Christmas brownie bites

Tuesday 29 November at 2:45pm

No Christmas celebration is complete without a selection of festive brownies.

Makes 12 in totalPrep: 30 minutes, plus cooling timeCook: 30 minutes

Ingredients:250g dark chocolate (70% cocoa content)250g unsalted butter330g golden caster sugar4 eggs150g plain flour1 tbsp cocoa powder100g mini marshmallowsPinch of salt

Decoration:

For the Christmas trees:Multi-coloured sugar coated chocolate sweets Green icingColoured sprinkles

For the Snowmen:Thick white glace icingWhite marshmallowsBlack glace icingRed sugar coated chocolate sweets

For the Reindeer:PretzelsRed sugar coated sweetsBrown sugar coated sweetsLittle white glace icingChocolate spread

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan.
Place the butter and chocolate in a bowl and set over a pan of gently simmering water make sure the bottom is not touching the water. Allow the chocolate and butter to melt slowly.
Meanwhile, beat the eggs and sugar with a hand or stand mixer until light and fluffy, this will take around 5 minutes. Stir in the melted chocolate, butter mix until combined fully. Sift in the flour, cocoa powder, salt and marshmallows then fold through gently.
Transfer to a 30cm x 20cm baking tray that has been greased and lined with non-stickbaking parchment. Bake for around 30 minutes.
Check the brownie has a papery thin crust and it should have a slightly gooey centre, remove from the oven and leave to cool. Cut into 12 triangles then decorate as desired.

Choose to decorate using one, or a selection of the following options:

Christmas trees: For the garland - Pipe coloured icing in a zigzag pattern, while still wet decorate with coloured sugar coated chocolate sweets, and colourful sprinkles. Leave to dry.

Snowmen: Spread a layer of white icing over the brownie. Leave to partially set. Top each brownie with a marshmallow to create a snowman head. Pipe small blobs of black icing for the eyes and a line for a mouth. Use sugar-coated red chocolates to create buttons. Leave to dry.

Reindeer: For the eyes and ears - Use the glace icing to stick the brown sweets to the brownies for eyes, red sweet for nose and stick down the pretzel ears on either side of the brownie using chocolate spread or icing. Leave to dry.

Watch the full demonstration on the ITV Hub

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