Santa Hat brownies

I have always wanted to make these for St Nicholas Day, although I have not always managed to find the time! 😉 These adorable brownie bites are decorated to resemble Santa hats. The combination of brownie and strawberries is absolutely delicious, and at the beginning of December it tastes like a million dollars… provided you can find strawberries that are truly fragrant and still carry at least a hint of summer flavour. Santa Hat Brownies – you are going to love them (and you may already know this brownie recipe from my Toffifee brownie cups)!

Makes 24 mini brownies.

Ingredients for the Santa Hat Brownies:

• 100 g dark chocolate, finely chopped
• 100 g butter
• 2 large eggs
• 180 g caster sugar (or less, to taste)
• 100 g plain flour
• ¾ teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

All ingredients should be at room temperature.

Place the butter in a saucepan and heat until melted. Remove from the heat, add the chopped chocolate and leave for 2 minutes. Stir until the chocolate has completely melted and the mixture is smooth. Leave to cool slightly.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar until combined. Add the cooled chocolate mixture and whisk until incorporated. Stir in the vanilla extract, then add the sifted flour and baking powder. Mix until all the ingredients are combined and a smooth chocolate batter forms.

Grease a mini muffin tin with butter and dust lightly with flour, shaking out any excess. Divide the batter between the mini muffin cavities, filling them no more than three-quarters full.

Bake the brownies at 180°C for approximately 10 minutes, if possible. The mini brownies should rise slightly and develop a few cracks on the surface. Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely in the tin. Carefully loosen them with a fork and transfer to a wire rack.

For decoration:

• 24 strawberries
• 300 ml double cream, chilled
• 2 teaspoons icing sugar

Whip the double cream together with the icing sugar until firm peaks form. Transfer the whipped cream to a disposable piping bag fitted with a plain round nozzle. Pipe a small swirl of cream onto each brownie, place a strawberry on top, then pipe more cream above the strawberry and around its base to create the characteristic pom-pom and trim of a Santa hat.

Store the Santa Hat Brownies in the refrigerator. Note: If you plan to take the brownies to a nursery, school or another event, it is worth stabilising the whipped cream with gelatine or whipping it together with a few tablespoons of chilled mascarpone. This will help it hold its shape for longer.

Enjoy!