilla extract, and salt to a large bowl and mix until light and fluffy – takes about 10 minutes. Add the cooled chocolate sauce and mix in. Mix the flour with the remaining cocoa powder (1/2 cup/60g) and sift into the bowl – gently fold in until just combined. Pour the batter into the prepared baking tin and bake for about 20 minutes, then take out of the oven and drop the pan one or two times on your counter to get some air bubbles out – just a bit, you don’t have to smash the half baked brownies completely :P Return to the oven for another 20-24 minutes until the edges are set. Test with a wooden skewer in the center of the brownies – there can be some batter sticking to the skewer but it should not be liquid anymore. Take out of the oven and let cool down completely on a wire rack.
4. For the buttercream add the room temperature (!) butter to a large bowl and mix on high speed for about 5 minutes until very light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract and salt and mix in. While still mixing, gradually add the sweetened condensed milk – do this very slowly or the buttercream might curdle. Continue mixing until you get a nice and fluffy buttercream. Divide between several small bowls and color with food colors. Cut the brownies to size – if they are a bit domed on the sides you can level that out too. Cover the brownies with a layer of buttercream and then decorate to your liking.
1. Den Ofen auf 180°C (350°F) Ober-/Unterhitze vorheizen. Eine Backform mit 23x33cm (9x13inches) mit Backpapier auslegen und zur Seite stellen. Die Schokolade grob hacken und dann zusammen mit 30g des Kakaopulvers in eine große, hitzebeständige Schüssel geben.
2. Die Butter in einen Topf geben, schmelzen und für einen Moment köcheln lassen, dann vom Herd ziehen und warten, bis sie nicht mehr blubbert. Die geschmolzene Butter in die Schüssel mit der Schokolade schütten und alles verrühren, bis eine glatte Schokoladensoße entstanden ist. Zur Seite stellen und etwas abkühlen lassen.
3. Die Eier, beide Zuckersorten, Vanille Extrakt und Salz in eine große Schüssel geben und auf höchster Stufe hell und luftig aufschlagen – für etwa 10 Minuten. Die abgekühlte Schokoladensoße dazugeben und unterrühren. Das Mehl mit dem restlichen Kakao (60g) vermischen und dann in die Schüssel sieben und vorsichtig unterheben. Den Teig in die Form schütten, glatt streichen und für etwa 20 Minuten backen, dann herausholen und aus geringer Höhe 1-2 Mal auf die Arbeitsplatte fallen lassen, damit Luft aus den Brownies entweichen kann. Die Form zurück in den Ofen stellen und weitere 20-24 Minuten backen. Die Brownies sollten an den Rändern gebacken aussehen – in der Mitte mit einem Holzspieß testen, ob noch Teig kleben bleibt. Ein bisschen Teig ist ok, aber er sollte nicht flüssig sein, sonst besser noch etwas länger backen. Aus dem Ofen holen und in der Form auf einem Kuchengitter abkühlen lassen.
4. Für die Buttercreme die zimmerwarme (!) Butter in eine große Schüssel geben und auf höchster Stufe für etwa 5 Minuten aufschlagen, bis die Butter sehr hell und fluffig ist. Vanille Extrakt und Salz dazugeben und unterrühren. Die gezuckerte Kondensmilch nach und nach sehr langsam zur Schüssel dazugeben und dabei unterrühren – auf höchster Stufe aufschlagen, bis eine fluffige Creme entsteht. Die Buttercreme auf mehrere Schüsseln aufteilen und einfärben. Die Brownies zurechtschneiden – sollten sie “hügelig” sein, könnt ihr sie auch auf der Oberfläche etwas zurechtstutzen. Die Brownies mit einer Schicht Buttercreme bestreichen und dann mit den verschiedenen Motiven dekorieren.
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Here is a version of the recipe you can print easily.
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Xmas (XXL) Brownie Cakes
- Prep Time: 01:00
- Cook Time: 00:44
- Total Time: 03:00
- Yield: 8 1x
- Category: Brownies
- Cuisine: American
Description
Looking for something cute and delicious for Christmas? Try these Xmas Brownie Cakes with colorful decorations on top!
Ingredients
For the brownies:
8 oz. (230g) semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
3/4 cup (90g) cocoa powder, divided
1 tsp. espresso powder
1 1/4 cups (290g) butter
6 large eggs
1 3/4 cups (350g) sugar
1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup (130g) all-purpose flour
For the buttercream:
1 cup (230g) butter, at room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. salt
14 oz. (400g) sweetened condensed milk
food color (red, black, brown, green, blue, yellow)
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a 9×13 inches (23x33cm) baking pan with baking parchment and set aside. Chop the chocolate and add together with 1/4 cup (30g) of the cocoa powder to a large heatproof bowl. Set aside.
2. Add the butter to a saucepan and melt. Let bubble and cook for a moment, then remove from the heat and let sit until there are no more bubbles coming up, then add to the bowl with the chocolate and mix until you get a smooth chocolate sauce. Set aside to cool down a bit.
3. Add the eggs, both of the sugars, vanilla extract, and salt to a large bowl and mix until light and fluffy – takes about 10 minutes. Add the cooled chocolate sauce and mix in. Mix the flour with the remaining cocoa powder (1/2 cup/60g) and sift into the bowl – gently fold in until just combined. Pour the batter into the prepared baking tin and bake for about 20 minutes, then take out of the oven and drop the pan one or two times on your counter to get some air bubbles out – just a bit, you don’t have to smash the half baked brownies completely :P Return to the oven for another 20-24 minutes until the edges are set. Test with a wooden skewer in the center of the brownies – there can be some batter sticking to the skewer but it should not be liquid anymore. Take out of the oven and let cool down completely on a wire rack.
4. For the buttercream add the room temperature (!) butter to a large bowl and mix on high speed for about 5 minutes until very light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract and salt and mix in. While still mixing, gradually add the sweetened condensed milk – do this very slowly or the buttercream might curdle. Continue mixing until you get a nice and fluffy buttercream. Divide between several small bowls and color with food colors. Cut the brownies to size – if they are a bit domed on the sides you can level that out too. Cover the brownies with a layer of buttercream and then decorate to your liking.
Notes
Enjoy baking!
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I love my job, but in between I love to bake and try new things in the kitchen. A lot of my friends and colleagues encourage me to bake - for a very simple reason: they get the leftovers - and it seems they like it most of the time ;) 
