If you’ve never had (or made) my big batch brownies, you don’t know what you’re missing. (the link to that post is right here).
Really though…who doesn’t need a huge tray of fudgy brownies? I mean, on their own, they’re fabulous (and they freeze so well!!).
And you can add whatever you like to them to change them up (even by simply adding peanut butter chips and caramel pieces (below).
These crispy chocolate peanut butter bars use my big batch brownie recipe as the base and I’ve added a layer of crispy rice…so good!!
And, if you get tired of eating them out of the pan (if you do, we can’t be friends), then you can just add a few things to create a brownie parfait (the recipe deets are here).
But, the real reason for this post is how easy it is to make them into cute festive brownies with just a few simple add-ons:
1.These reindeer brownies are simply triangular cut brownies with a few dabs of Nutella, candy eyes, an M&M mouth and pretzel antlers!
2. This is a simple one too! It’s just royal icing (you could also use buttercream or cream cheese icing), a stripe of Nutella and red and green M&M’s to make a string of lights!
3. I think this one is the most simple: green royal icing, a red ‘star’, some green sugar for some sparkle and a pretzel base.
4. Finally, a gift box with royal icing, sprinkles, red gel and four red M&M’s! 
Really, if your kids are tired of the cookie decorating days, don’t you think this would be a great activity??
We’ve been through a lot these past few years, so I think we need to do things this holiday season that bring us joy…and I love playing with my food!
How about you??
Big Batch Brownies with a Festive Touch
Ingredients
Brownies:
- 2 cups butter
- 1 lb dark chocolate (454 g) about 3 cups
- 6 eggs lightly beaten
- 1 tbsp vanilla
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup instant coffee
- 1 1/4 cup flour substitute rice flour for gluten free
- 3 tsp baking powder
- pinch salt
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped (optional)
Add-Ons for Festive Treats:
- mini M&M's
- mini pretzels
- Nutella (in a piping bag or sturdy Ziploc bag)
- candy eyes
- royal icing (with food colouring)
- red food gel
- assorted sprinkles
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350°F and line a cookie sheet with sides (about 12" x 15") with parchment paper.
- In a big stainless steel bowl, melt butter and dark chocolate in the microwave; heat for 2 minutes on high and stir until all is melted and smooth (and, yes, you can put stainless steel in the microwave).
- In another bowl, combine eggs, coffee, vanilla and sugar. Whisk vigorously until combined. Add to chocolate and butter mixture and whisk again….it should be oh soooo chocolatey!
- In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Whisk (or sift through a sieve) and add to chocolate…add chocolate chips and blend again.
- Pour into pan, 'bang' the pan on the countertop (to get rid of any air bubbles) and bake in oven for 30 minutes (don’t overcook or you will lose the fudgy goodness!). !
- Remove from oven…slice a big chunk…pour a BIG glass of milk and enjoy every bite
- If you're decorating for the holidays, refer back to the post for different ways to make these brownies special!
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