{"id":17071,"date":"2020-08-23T06:36:39","date_gmt":"2020-08-23T12:36:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cinnamonandcoriander.com\/brandy-cherry-brownies-with-cocoa-powder\/"},"modified":"2022-08-09T02:25:39","modified_gmt":"2022-08-09T08:25:39","slug":"brandy-cherry-brownies-with-cocoa-powder","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinnamonandcoriander.com\/en\/brandy-cherry-brownies-with-cocoa-powder\/","title":{"rendered":"Brandy Cherry Brownies with Cocoa Powder"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fudgy Cherry Brownies with Cocoa Powder and fresh cherries are a decadent treat for brownie lovers that combines dessert and post-dinner drinks! Simple and easy gooey brownies are a sweet treat ideal for the holidays or Valentine’s Day. No nuts, no chocolate! <\/em> Jump to Recipe<\/a> <\/i><\/p>\n

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Fudgy Chocolate Cherry Brownies made with Cocoa Powder! <\/h2>\n

Ditch the brownie mix and learn how to make fudgy brownies with juicy cherries and a hint of brandy! The best part – the cherry glaze!<\/p>\n

YES! The cherries are caramelized and their juice is reduced to a boozy cherry sauce with which we glaze the moist brownies.<\/p>\n

The best easy homemade brownies for your sweet tooth.<\/p>\n

Chocolate and cherries. I love this combination and already have a brilliant vegan chocolate cherry cake<\/a> and a German marble cake<\/a> with cherries on the blog. <\/p>\n

Now, chocolate, cherries and brandy – that is a truly decadent combination that makes these little cherry brownies fun for adults! <\/p>\n

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Everyone needs one of those easy-to-throw-together chocolate desserts that can be whipped up in minutes and just thrown into the oven quickly. The brownie batter comes together quickly and the baking time is pretty short!<\/p>\n

Why these are so good:<\/h2>\n

These dense brownies are fudgy and gooey<\/strong> in the middle, with chunks of sweet and juicy delicious cherries on top of the batter! Oh trust me,<\/strong> these chocolate brownies tick ALL of the boxes and more!<\/p>\n

My decadent brownies are a great idea for special occasions like Valentine’s Day when cherry flavor anything has peak season. The bake time is short and it’s a really simple recipe! You could probably top these with whipped cream and call them Black Forest Brownies.<\/p>\n

I used frozen sour cherries from our garden but dark sweet cherries would also work. You want to caramelize the cherries with some brandy and we want to let them simmer a bit to get rid of excess liquid.<\/p>\n

I would not use maraschino cherries in this recipe.<\/p>\n

My Brandy Cherry Brownies are made with Cocoa Powder instead of dark chocolate. Yes y<\/strong>ou\u2019re reading this correctly: With Cocoa Powder.<\/p>\n

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I\u2019m not trying to sneak in the cocoa powder as some sort of cost-effective, health-conscious, boring-forward alternative to taking a nice, dark, and decadent bar of chocolate and magically transforming it into a baked good. No.<\/p>\n

When it comes to finding the best brownie recipe<\/strong>, I have turned over every stone, I have checked under every cushion, and I have raided every tomb for all the brownie-related wisdom to be had out there.<\/p>\n

And I have boiled it all down to one ultimate, unassailable truth: cocoa powder beats melted chocolate every time. Full stop. Mike drop. It’s the best way.<\/p>\n

Here are very good reasons why I use cocoa in this cherry brownies recipe: <\/p>\n

Cocoa Powder vs Melted Chocolate in brownie recipes: <\/h2>\n

As beloved as our favorite chocolate bars are, the ingredient list on the wrapper contains far more than just \u201cchocolatey goodness\u201d.<\/p>\n

At the very least we\u2019re looking at added sugars, additional fats, vanilla, and often emulsifiers and stabilizers.<\/p>\n

The real key here is the additional fats<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Chocolate bars most commonly use cocoa butter, while brownies made using cocoa powder require the addition of regular butter to make them work.<\/p>\n

Regular butter is much softer than cocoa butter at room temperature. Also at straight-out-of-the-fridge temperature, if that\u2019s how you prefer to eat your brownies.<\/p>\n

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This means that on top of having a much smoother texture, cocoa powder brownies won\u2019t get dry and crumbly over time the way that batches of brownies made with melted chocolate will.<\/p>\n

Using melted chocolate also means that you tend to have to use more flour in the dry ingredients of your recipe due to having a higher moisture content whereas cocoa powder actually partially takes the place of flour in bringing everything together. <\/p>\n

You also get a much deeper, truer chocolatey taste using cocoa powder. After all, cocoa powder is 100% cocoa, <\/em>whereas melted chocolate comes with all the other hangers-on we\u2019ve previously mentioned.<\/p>\n

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Which cocoa powder works best in cherry brownies? <\/h2>\n

Now, you have several options when it comes to different cocoa powders. Just so we\u2019re clear – being more expensive does not <\/em>mean better always. I have had the best brownie results using the cheap no-name brand stuff we get in Canada.<\/p>\n

For baking in particular you also have the option of using Dutch-process cocoa powder or even black cocoa powder.<\/p>\n

It all comes down to preference and budget.<\/p>\n

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Tips: <\/h2>\n