But chocolate and cherries are a wonderful pairing, and that’s where these brownies come in.
Chunky cherry jam is swirled into dark, rich, fudgy brownies, and they’re topped with dark chocolate chunks. Tons of bold chocolate flavor, along with sweet cherry jam, with no white goop in sight. Score.
For the brownie base, I used an old standby recipe that delivers consistently fudgy results, minus any fuss. They’re as fast and easy as using a boxed mix, and the batter is whisked together in one bowl in minutes. They’re not at all cakey, which would be a total deal-breaker. I want my brownies dense like a slab of fudge. Cakes are for birthdays, but don’t belong in my brownies.
The irony of these ultra-fudgy brownies is that the recipe uses cocoa powder, not melted chocolate. I used to think that cocoa powder brownies were inferior to brownies made with (more expensive) melted chocolate, but I’ve been proven wrong. The jam also adds to the overall density and fudginess since it weighs down the batter and adds moisture.
Make sure not to overbake them so they stay moist and fudgy. The jam doesn’t fully set up, and the chocolate chunks will be melty and runny, so make sure to examine the brownie portion, not the jam or chocolate chunks, when doing the toothpick test. In the past, I’ve made the mistake of thinking my brownies weren’t done when I saw runny chocolate on the toothpick, thereby overcooking them.
Letting them cool properly gives the jam and chocolate chunks a chance to firm up and solidify, and the longer you can wait before digging in, the better. I cooled them for a couple hours on the counter before refrigerating them. I prefer desserts this chocolaty to be served chilled.
The brownies are moist, soft, and very chocolaty, without being overly sweet. The dark chocolate chunks add bold chocolate intensity, and there’s a splash of coffee and some espresso granules added to the batter (optional but recommended). They don’t make the brownies taste like coffee, but instead intensify and round out the chocolate flavor.
You could wash them down with a glass of milk, a cup of coffee, or with merlot or cabernet. I prefer the later.
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Favorite brownie recipe?
