Gingerbread brownies

These festive spiced gingerbread brownies are the perfect Christmas treat for chocolate lovers. Rich, fudgy brownies are infused with warming gingerbread spices and studded with chunks of gingerbread biscuits. I used shop-bought iced gingerbread biscuits, but if you’ve already baked your own, they’re even better. Every bite is filled with the irresistible aroma of Christmas.

Ingredients for gingerbread brownies:

• 180 g butter
• 100 g dark chocolate (50% cocoa), finely chopped
• 150 g dark chocolate (70% cocoa), finely chopped
• 3 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 250 g caster sugar
• 100 g plain flour
• 1 tablespoon gingerbread spice mix
• ¼ teaspoon baking powder
• a pinch of salt
• 150 g gingerbread biscuits, preferably plain or iced

All the ingredients should be at room temperature. Set aside 2–3 gingerbread biscuits for decorating. Cut the remaining biscuits into large chunks.

Melt the butter in a saucepan, then remove it from the heat. Add both chopped chocolates to the hot butter and leave for 2 minutes. Stir until smooth and glossy. Leave the chocolate mixture to cool until just warm, but not hot. It should remain pourable.

Lightly whisk the eggs (do not beat until frothy). Add the vanilla extract and caster sugar, whisking until well combined. Whisk in the cooled chocolate mixture. Sift the flour, baking powder and gingerbread spice directly into the bowl, add the salt and gently mix until just combined. Fold in half of the chopped gingerbread biscuits.

Pour the batter into a 28 × 18 cm baking tin (or a 23 cm square tin) greased with butter and lined with baking paper. Scatter the remaining gingerbread pieces over the top, pressing them lightly into the batter.

Bake at 160°C in a fan oven or 180°C using conventional top and bottom heat for 30–33 minutes. The brownie will rise slightly and may crack around the edges or develop a crinkly top. A skewer inserted into the centre may come out moist, but it should not have raw batter on it. As with most brownies, the skewer test isn’t the most reliable way to judge doneness. Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely. Decorate with the reserved whole gingerbread biscuits.

Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

Enjoy!