Black forrest brownies
Ingredients:
- 250g unsalted butter,softened at room temperature, plus extra for greasing
- 1 tbsp instant coffee powder
- 350g light brown soft sugar
- 4 medium eggs
- 75g cocoa powder
- 100g self-raising flour
- 1 tsp cherry essence (optional), available from Lakeland
- 100g dried sour cherries, chopped
- 200g dark chocolate (60% cocoa solids)
- 25g unsalted butter
- Butter softened at room temperature
- 50g icing sugar
- green food colouring gel
- 20 glacé cherries, halved
Directions:
- Grease a 30 x 20cm cake tin and line with parchment. Heat oven to 180C/ 160C fan/gas
- Mix the coffee with 2 tbsp boiling water, then set aside to cool.
- Cream the butter and sugar together for about 5 mins until light and fluffy, then add the eggs, one at a time, incorporating well after each addition.
- In a separate bowl, combine the cocoa powder and the flour.
- Add in the cherry essence and cooled coffee to the butter mixture, followed by the dry ingredients.
- Mix well, then fold in the cherries.
- Spoon into the prepared tin, level the top with the back of a spoon and bake in the centre of the oven for 30-35 mins or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
- Leave to cool completely in the tin.
- Once cool, melt the dark chocolate in the microwave or over a pan of simmering water, then spread in an even layer over the top of the brownies.
- While the chocolate is setting, mix the butter with the icing sugar and a few drops of green food colouring.
- Put the buttercream in a piping bag fitted with a writing tip nozzle.
- Cut the brownies into 20 squares, place two glacé cherry halves on top of each one and use the buttercream to create the cherry stem.
