These easy red velvet brownies are topped with an abundance of chocolate and are velvety soft and smooth! They don't call it red velvet for nothing!
Prep Time10 minutesmins
Cook Time28 minutesmins
Cooling Time30 minutesmins
Total Time1 hourhr8 minutesmins
Course: Brownies
Cuisine: American
Keyword: easy cocoa powder brownies, red velvet brownies, valentine's day dessert recipes, valentine's day recipes
Servings: 9
Calories: 273kcal
Author: Averie Sunshine
Ingredients
½cupunsalted butter1 stick, melted
1large egg
1cuplight brown sugarpacked
1tablespoonvanilla extract
¼cupunsweetened natural cocoa powder
2vials red food coloringor as needed (I used 2 red Betty Crocker gel food coloring vials)
¾cupall-purpose flour
pinchsaltoptional and to taste
½cupsemi-sweet chocolate chipsmelted
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350F. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray; set aside.
In a large, microwave-safe bowl melt the butter, about 1 minute on high power.
Wait momentarily before adding the egg so you don’t scramble it. Add the egg, brown sugar, vanilla, and whisk until smooth.
Add the cocoa and whisk until smooth.
Add the red food coloring and whisk to incorporate. Keep adding until desired shade is obtained.
Add the flour, optional salt, and stir until just combined; don’t overmix.
Turn batter out into prepared pan, smoothing the top lightly with a spatula; set aside.
In a small, microwave-safe bowl melt the chocolate chips, about 1 minute on high power. Stop to check and stir. Heat in 10-second bursts until chocolate can be stirred smooth.
Drizzle the chocolate over the pan and swirl lightly with the tip of a table knife or a toothpick. To create the pattern shown, drizzle chocolate over batter in 5 wide, evenly spaced, parallel lines, each spanning the length of the pan. Like 5 rows of long train tracks. Rotate pan 90-degrees. With a toothpick, starting at the top of the pan, “draw” 5 evenly spaced lines through the chocolate. You’re dragging the toothpick perpendicularly through the first set of lines to create the swirling.
Bake for about 28 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean, or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter.
Allow bars to cool in pan for at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving; however, for optimal results, cool overnight so the chocolate has a chance to fully set up fully.
Notes
I used 2 vials of red food coloring. I had to buy two sets of gel food coloring (red, blue, green, yellow) for the two reds I needed. Use any type of food coloring you like; you’ll need a lot of it because it takes a lot to turn a chocolaty batter red.
Bars will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 1 week, or in the freezer for up to 6 months.