Chocolate-covered brownie hearts turn your favorite brownie recipe into delicious individual Valentine's Day desserts that kids and adults alike will love.
If there's one time of year I won't set foot in a restaurant, it's Valentine's Day. It's usually so crowded, you don't get their best service or food.
That goes double since I have a kid. Crowded restaurant, slow service and hungry kid? Recipe for a meltdown. Instead, I'll cook a special-occasion meal at home, and serve a fun Valentine's Day themed dessert, like these brownie hearts with a rich chocolate coating and themed sprinkles.
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Ingredients
The best part about these fun brownie hearts is that you can use whatever brownie recipe you love best, whether that means from scratch or from a boxed mix.
- Brownie batter (my favorite recipe is below)
- Ganache, a mixture of chocolate and heavy cream (included in the recipe below)
- Valentine's Day sprinkles
Instructions
Making brownies from scratch is one of the simplest recipes in baking. Mix the dry ingredients, mix the wet ingredients, mix the wet with the dry. Instead of pouring the batter into a baking pan, spoon the batter into a silicone heart-shaped mold, filling each well about ⅔-full.
Place the silicone mold onto a baking sheet and bake for 20 to 30 minutes.
Cool the brownies in the mold on a wire cooling rack, then gently press the bottom of each mold to release the brownies. Set the unmolded brownies back on the wire rack over a piece of wax or parchment paper.
Either pour the ganache over the brownies, or dip the tops of each brownie into the ganache, and set back on the wire rack to set, allowing any excess to drip onto the paper below.
While the ganache is still wet, scatter sprinkles over each brownie.
Your yield may vary depending on the size of the heart mold pan you use. I used Wilton's 6-Cavity Mini Silicone Heart Mold.
Substitutions
This recipe will work with any kind of brownie recipe you choose, whether traditional, gluten-free, vegan, etc.
If you are dairy-free or vegan, you can make vegan ganache with coconut oil and dark milk-free chocolate instead of heavy cream.
Equipment
A mixer is not required to make brownie batter, just a bowl and a whisk. To make ganache, you'll need a small saucepan to heat the cream, and a whisk to stir with the chocolate.
Then you'll need a heart-shaped silicone mold for baking the brownie hearts, and a sheet pan to set the pan on for easy transfer in and out of the oven. A wire cooling rack makes it easy to both cool the brownies and coat them in chocolate.
No heart-shaped pan? Make an 8x8 or 9x13 pan of brownies, and use a heart-shaped cookie cutter. Save the brownie scraps and crumble into crumbs to coat cakes, add to parfaits, etc.
Storage
Since the ganache contains cream, store these brownies in the refrigerator until ready to serve, and store any leftover brownies in the refrigerator for up to a week.
These brownies can also be frozen. Once the ganache has set, wrap each in a layer of plastic wrap, then place all the brownies in a freezer-grade plastic zip-top bag. Store in the freezer for up to 2 months.
How to Tell When Brownies Are Done
It can be tough to tell if your brownies are done. The tops and edges may look done, but if the centers still visibly jiggle, they're not done yet.
The tops should look matte, not shiny. And you can always use the trusty toothpick test: a toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean. If wet batter still clings to the toothpick, they're not done yet.
Finally, if you have a probe thermometer, you can insert it into one of your brownies. The temperature should read somewhere between 165 and 210 degrees F (74 to 99 degrees C) when they are ready to come out of the oven.
Chocolate-Covered Brownie Hearts
Chocolate-covered brownie hearts turn your favorite brownie recipe into delicious individual Valentine's Day desserts that kids and adults alike will love.
Ingredients
For the brownies
- 1 cup (8 oz/225 g) unsalted butter
- 8 oz (225 g) semisweet chocolate chips
- 3 oz (85 g) unsweetened chocolate, chopped
- 3 extra-large eggs
- 1 ½ tablespoon instant coffee granules
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoon (7.75 oz/220 g) sugar
- ½ cup (2 oz/55 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
For the ganache
- 4 oz (113 g) semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
- ½ cup (4 fl oz/118 mL) heavy cream
Additional Ingredients
- 2 oz (58 g) Valentine's Day themed sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (176 degrees C). Place a pan of silicone heart-shaped wells on a baking sheet.
- Pour about an inch of water in a large saucepan, and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low, and place a mixing bowl over (but not touching) the simmering water. Place the butter, 8 ounces of the semisweet chocolate chips and chopped unsweetened chocolate in the bowl, and melt, stirring frequently. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool for 15 minutes. Alternatively, place the chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and heat at 15 second intervals on high, stirring between each interval, until chocolate is melted and smooth. Let cool for 15 minutes.
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together the eggs, coffee granules, sugar and vanilla. Pour the melted chocolate mixture into the egg mixture and stir to combine. Cool to room temperature.
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine ½ cup of the flour, baking powder and kosher salt. Stir with a spoon, then sift over the egg/chocolate mixture. Stir to combine.
- Spoon the mixture into the silicone molds, filling each well about ⅔ full.
- Bake at 350 degrees (176 degrees C) for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a brownie comes out clean.
- Cool completely in the silicone mold on a wire cooling rack. Once cool, invert the silicone pan, and gently press on each well to unmold the brownies; set them back on the wire cooling rack, and place a piece of parchment or wax paper under the cooling rack.
- Make the ganache: Place the finely chopped chocolate in a heat-proof bowl. Heat the cream in a small sauce to scalding (little bubbles form at the edge of the saucepan).
- Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and let stand for 1 minute, then stir until smooth.
- Pour the warm ganache over the brownies (or dip the tops of each brownie in the bowl of ganache). Scatter sprinkles over each brownie. Let sit on the wire rack until the ganache is set.
- Store the brownies in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Store any leftovers in the refrigerator in an air-tight container, or wrap in plastic and store in a freezer-grade zip-top plastic bag in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Notes
Can't find a silicone heart shaped pan? Bake brownie batter in a 9x13 or 8x8 pan, and use a heart-shaped cookie cutter instead. Leftover brownie bits can be crumbled and saved for use in cakes, parfaits, etc.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1 brownie heartAmount Per Serving: Calories: 325Total Fat: 19gSaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 95mgSodium: 226mgCarbohydrates: 38gFiber: 3gSugar: 27gProtein: 6g
I am not a certified nutritionist. This nutrition information is automatically calculated by third party software and is meant as a guideline only.
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