Chewy Chocolate Cherry Brownies
Chocolate Cherry Brownies are gooey rich brownies with a subtle cherry flavor, reminiscent of a chewy, chocolate covered cherry.
It’s cherry season now–and I am lucky enough to live in a cherry growing region. How fun it that!
Since the season is short, I picked up a small bucket of cherries yesterday but the vendor warned me that the abundant recent rain had caused some of the cherries to crack. These would need to be used (or frozen or canned) quickly. Not such a bad problem to have!
I asked my husband what he might want me to make, and he said, “a dessert that’s not like pie.” Yes, since I’m always dieting, I make a lot of healthier desserts like fruit pies and crisps.
But I figure Every Good Man Deserves Chocolate Cherry Brownies once in a while so he got his wish!
Step by Step Overview
In a medium saucepan set over low heat, melt the butter. Remove from the heat, add the sugar and stir until combined. Return the mixture to the heat briefly and stir till it’s just hot (about 110°F to 120°F–chocolate burns above 120°F). This will dissolve more of the sugar, to help produce the papery top on the brownies. (I find that sometimes I get the papery top and sometimes I don’t—not sure why.)
Give the sugar mixture a minute to cool if it may have gotten too hot, then stir in the cocoa, baking powder, espresso powder (if using), and vanilla.
Add the eggs one at a time, stirring until smooth with each add.
Toss the chopped cherries with the tablespoon of flour.
Measure the flour carefully, spooning and leveling since too much flour will result in dry brownies. Stir in the flour, then the chocolate chips and flour-coated chopped cherries. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan.
Bake. Cool before cutting.
Tips & FAQs
I used sweet cherries in my Chocolate Cherry Brownies. Although I haven’t tried tart cherries, I think they would work as long as they were chopped small enough. I base this on the fact that I add fresh tart cranberries to recipes all the time–they’re great as long as they aren’t in big pieces.
The cocoa powder you use can make a difference in your baking. I’m still trying to figure out what I like best and currently like Ramstadt Breda Rich Dark Cocoa from the Prepared Pantry (not sponsored). As an insurance policy I often add good chocolate chips (check for cocoa butter as an ingredient) or chopped chocolate bar to my baking. Then you have a double shot at rich chocolate flavor!
I like to use white whole wheat flour for this (though all-purpose should be fine as well). Grown from a different strain of wheat, white whole wheat flour has all the nutrition of regular whole wheat but a light flavor (the texture is still pretty much as dense but that doesn’t matter in these gooey brownies).
I lined my pan with a brown parchment paper that is compostable. Then I get easy removal and clean up with no guilt. Though I do miss having to eat the first piece that tended to crumble coming out 🙂
More Cherry Goodness
If you work with fresh cherries a lot, I recommend buying an inexpensive cherry pitter. While people will poke out pits with a metal straw or chopstick, I find that pitting them 4 or 6 at a time is much nicer. I have a little more info on this in my Chocolate Cherry Scones post.
Cherries are usually included in the Environmental Working Group’s annual list of fruits and veggies with the most pesticide residue. So, I try to buy organic if I can.
Finally, if you’re ready to revel in the cherry harvest like me, I have some more fun suggestions. For sweet flavors take a look at my Glazed Cherry Pie Bars (like a thin slab pie) or Door County Cherry Coffee Cake.
And cherries are also delightful with savory foods like in my Cherry BBQ Sauce (great if you’re looking for a all natural BBQ sauce) or Salmon in Cherry Wine Sauce.
Chocolate Cherry Brownies
Ingredients
- 4 ounces butter 1 stick
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon espresso powder or ground coffee, optional
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1 Tablespoon white whole wheat flour or all-purpose
- 1 cup chopped sweet cherries
- 3/4 cup white whole wheat flour or all-purpose
- 1/2-1 cup chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease an 8 or 9-inch square pan; line the pan with parchment paper if desired (I did this).
- In a medium saucepan set over low heat, melt the butter. Remove from the heat, add the sugar and stir until combined
- Return the mixture to the heat briefly and stir till it's just hot (about 110°F to 120°F--chocolate burns above 120°F). This will dissolve more of the sugar, to help produce the papery top on the brownies.
- Give the sugar mixture a minute to cool if it may have gotten too hot, then stir in the cocoa, baking powder, espresso powder (if using), and vanilla.
- Add the eggs one at a time, stirring until smooth with each add.
- Toss the chopped cherries with the tablespoon of flour.
- Measure the remaining flour carefully, spooning it into the measuring cup (not scooping), then leveling. Stir in the flour, then the chocolate chips and flour-coated chopped cherries. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake the brownies for 25-30 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out with wet crumbs (not raw batter--and test again if you hit a melted chocolate chip). The brownies should feel set in the center.
- Cool on a rack, then cut when cool.
Nutrition
These look insanely gooey and decadent, like a fudgy bite of summer in brownie form!
Do you want to hear something funny? I cannot stand Black Forest Cake but I love chocolate and cherries together! Like these brownies — they sound just amazing, Inger.
I don’t think that’s funny at all David. I feel exactly the same way 🙂
Chocolate and cherries, a perfect combo. Your husband had to love the brownies..
He deserved them (he just finished putting some hardwood flooring)!