Easy Peppermint Brownies Recipe {with box mix} | The Food Cafe (2024)

FAQs

What does adding coffee to brownie mix do? ›

The first and easiest upgrade you can give to your boxed brownie mix is to add a tablespoon of instant coffee to the batter. Adding coffee to your brownies boosts their flavor because its bitter quality balances out sweetness, making it less overpowering. It allows that delicious chocolate flavor to really shine.

When the back-of-box instructions call for water, try some instant espresso or strong-brewed coffee for roasty, toasty notes that pair impeccably with chocolate. Or use milk or half-and-half for even more richness. And for cakey instead of fudgy brownies, add an extra egg for more lift and spring.

Add nuts – Add a handful of finely chopped pecans or walnuts if you love brownies with nuts. Add mix ins – Jazz up a basic brownie mix with chopped mini peanut butter cups, white chocolate chunks, or your favorite chopped up candy bar. Add a swirl – Swirl in spoonfuls of peanut butter or Nutella before baking.

One change is to use milk or heavy cream instead of water. This change will make brownies more moist and gooey since milk is more fatty and flavorful than water. A second change is to use butter instead of oil. For similar reasons to using milk, butter adds a rich and more decadent quality to the batter.

If you opt to add more eggs, say double the amount, something interesting happens. Even though you are adding more moisture, the air bubbles that you catch in the extra eggs add volume, which decreases the density of your final product. This makes your brownies rise and gives them a much more cake-like texture.

However, you can even transform something as quick and easy as boxed brownies using coffee. Typically, boxed mixes call for a half-cup or less of water to be added when readying the batter. Instead of water, use brewed coffee and expect an ultra-rich brownie as a result.

The quickest way to customize a batch of brownies is as easy as raiding your pantry. Stir a handful (or two) of your favorite candy into the bowl of batter, sandwich a layer of cookies and candies in between two layers of batter or work into the topping—there really is no wrong way to load your brownies up.

You can absolutely substitute butter for the vegetable oil. Use the same quantity specified in the directions (for example, if it calls for 1/3 cup of oil, use 5 1/3 tablespoons of butter). Melt it down, then let it cool a bit. You might not ever go back to oil!

Amp Up The Moisture

While plenty of box mixes already brag about being super moist, there's a secret ingredient that can take that moisture even further. Good news, too: It's likely already in your fridge. All you have to do is add half a cup of sour cream to the mixture for super decadent brownies.

Peanut butter, marshmallow fluff, Nutella, caramel sauce, or white or dark chocolate fudge all make great additions when swirled into the batter. To swirl you'll make your brownies as usual then pour them into your baking dish then add dollops of the sauce you want to swirl in.

How much butter instead of oil in brownies? ›

Replacing Oil with Butter

It couldn't be easier to substitute butter for oil using a 1:1 ratio. This should work with olive, canola, vegetable, and coconut oils. Simply melt and cool the butter to room temperature, then continue with your recipe. (If the recipe calls for ½ cup oil, use ½ cup melted and cooled butter.)

Just measure out half the dry mix then add half of each of the other ingredients. Put into smaller pan. Bake for a bit more than half the time and check till done. I would make the whole box and freeze what you don't need.

Most brownie recipes call for some kind of oil — usually vegetable oil or canola oil. This oil acts as the primary fat in brownie batter, giving it that delicious, fudgy texture we all know and love.

With coffee instead of water, the brownies will taste even more chocolatey as the coffee enhances the flavors of chocolate, while the butter will make the brownies much richer and fudgier than the oil will.

There's a simple trick to making chocolate desserts taste even better. Sure, cocoa powder and chopped chocolate give anything a rich, chocolate flavor. But if you want that flavor to be more complex and intense, add a little coffee to the recipe.

Replace Some of the Liquid in the Recipe

For example, if the recipe calls for 1 cup of milk or water, you can replace half of that with strong brewed coffee. This will help to enhance the chocolate flavor and add a subtle coffee taste to the cake. Check out this recipe from Sugar Geek Show.

According to Wanders, coffee contributed to a better rise, crumb structure, and even toasty and well-browned crust with delicious bitter notes. Brewed coffee can also be added to high-moisture baked goods like brownies and cakes where the sweetness of the desert helps carry coffee's flavor and aromas.

According to online reviewers at the time, it seemed that while this canned brownie batter doughnut iced coffee wasn't bad, it also tasted more like chocolatey coffee than brownie batter. In addition, Dunkin' had an in-store drink come out around the same time, which some people absolutely loved and others hated.