Personally, Valentine’s Day food is all about the chocolate for me. The more chocolatey the dessert, the higher its status in my book.
Chocolate chunks, chocolate sauce, chocolate fudge, hot fudge, brownie bites–I could drool on and on forever.
Brownies are such a quick way to my heart, and to Jim’s, too, it turns out! We DEVOUR these because a) they taste like boxed brownies but b) they’re not and that makes them better and c) they are triple chocolate. Brownies are chocolate by nature, but these also have chocolate chunks and fudge frosting. It is thick frosting, too. Like a half inch tall. Hello, love of my life!
Oh, and d) they come together in 45 minutes–35 of which is spent baking. Plenty of time for us to watch an episode of Space Force.
Since I’ve been really busy making all these special Valentine’s Day desserts for the blog lately, we will probably end up having a little bit of each of them for our Valentine’s Day celebration. It’s our first as a married couple! Actually, it’s our first ever. We have always been apart on past Valentine’s Days! I was in the Philippines with my mom on Valentine’s Day in 2019, and I was on a work trip in Colorado last Valentine’s Day. But I did manage to surprise Jim by taking him to see Twelfth Night at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis the next day!
Recently I have let down my barriers and invited Jim into the kitchen to cook with me. This is a big deal alert. I have major control issues in my kitchen! Like, “Are you going to mince that garlic a little more?” kind of issues. But when we worked together to make Parisian gnocchi and chocolate lava cakes…it was really, really fun!!!
It’s a little scary that this is surprising to me. I married the man! Of course we have fun together!
So this Valentine’s Day we will be making filet mignons, mashed potatoes, and some kind of roasted vegetable. I love getting his input (most of the time…) and I’m really glad we have started cooking together.
Jim has claimed now that these brownies are his favorite dessert that I make. Into the Arsenal! I developed the recipe over quarantine last year when we were really craving brownies. Jim said, “The highest compliment I can pay these brownies are that they taste like boxed brownies,” which is a pretty high compliment from ol’ Jimbo. They are classic, chocolate-y, and rich. And I like them because they are really easy to whip up!
Triple Crown Brownies
Ingredients
Chocolate Chunk Brownies
- 2 oz. Bittersweet chocolate Ghirardelli or Baker's Bar
- ¼ cup Salted butter
- 1 cup Sugar
- ¾ cup Flour
- 6 tbsp Cocoa powder good quality, such as Rodelle or Valrhona
- 1 tsp Vanilla extract
- 1 tsp Fine sea salt
- 1 Egg + 1 egg yolk
- ¼ cup Vegetable oil
- ¼ cup Whole milk
- ½ cup Semi-sweet chocolate chunks or chips
Chocolate Fudge Frosting
- 6 tbsp Unsalted butter softened
- 1 ¼ cups Powdered sugar sifted if lumpy
- ¼ cup Cocoa powder good quality, such as Rodelle or Valrhona
- ¼ cup Sour cream
- 1 oz Bittersweet chocolate melted
- 1 ½ tsp Vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp Fine sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F / 175°C.
- Grease a 9" x 9" pan with non-stick spray or butter. Optional: If you plan to remove the brownies from the pan after baking and plate them (as opposed to leaving them in the pan for storage) insert parchment paper with a slight overhang. This will help pull the brownies out of the pan.
- In a small, microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate and butter together in 30-second intervals. Cool slightly.
- In a large bowl combine the remaining ingredients. Add the melted butter and chocolate to it and stir with a strong whisk or spatula, about 20-25 churns.
- Pour brownie batter into the prepared pan. Use a spatula to smooth it out and ensure the batter is evenly distributed.
- Place pan on middle rack in oven. Bake for 35 minutes, or until the brownies do not jiggle when the pan is shaken. Do not over bake! Cool completely before frosting.
Chocolate Fudge Frosting
- In a small, microwave-safe bowl, melt chocolate in 30-second intervals.
- In a large bowl cream butter, cocoa powder, and powdered sugar. Add in sour cream, melted chocolate, vanilla, and salt.
- Spread frosting onto cooled brownies and cut into squares.