Description
Delight in the festive charm of Brownie Christmas Trees, a fun and easy holiday treat featuring rich brownies cut into adorable tree shapes, decorated with green tinted frosting, sprinkles, and candy cane trunks. Perfect for parties or gifting, these adorable desserts combine classic brownie flavors with whimsical holiday spirit for a crowd-pleasing seasonal dessert.
Ingredients
Scale
Brownie Base
- 1 (18 oz.) box brownie mix
- Ingredients called for on back of brownie mix box (usually oil, eggs, and water)
- 1 additional egg yolk
Decorations
- 1 (16 oz.) tub vanilla frosting
- Green food coloring
- Sprinkles
- Candy canes
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to the temperature indicated on the brownie mix box, ensuring even baking for the brownies.
- Prepare Baking Pan: Line a 9×9-inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving extra paper hanging over the edges to easily lift the brownies out once baked.
- Mix Brownie Batter: In a large bowl, whisk together all ingredients specified on the brownie mix box along with 1 additional egg yolk. Be careful to mix just until the flour disappears to avoid over-mixing.
- Bake Brownies: Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake according to box instructions, checking a few minutes before the minimum recommended time to prevent overbaking.
- Cool Brownies: Allow the brownies to cool completely in the pan placed on a wire rack.
- Prepare Green Frosting: While the brownies cool, mix the vanilla frosting with green food coloring until you achieve the desired shade for your Christmas trees.
- Remove and Trim Brownies: Carefully lift the cooled brownies out of the pan using the parchment edges and trim off the outer edges to create a clean shape.
- Ensure Complete Cooling: Do not cut the brownies until they are completely cooled. If needed, refrigerate to firm them up further.
- Cut Small Trees: For 18 small trees: slice the brownies into 3 long strips, then cut each strip into 6 triangles by first cutting squares and then diagonally each square in half.
- Cut Large Trees: For 8 large trees: cut the brownies in half lengthwise, trim the ends at an angle, then cut each half into 4 triangles creating a zig-zag pattern.
- Decorate: Use the green frosting to ice each brownie tree, add sprinkles for festive flair, and place a small piece of candy cane at the bottom of each triangle to mimic the tree trunk.
Notes
- Be careful not to over-mix the brownie batter to keep the brownies moist and fudgy.
- Checking the brownies a few minutes before the recommended bake time helps prevent dryness.
- Let the brownies cool completely before cutting to maintain clean edges and prevent crumbling.
- You can adjust the amount of green food coloring to get your preferred tree color intensity.
- Use mini candy canes or break regular candy canes into smaller pieces for the tree trunks.
