Decadent Dark Chocolate Orange Brownies

It's been a while since I've shared with you a recipe that's super duper chocolately so I thought, why not make something as decadent as possible?

My goodness – I ‘m so thrilled to bring you this decadent dessert recipe! These brownies are sooo good that you'll be making them for years to come.

Yup, these Chocolate Orange Brownies are just about as decadently sinful and yummy as you can get – no kidding here – these may even become legendary. 😉

Chocolate orange lovers – this is for you!

Ok, just look at all that chocolately goodness…

Completely drool worthy, am I right?

I'm happy to say I'm quite proud of how the pictures for this post have turned out since I've been practicing quite a bit with my photography, let me tell you…. these brownies are even more delicious than what the pictures show.

Seriously, get your shopping list ready and make these pieces of heaven pronto!

These delicious rich, moist and cakey brownies make for a perfect dessert to bring to holiday and Christmas parties. You can either cut them into 15 BIG squares or cut them into 30 “two bite” sized rectangles – it's up to you.

The batter for these tasty things is infused with fresh squeezed orange juice as well as some orange extract to create the perfect level of “oranginess”.

Orange goes just perfectly with a the rich dark chocolate that's used in the recipe…. mmmmmmmm….

The tops are covered in a Dark Chocolate Ganache and sprinkled with some fresh orange zest.

One of the things I've learned from cooking and baking over the years is that we eat with ALL of our senses.  Adding the orange zest to the tops of the brownies is not only attractive visually, but the scent of the citrus pushes the whole experience of biting into these to the next level.

I really enjoyed playing around in the kitchen to make this recipe for you guys! Taste testing this was even better! ;D

I'd love to hear from you so please feel free to leave a comment in section below the recipe! 😀

Chocolate Orange Brownies

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• Author: Michelle Varga - DishesAndDustBunnies.com
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 30 mins
• Total Time: 50 minutes
• Yield: 15 large squares or 30 small rectangles 1x

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Ingredients

• 5 large eggs
• 1 1/3 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup cocoa
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 3 oz dark chocolate, grated finely (I used a food processor)
• 1 1/4 cup butter, room temperature
• 3 tbsp fresh orange juice
• 1 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp orange extract
  Chocolate Ganache Topping:
• 8 oz dark chocolate, 60-70% Cocao, chopped
• 1 cup heavy cream
• Pinch of salt
• 1/4 tsp orange extract
• Zest of one whole orange

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Instructions

1. Brownie Batter:
2. Pre-heat the oven to 350°F.
3. Line a 9″x13″ metal baking pan with parchment paper – make sure that the paper overhangs from the edges by an inch or so. Grease with butter and set aside.
4. Using an electric mixer or stand mixer, cream together the butter with the sugar.
5. Next add the eggs, one at a time, beating for about 5 minutes until everything is well combined.
6. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the cocoa, flour, baking powder and the finely grated chocolate. Use a whisk to make sure it's combined well.
7. To the egg, butter and sugar mixture, add the orange juice, orange extract and vanilla. Mix it in for a minute or so.
8. Next, while mixing on low, add about 1/2 a cup of the combined dry ingredients at a time.
9. Continue mixing until everything is well combined.
10. Scrape the batter into the baking pan and spread it out so it's even.
11. Bake in the oven for about 24 minutes. A toothpick should come out clean when it's ready. Don't over bake these – you want them to be moist!
12. Allow the brownies to cool completely to room temperature, while still in the pan.
13. Once the brownies have cool, pour the warm Chocolate Ganache topping over top. Lift the pan up and tilt it back and forth to spread the topping on evenly. Doing it this way will make a nice shiny and even top – without marks from your spatula or other tool – looks so nice this way!
14. After the topping as been spread, sprinkle the orange zest on top while the ganache is still warm.
15. Put the pan of brownies in the fridge to chill for at 20 minutes or so to allow the topping to set.
16. Once the topping has set, CAREFULLY lift the brownies up and out of the pan by holding the edges of the overhanging parchment paper.
17. Cut the brownies into 15 large squares or 30 small rectangles. Serve!
    To Make the Chocolate Ganache Topping:
18. Put the dark chocolate into a medium sized glass mixing bowl.
19. In a small sauce pot, heat the heavy cream until it's near boiling. Turn off the burner and remove from the stove.
20. Slowly pour the heavy cream into the bowl with dark chocolate. Sprinkle a pinch of salt and add the orange extract.
21. Using a whisk, combine the chocolate with the heavy cream. At first the combination might look a little “grainy” since the chocolate still needs to melt more. Keep stirring until everything is smooth and glossy. Make sure to scrape down the sides so everything is mixed. This should take just a couple minutes.
22. Allow the mixture to cool for about 5 minutes. Stir again.
23. Now you can pour it over the brownies as described above! Don't forget to sprinkle the top with the orange zest. 😀

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• Category: Dessert