Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Valentine's Day Brownie Recipe
Whether or not you're in a relationship when Valentine's Day rolls around, one thing's for sure — chocolate is on the menu. Popular brands come out with new products, stores are overflowing with chocolate treats, and your inspiration in the kitchen becomes choco-centric. There's no shortage of themed desserts, but recipe developer Kate Shungu of Gift of Hospitality takes it a step further with this chocolate-covered strawberry Valentine's Day brownie recipe.
This decadent treat offers not one, but two delightfully sweet and chocolatey delicacies that will send you head over heels. Shungu highlights this delicious fact and shares, "I love how these brownies are two treats in one: a rich chocolate brownie with buttercream AND a chocolate covered strawberry." The dazzling appearance is one more point in favor of this dessert. It doesn't get much better than pink frosting garnished with chocolate strawberries! And while the presentation is undeniably impressive, the recipe steps are fairly straightforward.
Gather the ingredients for this chocolate-covered strawberry Valentine's Day brownie recipe
There are three components to this dessert: brownies, chocolate strawberries, and frosting. For the first, you'll need unsweetened chocolate, butter, sugar, vanilla, eggs, all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt, and semi-sweet chocolate chips. Next, you'll need more semi-sweet chocolate chips and small strawberries. As for the buttercream, Shungu uses freeze-dried strawberries, softened butter, powdered sugar, a pinch of salt, and milk.
Melt the chocolate and butter and whisk
To begin, preheat the oven to 350 F and grease or line a 13x9-inch pan with parchment paper. Set out a cutting board and chop the unsweetened chocolate in rough chunks. Add them to a medium-sized microwave-safe bowl along with ¾ cups of butter. Microwave the contents 30 seconds at a time, stirring the mixture at each interval.
Once the two ingredients are fully melted, whisk in the sugar and vanilla. Next, crack in the eggs and whisk them into the mixture as well.
Add the dry ingredients and chocolate chips
With a spatula, stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt until there are no more streaks. Fold in the cup of chocolate chips to distribute them evenly.
Pour the brownie mixture into a pan and bake
Carefully pour the mixture into the baking pan you prepared. Once the oven is at temperature, bake the brownies for 25 to 30 minutes until they are cooked through. Set the pan aside to cool down completely.
Make the chocolate-covered strawberries
While the brownies cool, set a piece of parchment paper on a flat surface. If the strawberries aren't pre-washed, make sure to rinse and pat them dry with a paper towel.
To make the chocolate-covered strawberries, add a cup of chocolate chips to a small microwave-safe bowl and heat it 30 seconds at a time, stirring until melted. Carefully dip the strawberries one by one into the melted chocolate, then place them flat on the parchment paper to harden. Give the chocolate about 1 hour to fully harden or pop the strawberries into the refrigerator to speed up the process.
Combine the buttercream frosting ingredients
Once the brownies have fully cooled down, it's time to make the frosting. Set up a high-speed blender or food processor and add in the freeze-dried strawberries. Blend them until they turn into a fine dust.
Shungu notes that "If the freeze-dried strawberries have larger pieces in them after blending/processing, pour them through a fine mesh colander and discard the larger pieces." She explains, "The key to creamy buttercream with a rich strawberry flavor is using freeze-dried strawberries that have been ground in a food processor or blender," as chunky pieces will get in the way of the desired texture.
In a large bowl, add the softened butter, powdered sugar, a pinch of salt, the strawberry powder, and 3 tablespoons of milk. Beat the mixture until the ingredients are properly combined. If the consistency is a bit too thick, Shungu recommends adding an extra tablespoon of milk to thin it out slightly.
Frost and garnish the cake, then serve
Spread the buttercream over the top of the brownies with a spatula, smoothing out the surface. Then, place the chocolate-covered strawberries on top. Shungu spaces them out evenly so that every slice includes a strawberry, but you're welcome to display them as you wish. Cut slices and serve this delicious chocolate-covered strawberry Valentine's Day brownie dessert.
If you want to get a head start, Shungu suggests making the brownies in the pan a few days in advance. "Just before serving, frost with the buttercream and add the chocolate covered strawberries," she instructs. As for leftovers, she recommends storing them in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
- For the brownies
- 4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, roughly chopped
- ¾ cup (1 ½ sticks) butter
- 2 cups sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 4 eggs
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- For the chocolate-covered strawberries
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 12 small strawberries
- For the strawberry buttercream
- 1 cup freeze-dried strawberries
- 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- pinch of salt
- 3 tablespoons milk
- Preheat the oven to 350 F and grease a 13x9-inch pan or line it with parchment paper.
- Place the unsweetened chocolate and ¾ cups of butter in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave it in 30-second increments stirring in between, until the chocolate and butter are both melted.
- Whisk in the sugar and vanilla, then whisk in the eggs.
- Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt, then stir in 1 cup of chocolate chips.
- Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the brownies are cooked through. Let them cool completely.
- Meanwhile, melt 1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips in the microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring in between.
- Dip each strawberry in the melted chocolate, setting them on wax paper.
- Let the strawberries sit for 1 hour to allow the chocolate to harden. (You can speed this up in the refrigerator.)
- Once the brownies are cool, place the freeze-dried strawberries in a high-speed blender or food processor, and blend until a fine dust forms.
- Place 1 cup of butter, the powdered sugar, salt, freeze-dried strawberries, and 3 tablespoons of milk in a large bowl.
- Beat until combined, adding an additional tablespoon of milk if needed.
- Frost the cooled brownies with the buttercream and top them with the chocolate-covered strawberries.
- Cut the brownies into slices and serve.
| Calories per Serving | 809 |
| Total Fat | 42.1 g |
| Saturated Fat | 25.7 g |
| Trans Fat | 1.1 g |
| Cholesterol | 125.1 mg |
| Total Carbohydrates | 108.3 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 4.1 g |
| Total Sugars | 89.5 g |
| Sodium | 172.2 mg |
| Protein | 6.5 g |
