Hello lovelies,
What never ceases to amaze me is the amount of incredible sounding sweet treats / deserts that the Americans have that us British don’t.
Whilst I’m not saying that British treats aren’t amazing as they blooming well are but sometimes the American baking bloggers I follow will post their sweet treats and I’ll immediately find myself googling to see if there’s anywhere near by to buy it, which 9x out of 10 there isn’t.
Therefore, I find myself doing through research into said sweet treat / desert so that I can recreate it which is exactly what I’m doing for you guys today.
Now, I don’t know about you but I have seen these ‘cosmic brownies’ circling the internet for a while now and after seeing video after video of these incredible brownies, I took it as a sign from the universe telling me I had to recreate a batch for myself.
According to google: ‘cosmic brownies are a classic American snack produced by Little Debbie that became massively nostalgic in the US for their chewy texture, fudge frosting, and crunchy rainbow candy-coated chocolate chip topping’.
And why wouldn’t I want to recreate? If that description doesn’t have your mouth watering, I don’t know what will.
However, I have added a slight twist onto these cosmic brownies so they aren’t quite the same as the American version. Whilst sticking to the main features of a cosmic brownie: ‘a fudgy brownie with fudge frosting and a rainbow topping’ – I have however, added crispy m&m’s and magic stars to my brownie and topping to elevate it further!
Adding those ingredients was actually inspired by an incredible bakery I’ve mentioned a couple of times on here called Lily Bakes Cakes (known on instagram as: lily_bakes_cakes).
Lily & her team posted this enticing picture of their version of a ‘cosmic brownie’ and it just looked scrumptious which left me with no choice but to recreate my own and quite frankly, what a decision that was as my version of a cosmic brownie was absolutely fricking delicious I can’t lie.
So if you fancy a thick, fudgy brownie which is crammed full of milk chocolate, crispy m&m’s and magic stars then once baked, is topped with a layer of thick, silky smooth milk chocolate ganache and finished with a whole bunch of crispy m&m’s, magic stars and rainbow sprinkles, you know the drill by now. Keep on scrolling below and you’ll find today’s recipe.
Category: Desert, Sweet Treat
Servings: 9 Large Pieces Or 16 Small Pieces
Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Bake Time: 30 Minutes
Chill Time: Minimum Of 4 Hours Or Preferably Overnight
Overall Time: 7+ Hours
Ingredients You Need For The Brownies:
- 200g Of 70% Cocoa Dark Chocolate
- 200g Of Unsalted Butter
- 4 Medium Eggs
- 275g Of Caster Sugar
- 100g Of Plain Flour
- 50g Of Cocoa Powder
- 190g Of Crispy M&M’s
- 150g Of Magic Stars
- 100g Of Dark Chocolate, Chopped Small
Ingredients You Need For The Topping:
- 300g Of Dark Chocolate, Chopped Small
- 300ml Of Double Cream
- 100g Of Crispy M&M’s
- 100g Of Magic Stars
- 50g Of Rainbow Sprinkles
How To Make The Brownies:
- Firstly, gather together your equipment and ingredients, line a 9” brownie tin with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 180C / 160C Fan / Gas Mark 4.
- Secondly, in a microwavable bowl, add both the 200g of dark chocolate and 200g of unsalted butter. Place the bowl into the microwave and in 20 second blasts, blast the butter/chocolate until fully melted.
- When both the ingredients have melted, remove from the microwave and place to one side to cool to room temperature.
- Now, in a large bowl, using an electric whisk, whisk together the 4 large eggs with the 275g of caster sugar for around 8 minutes, until the colour has turned pale, the mixture is mousse like and the volume has doubled in size (TIP: you will know it’s done when you lift the whisk up out from the mixture and it should leave a trail for a couple of seconds, before disappearing).
- Once whisked, pour the melted and cooled chocolate/butter mixture over the eggs and very carefully fold together (TIP: being careful and patient is crucial at this stage because you don’t want to knock the air out of the mixture).
- When combined, sift in the 100g of plain flour and 50g of cocoa powder and carefully fold into the mixture.
- Carefully fold in the 100g of chopped dark chocolate, 190g of crispy M&M’s and 150g of magic stars, until evenly distributed throughout the brownie batter.
- Pour the brownie batter into the pre-lined brownie tin and spread out evenly to all four corners.
- Place into the oven and bake for 30 minutes, until the edges are set and there’s a slight wobble in the centre of the brownie.
- Once baked, remove the brownies from the oven and allow to cool right down to room temperature in the tin.
How To Make The Topping:
- In a heatproof bowl, add the 300g of chopped dark chocolate and set to one side.
- Now, in a medium saucepan, add the 300ml of double cream and over a medium heat, bring the cream to a boil.
- Once boiling, pour the cream over the chopped dark chocolate. Leave to stand for a couple of minutes before stirring together with a spatula.
- Leave to cool slightly before pouring the ganache over the top of the brownie and evenly spread out to all four corners.
- Allow to cool for a further 2-3 minutes on top of the brownie before evenly sprinkling across the 100g of crispy M&M’s, 100g of magic stars and 50g of sprinkles.
- Using a clean spatula, very gently pat the toppings down into the ganache so that they stick.
- Place the cosmic brownies into the fridge for a minimum of 4 hours or preferably overnight.
- Finally, once chilled, remove from the fridge and carefully remove from the tin then cut into 9-16 pieces and serve.
That’s your Cosmic Brownies prepared, baked, cooled, decorated and chilled, ready for you to enjoy!
Notes:
- Store the brownies in an airtight container, in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- If you want a gooey brownie, place into the microwave for 15-20 seconds before eating.
I know my recipe is slightly different to the original American ‘cosmic brownies’ but the base of the recipe is the same and I’ve got to say, it is incredible. I am now questioning all of Britain’s life choices as to why we haven’t been blessed with these as woweeee! They’re good.
That being said, I will always stand by the fact that homemade brownies are the best, so if you’re really wanting to try a cosmic brownie but struggling to find them, why not make your own? It’s a super quick & easy bake to recreate and I can guarantee you won’t be disappointed with the outcome.
Huge shoutout to Lily and her team for inspiring today’s cosmic brownie, theirs looked to damn good not to recreate!
Let me know in the comments below if you make this cosmic brownies yourself and if you do, what your thoughts are on it. Have you ever tried a cosmic brownie before? If so, how did this recipe compare? Did you like the addition of the crispy m&m’s and magic stars?
Sending you all tons of love & hugs as always,
Elle xo
