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Black Forest Brownies

Fudge dark chocolate brownies that are topped with cherry jam, vanilla buttercream and grated chocolate. These are the perfect treat for Halloween. 

Candy is fantastic for halloween but what about fudge brownies that are indulgent, rich, chocolatey and a bit spooky. These brownies are not regular brownies, they have all the makings of a black forest dessert, hence they are my Black Forest Brownies. A traditional black forest dessert includes the flavors of chocolate, cherries (kirsch liquor) and vanilla cream. So we have the fudge chocolate brownies, cherry jam and vanilla butter cream – the grated chocolate just ties the entire dish together. 

This recipe doesn’t include the liquor as I was feeding it to kids but you can add it in the mixing stage of the dry ingredients. It might seem like there is a lot going on in this recipe but it is very simple to make and comes together in an hour, excluding the coming time for the brownies. 

What ingredients do you need to make the Black Forest Brownies?

This recipe starts of like most brownie recipes, butter, dark chocolate, eggs, flour, cocoa powder and vanilla. We then use some store bough cherry jam to swirl though the brownies. And to dollop on top once they are baked. To make the vanilla buttercream we need butter, icing sugar, double cream and vanilla. Garnish it with melted chocolate and grated chocolate. 

What are the substitutes for these Black Forest Brownies?

Gluten free –

You can use Bobs Red Mill gluten free flour mix to make these brownies gluten free. I wouldn’t recommend any other as this brand gives the name texture for regular in these brownies. 

Dark chocolate –

I have used 90% dark chocolate to make the brownies and to decorate them, reason being, the brownies are sweet, the jam is sweet and the butter cream is sweet hence using a really dark chocolate balances out the sweetness. I would not recommend using milk chocolate to make the brownies. 

Butter –

I have used unsalted butter you can use salted butter. Any vegan butter works well in this recipe for the brownies and the buttercream. It must be a vegan butter spread and not nut butter. 

Eggs –

To make these brownies eggless, you can substitute the eggs for egg replacer powder or use 2 flax seed eggs (2 tbsp flaxseed powder and 6 tbsp water stirred to together).

Sugar – 

This recipe uses 3 kinds of sugar. We need castor sugar and brown sugar for the brownie batter while we need icing sugar for the buttercream. For the brownies you can use either or of the sugars but I prefer a combination of both for chewiness and crispness. The buttercream needs icing sugar or confectioners sugar or powdered sugar. 

Cocoa powder –

I wouldn’t recommend skipping this as it is essential to get the deep dark chocolate flavor in the brownies once baked. 

Cherry jam –

I like using a preserve as it is less sweet and has cherry chunks in them. You can use any cherry jam or preserve you can find. However you can also use a strawberry jam or preserve. But cherry is a more traditional flavor option. 

How to make these Black Forest Brownies?

We start by melting the chocolate and butter in a bowl until smooth. Set aside to cool down. In a large mixing bowl we whisk the eggs and sugars together until doubled in volume, pale and creamy. Add the melted, cooled chocolate butter mixture into the eggs and fold. Sift over the flour and cocoa powder, fold together and pour into a prepared 8×8 inch tin. Dollop cherry jam over the batter and using a butter knife swirl it around. Don’t over mix. Bake at 180℃ for 14-16 mins until the top is just set and glossy. Let it cool completely before decorating and cutting. 

To make the butter cream we beat the butter until pale and creamy, add the vanilla and powdered sugar and beat again. Add the double cream and beat until smooth and creamy. Once the brownies are cooled, drizzle melted dark chocolate over the top. Pipe the butter cream over the brownies and using the back of a spoon flatten it out. Using the melted chocolate, pipe eyes and a mouth into each little buttercream dollop. Fill the gaps with more cherry jam and grated chocolate. Cut randomly and serve. 

Tips to making the Perfect Black Forest Brownies

  1. Whisk the eggs and sugar well before adding the melted butter and chocolate. 
  2. Do not over whisk the batter after adding the dry ingredients – mix until no more dry pockets are visible. 
  3. Do not over bake the brownies, they will not be fudge brownies if over baked. As they cool it will set and firm up. 

Serving and storing these Black Forest Brownies?

I love serving them as it is but a little ice cream hurt nobody, you can pair them with some coffee as well. Once they are baked they last well int he fridge for upto 1 week in an air tight container. I wouldn’t recommend freezing these with the butter cream as it won’t defrost well. You can make the brownies ahead of time, wrap in cling film and decorate as needed a day before. 

Now that we have covered how to make these Black Forest Brownies, you can have a look at the recipe video on my socials but let’s get to it. 

If you try this recipe out, don’t forget to share it with me on instagram so I can see how it turned out. I’d love nothing more than to chat with you on your cooking/baking.

Black Forest Brownies

Fudge dark chocolate brownies that are topped with cherry jam, vanilla buttercream and grated chocolate. These are the perfect treat for Halloween.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 16 minutes
Cooling Time 1 hour
Course Bars, Brunch, Cake, Celebration, Dessert, Finger food, High Tea, Party, Snack, Sweet tooth, tea time
Cuisine American
Servings 16 pieces

Equipment

  • Mixing bowls
  • Whisk
  • 8x8 inch tin
  • Piping bag
  • Tea spoon
  • Baking paper
  • Butter knife

Ingredients
  

Brownie-

  • 115 gm Butter
  • 100 gm Dark chocolate
  • 2 Eggs
  • 65 gm White sugar
  • 100 gm Brown sugar
  • 60 gm Flour
  • 105 gm Cocoa powder
  • ¼ tsp Salt
  • 60 gm Cherry perserve

Vanilla Buttercream-

  • 50 gm Butter
  • 200 gm Icing sugar
  • 10 ml Double cream
  • 1 tsp Vanilla

Garnish:

  • Dark chocolate melted
  • Dark chocolate grated

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 180℃ and line an 8x8 inch square tin with baking paper and butter.
  • Start by melting the chocolate and butter in a bowl until smooth. Set aside to cool down.
  • In a large mixing bowl we whisk the eggs and sugars together until doubled in volume, pale and creamy. Add the melted, cooled chocolate butter mixture into the eggs and fold.
  • Sift over the flour and cocoa powder, fold together and pour into a prepared 8x8 inch tin. Dollop cherry jam over the batter and using a butter knife swirl it around. Don’t over mix. Bake at 180℃ for 14-16 mins until the top is just set and glossy. Let it cool completely before decorating and cutting.
  • To make the butter cream we beat the butter until pale and creamy, add the vanilla and powdered sugar and beat again. Add the double cream and beat until smooth and creamy.
  • Once the brownies are cooled, drizzle melted dark chocolate over the top. Pipe the butter cream over the brownies and using the back of a spoon flatten it out. Using the melted chocolate, pipe eyes and a mouth into each little buttercream dollop. Fill the gaps with more cherry jam and grated chocolate. Cut randomly and serve.

Notes

  • Whisk the eggs and sugar well before adding the melted butter and chocolate.
  • Do not over whisk the batter after adding the dry ingredients - mix until no more dry pockets are visible.
  • Do not over bake the brownies, they will not be fudge brownies if over baked. As they cool it will set and firm up.

3 thoughts on “Black Forest Brownies”

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