Minty Chocolate Brownies (Gluten Free)

Today’s Minty Chocolate Brownies have a rich brownie on the bottom and are topped with a mint-flavored frosting on top. This gives you both the luscious chocolate and cooling, creamy mint icing, for pure delight in every bite!

Brownies are always popular in any group – everyone loves the rich and concentrated chocolate flavor in every bite. Some people love a frosted brownie, others prefer them plain. Which camp are you in?

The recipe calls for peppermint oil, which is much stronger than extract. I like the flavorings from LorAnn, everything they sell are very high quality. I buy squeeze dropper tops for the bottles so I can get a single drop or just a few for recipes. If you are using mint extract, start with 1/8 tsp and increase it to taste.

Gluten-free baking is quite different from regular flour, the batters feel and behave differently. But with today’s improved alternative flour blends you can get wonderful results by following a few simple steps:

 

1. Start with a good all-purpose flour blend, I like Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1, King Arthur’s Measure-for-Measure, and Pamela’s All-Purpose Flour Mix 1 to 1. All of these contain xanthan or guar gum, saving you a step in adding them. If your blend does not contain xanthan gum, add it to your dry ingredients starting with 1/4 teaspoon per cup of flour.

2. If you want to save some money, you can make your own blend. I use my own recipe that I developed for my first cookbook. (This is what I use for all my baking.) I strongly recommend using Authentic Foods Superfine rice flours for non-gritty baked goods.

 

3. Weigh your ingredients on a kitchen scale for the most accurate and consistent results. I fought this for many years but once I converted, I found it is much easier, faster, and a lot more precise to weigh ingredients, especially dry ingredients, on a scale than to use my measuring cups. Whenever possible, use grams instead of ounces – again, they are much more accurate.

 

4. When you are buying a kitchen scale, be sure you get one that measures in both ounces and grams – grams are far more accurate, but ounces work too. Also be sure there is a tare or zero feature which allows you to zero out the weight between adding ingredients.

5. If you are using a single bowl to weigh your dry ingredients, pile each one in a separate area of the bowl, making it easier to remove excess if you go over the weight called for in the recipe. Hit the tare/zero button between adding each ingredient.

 

Be prepared, your entire house will fill with the enticing aroma of minty chocolate brownies as they bake. It will drive you crazy!

 

This recipe makes fairly thin brownies – if you would like a thicker brownie, take a look at these One Bowl Brownies from Well Plated by Erin. You can use the frosting recipe from today’s recipe and add peppermint oil to the brownies to make them similar to these.

I used Ghirardelli mint squares to decorate these and they are the perfect accent to finish them beautifully. You could also use Andes candies too. The frosting is thick enough to easily nestle them in and sturdy enough to hold them upright. The candies are not required but they make them extra fun!

 

There isn’t much better than the combination of mint and chocolate. They complement each other so well. I love these Minty Chocolate Brownies and hope you do too!

Did you enjoy this recipe? Let me know in the comments, I love hearing from you!

 

 

Ingredients needed for Minty Chocolate Brownies:

• Unsalted butter, sugar, salt, cocoa, eggs, flour,
• Baking powder, peppermint oil, confectioners’ sugar,
• Milk, food coloring, chocolate chips, cream

 

*How to Get Half an Egg:

I cut the original recipe in half and one of the ingredients is now one and a half eggs. Figuring out how to get half an egg sounds really challenging but it is simple. Break an egg into a bowl and whisk it thoroughly, then use half of this mixture in the recipe! The other option is to weigh the beaten whole egg and remove half, around 28 to 30 grams.

 

PRO Tip:

Peppermint oil is much stronger than mint extract, be very careful when adding it and only use a drop or two, then adjust to your taste. I buy squeeze dropper tops for the bottles so I can get a single drop or just a few for recipes. If you are using extract, start with about 1/8 teaspoon and add more to taste if needed.

 

How to make Minty Chocolate Brownies:

1. Make the Brownies: Mix together the butter, sugar, and salt then beat in the cocoa powder until smooth, then mix in the eggs until fully incorporated
2. Add the dry ingredients and mix until combined, then stir in the peppermint oil, adjust the flavoring to taste
3. Spoon the batter into a buttered and parchment-lined 8-inch baking pan, easing it into the corners; bake at 350°F for 15 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely
4. Make the Frosting: Mix together the sugar, melted butter, milk, and peppermint oil, taste and add more peppermint if desired; spread in a thin layer over the top of the brownies, set aside to cool
5. If using, make the Glaze: Microwave the chocolate and cream together, stir until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth; set aside to cool until you can comfortably hold the bottom of the container in your hand
6. Use the parchment sling to lift the brownies out of the pan and set on a cutting board, cut into squares and set them slightly apart on the same board; if using the glaze, pour it in a zig-zag pattern over the cut squares and then leave at room temperature to set for several hours

 

PRO Tip:

To get the cleanest cuts, wipe the knife with a hot, damp cloth after each cut so the knife is clean before making another cut. You will get perfect squares every time.  

 

PRO Tip:

Weigh your dry ingredients if at all possible, using grams instead of ounces for more accuracy. Get a kitchen scale with a Tare/Zero button that zeros-out the weight before adding the next ingredient. See above notes for more details.

 

Recommended Tools (affiliate links; no extra cost to you):

• 8-inch square baking pan
• Parchment paper sheets
• Stand mixer or hand mixer
• Spatula
• Offset spatula
• Long, sharp knife
• Cutting board

 

Gluten-Free Tips:

You can adjust any recipe to gluten-free by using 120 grams per cup of my favorite gluten-free flour blend. If you are using another brand of gluten-free flour, whisk the mix, spoon it lightly into a measuring cup until mounded, level off the top with a straight edge, and weigh the flour left in the cup. Use that weight as your standard per cup of that specific flour. Do this for each flour blend you use. Commercial blends such as Pamela’s, Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1, or King Arthur Measure for Measure are all good choices.

All recommended ingredients are gluten-free as of the writing of this article. Always check to be sure the products haven’t changed and are still safe to consume.

 

 

 

 

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