Do you fancy some delicious, chocolaty brownies with a twist of orange? Well look no further as here is a recipe for how to make dark chocolate orange brownies from scratch, and they are way better than any packet mix you can buy! These brownies burst with all the lovely, gooey chocolate that goes with a traditional brownie, but they have a bit of zing to them too with the lovely orange addition. Think chocolate orange in the shape of a brownie.
This easy brownie batter can be whipped up in minutes and it’s a very forgiving recipe too, not that you would know that from all the lovely gooey chocolate running through these, combined with the zingy orange too. Basically, these dark chocolate and orange brownies are the gift that just keeps on giving!
So, what’s the difference between a cake and a brownie?
Brownies usually have a much denser taste and texture, they have a crisp top, but beneath that layer is a thick dense and moist layer of chocolaty goodness. Chocolate cakes tend to have a much lighter and fluffier feel, and texture to them, they don’t feel as heavy.
Tools you Need
9 x 9 inch Baking tin
Baking Paper
Spatula
Stand mixer
Scales Sieve
Ingredients
230g Baking Butter – By using baking butter this is already nice a soft to mix with your other ingredients. You can use normal butter if you prefer, but just make sue its at room temperature.
115g Light Brown Soft Sugar – By using half brown sugar in this recipe you add a hint of caramelly flavour to your brownies.
115g Castor Sugar
4 Large Eggs
280g Plain Flour – You don’t need any baking agents in your flour for brownies as they don’t really rise.
30g Cocoa Powder – Helps to add extra chocolaty flavour to your brownies
300g Dark Chocolate – I like dark chocolate in this as I find this works really well with the orange flavour. I just buy a regular bar of dark chocolate and chop it up into small chunks. You will want to set 100g of this aside to melt and mix in with your butter.
1 tbsp Corn Starch – Helps to add some chewiness and structure.
1.5 tbsp Orange Zest – Optional, but this adds some extra orange zing to your brownies
150g Orange Curd – You can make your own (How to make easy orange curd) or use a shop bought one, personally I don’t think you can beat the taste of the home-made version, and also its really easy to make, so I highly recommend making your own if you can.
How to Make Video
How to Make Dark Chocolate Orange Brownies
Step 1
Start by pre heating your fan oven to 160 c
Step 2
Melt 100g of your dark chocolate in the microwave, do this in 15-30 second burst, and mix in between the short bursts to make sure you don’t burn your chocolate.
Step 3
Put butter into the bowl of your stand mixer and give this a quick mix to soften.
Step 4
Place your butter and melted chocolate into the bowl of your stand mixer and give these a mix to combine.
Step 5
Next up add in your sugars and mix these in, remembering to give the bowl of your stand mixer a little scrape to combine everything.
Step 6
Add your Eggs and mix these in slowly.
Step 7
Sift your plain flour, cocoa powder and corn starch in to a separate bowl and mix these together. Then add your sifted ingredients to your stand mixer. Make sure you add this slowly, and on a low speed so the flour does not go everywhere.
Step 8
Add in your orange zest, and remaining dark chocolate, give this a quick mix, but be careful not to over mix.
Step 9
Line your 9 x 9 inch baking tray with grease proof paper then pour your mixture into the baking tin.
Step 10
Drizzle your orange curd over the top of the batter in the pan, and use a skewer to swirl this through your mixture.
Step 11
Pop this in the oven for 35 to 40 minutes. You know your brownies are done when you put your tooth pick in and it come out with a few crumbs. Your brownies should be moist, but not runny.
Step 12
Once your brownies are baked, leave these in the tin for a further 10 minutes to cool as they will also still continue to cook from the heat in the tin.
Turn your brownie out onto a cooling rack to fully cool.
Once fully cooled you can slice, serve and eat, or if you want to be a bit extra you can add some buttercream (I added vanilla buttercream to mine), and extra chocolate decoration, and deliciousness. If you want to see how I decorated mine, and made the chocolate scribbles, be sure to check out the YouTube video for this.
My Top Tips
If you find parts of the brownie have risen slightly higher in the oven, just run an angled spatula over this, as soon as you take this out of the oven. Apply a little pressure to push this back down and level.
Let your brownies fully cool before slicing or decorating, if you are choosing to make your brownies a bit extra.
Make sure you don’t overbake your brownies, they will still taste good, but they won’t be as moist and gooey. Its important to remember that your brownies will continue to cook while they are cooling in the tin.
Storage and Shelf life
To store your brownies pop them into an airtight container and they will last at room temperature for about 3 days depending on your climate.
If you top your brownies with buttercream, they still need to be stored in an airtight container, but kept in the fridge. They will probably last in the fridge for about 4-5 days.
You can freeze your brownies too for up to three months, but you must thaw properly before you eat them. When freezing make sure you double cling wrap them, and wrap them when they are still a little warm to lock in the moisture.
Ways to Enjoy your Dark Chocolate Orange Brownies
There are lots of ways you can enjoy your delicious dark chocolate and orange brownies, such as simply just as they are. Or you can serve warmed with a lovely dollop of vanilla ice-cream. You could even make your brownies a bit extra and add buttercream, extra chocolate a orange curd if you fancy. However, you choose to enjoy your brownies I am sure they will taste great.
My final word on these Brownies
Now you have seen how easy this is to make and how many different ways you can enjoy, I bet you won’t go back to the shop bought version again.
And finally, if you like this recipe, please let me know in the comments as I love to have your feedback. If you make these and share on social media, please tag me as I love to see your creations.
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Happy Baking
😊
How to Make Dark Chocolate and Orange Brownies
Ingredients
- 230 g Baking Butter you can use regular butter or baking butter, but make sure you dont use margarine as this does not work so well.
- 115 g Light Brown Soft Sugar
- 115 g Castor Sugar
- 4 large Eggs
- 250 g Plain Flour
- 30 g Cocoa Powder
- 300 g Dark Chocolate
- 1 tbsp Corn Starch
- 1.5 tbsp Orange Zest
- 150 g Orange Curd
Instructions
- Start by pre heating your fan oven to 160 c
- Melt 100g of your dark chocolate in the microwave, do this in 15-30 second burst, and mix in between the short bursts to make sure you don’t burn your chocolate.
- Put butter into the bowl of your stand mixer and give this a quick mix to soften.
- Place your butter and melted chocolate into the bowl of your stand mixer and give these a mix to combine.
- Next up add in your sugars and mix in these in, remembering to give the bowl of your stand mixer a little scrape to combine everything.
- Add your Eggs and mix these in slowly.
- Sift your plain flour, cocoa powder and corn starch in to a separate bowl and mix these together. Then add your sifted ingredients to your stand mixer. Make sure you add this slowly, and on a low speed so the flour does not go everywhere.
- Add in your orange zest, and remaining dark chocolate, give this a quick mix, but be careful not to over mix.
- Line your 9 x 9 inch baking tray with grease proof paper then pour your mixture into the baking tin.
- Drizzle your orange curd over the top of the batter in the pan, and use a skewer to swirl this through your mixture.
- Pop this in the oven for 35 to 40 minutes. You know your brownies are done when you put your tooth pick in and it come out with a few crumbs. Your brownies should be moist, but not runny.
- Once your brownies are baked, leave these in the tin for a further 10 minutes to cool as they will also still continue to cook from the heat in the tin.
- Turn your brownie out onto a cooling rack to fully cool.
- Once fully cooled you can slice, serve and eat, or if you want to be a bit extra you can add some buttercream (I added vanilla buttercream to mine), and extra chocolate decoration and deliciousness. If you want to see how I decorated mine and made the chocolate scribbles, be sure to check out the YouTube video for this.
