How to Make 3 Desserts from 1 Fudgy Brownie Recipe

Happy Wednesday before Christmas. All your shopping done? Check. All your gifts wrapped? Check. All your packages mailed? Check. All your Christmas cards signed and mailed?  Oops. Well, we can’t have everything. But here is something you can have: a delicious Fudgy Brownie recipe. I say fudgy because this recipe is halfway between fudge and cake-type brownies.  I found this recipe several years ago in one of my favorite little cookbooks, Sweet Chic by Rachel Schifter Thebault. She has great basic cake, cookie and other sweet treat recipes that offer great variety in what you can do with them. So today I want to share you how to make 3 desserts from 1 fudgy brownie recipe.

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How to Make 3 Desserts from 1 Fudgy Brownie Recipe

The first first, of course, is making the brownies. This recipe is great as is, but since I can’t just make a recipe without using it in multiple ways, that’s why I have to show you how to make 3 desserts from 1 fudgy brownie recipe.

How to Make the Fudgy Brownies

TIP:  I always line brownie and bar pans with heavy foil.  This way you can easily lift the brownies out of the pan, you don’t mess up the corner pieces, and you have a clean pan.  This Fudgy Brownie Recipe can be a bit sticky, so be sure to spray with nonstick spray.

STEP 1: Fill a medium saucepan with a few inches of water and bring to a simmer.  In a large stainless or glass bowl that fits over the saucepan, place the chocolate and room temperature butter and stir to melt.  The bottom of the bowl should not touch the water.  Adjust heat as needed to stay at a simmer. Set aside to cool.

STEP 2: While the chocolate is cooling, whisk the eggs in a large stainless bowl.

STEP 3: Combine the sugars, vanilla and salt medium bowl and whisk until combined.

STEP 4:  Add the dry ingredients to the eggs and thoroughly whisk until incorporated.

STEP 5:  Add the chocolate mixture to the egg/sugar mixture and whisk until combined.  Sift the flour over and fold into the batter.  Pour into the pan and bake for 50 minutes.

This recipe is easily doubled.  Just increase the size of the pan and increase the bake time by about 10 minutes.

Now let’s make some desserts.

#1 ~ Brownie Sundae Parfaits

For this dessert, you will cube the brownies and place them in your glass of choice.

NOTE: I piped the whipped cream into a pastry bag with a star tip.  You can make the parfaits up to 30 minutes ahead and put in the refrigerator.  Then add the whipped cream and garnish.  You can use any glass from a jigger to a parfait glass to a small wine glass. I used red sprinkles as garnish.

# 2 ~ Fudge Brownie Mousse Stack

I found this recipe in Southern Living Magazine.  I thought it would be perfect for our Christmas Dinner party last year. Instead of the given brownie recipe, I used the Fudgy Brownie Recipe. The original recipe called to smooth the white chocolate mousse on top of the brownie, but I opted to use a star tip and not flatten it.  I thought it was pretty that way. You may have extra mousse left over. I used toasted and ground hazelnuts as garnish.

NOTE: Reserve the brownie scraps for Dessert #3.

Make your foil strips.  I used a 2 1/2-inch cinnamon jar from King Arthur as my guide. It’s my favorite cinnamon.

Wrap the strips around the Fudgy Brownie circles and paper clip. I set them on a rimmed sheet pan.

Spoon in the chocolate mousse, smooth it on top and then pipe in the white chocolate mousse.

Set in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours to chill.

#3 ~ Fudgy Brownie Balls

Necessity is the mother of invention ~ or creative desserts. A couple of years ago, the evening after our Christmas Dinner Party, we had two open houses.  The second one was our neighborhood Christmas party and everyone brings an appetizer or dessert. Our plan was to go to the first open house, then back to our house, park the car, pick up my dessert, and walk down the street to the neighborhood party. To be honest, I was tired and didn’t feel like finding another recipe, going to the store and making something that I could easily take to the second party.  Then I realized I had all those Fudgy Brownie scraps from making the Brownie Mousse Stacks the day before.  Hmmm, what could I do with those? I put on some food gloves, got out my scoop and my scale and started rolling those Fudgy Brownie scraps into balls.  I weighed each one at 1/4 ounce and put them on a sheet pan. I got 18 which I thought was plenty to take to the neighborhood open house. I put them in the refrigerator to chill.

We went to the first open house for about 1 1/2 hours, came back home, and I removed the brownie balls from the fridge.  I sprinkled them with powdered sugar and put them in a Christmas tin to take the second open house.

So they looked like a truffle.  When we got to the party I set the tin with the other desserts. An hour later all but 2 were gone!  I grabbed one so I would know how they actually tasted ~ I know that sounds ballsy, but I knew the brownies were delicious, so why wouldn’t the brownie balls be good?  Then people started asking who brought the truffles, they were the best things ever.  I was really proud of myself for being so creative.  So, the moral of this baking story? Don’t throw away those brownie scraps.  You can also crumble them over ice cream or mix them with some whipped cream.

With 3 days left before Christmas, you can double or triple the Fudgy Brownie recipe and make 3 different desserts.  Can you come up with some other variations using the same recipe?  If you do, be sure to share here.

Happy Baking.