Today’s Hot Chocolate Peppermint Brownies Recipe are made with pure peppermint oil–which makes them drool worthy! I love cooking with essential oils because the flavors are naturally robust unlike the flavor extracts we find in stores. Our chocolate peppermint brownies are perfect with hot cocoa frosting and sprinkles!
Why we love Hot Chocolate Peppermint Brownies Recipe
We love the holidays… it’s the time of year when the world slows down a little bit and we remember all those things that are truly important to us.
We think chocolate + peppermint = a match made in heaven! These brownies combine both and we add in some hot chocolate to take it up one more notch. 🙂
Hot Chocolate Peppermint Brownies Recipe
Hot Chocolate Peppermint Brownies are adapted from my Gram’s brownie recipe… I gotta say I think she would be very proud of this creation! I have so much fun cooking with essential oils they’re so handy to use in the kitchen.
I love not needing to worry about what fresh herbs or spices I have on hand since I’ve got my essential oils right in my cupboard!
How to make Hot Chocolate Peppermint Brownies Recipe
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Coat a 9×13 baking pan with cooking spray; set aside.
- Melt butter in a medium sauce pan over medium high heat, whisk in cocoa powder until combined; set aside.
- In a mixing bowl beat eggs, add sugar and mix on medium high until light and fluffy (approx 5 minutes)
- Add vanilla and peppermint essential oil drops.
- Slowly drizzle in (while mixing on low) cocoa mixture; mix until combined.
- Add flour half at a time; mixing with each addition.
- Add hot chocolate powdered mix and salt; mix.
- Pour batter into prepared pan.
- Bake 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick in the center removes clean.
- Allow to cool completely before frosting.
Hot Chocolate Peppermint Frosting:
- In a large mixing bowl cream butter.
- Alternate adding 1 cup powdered sugar and milk; mixing between.
- Add dry hot cocoa powdered mix; mix.
- Add drops of Peppermint essential oil.
- Allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before frosting, mix one minute more.
- Frost cooled brownies and garnish with sprinkles, if desired.
- Slice and Enjoy your Hot Chocolate Peppermint Brownies Recipe!
Helpful baking tips for higher elevations
- If you live 3,000 feet above sea level or more it is considered high elevation and may take longer to cook/bake.
- Adjustments are needed for 5000+ feet and above:
- Reduce baking powder: for each teaspoon, decrease 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon.
- Reduce sugar: for each cup, decrease 2 tablespoons.
- Increase liquid: for each cup, add 2 to 4 tablespoons.
- Increase oven temperature by 25 degrees F.
- Check if it is done a little early.
- This takes some trial and error to get it right for you.
Learn more HERE
Hot Chocolate Peppermint Brownies Recipe
Today's Hot Chocolate Peppermint Brownies Recipe are made with pure peppermint oil--which makes them drool worthy!
Ingredients
- 8 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 14 tablespoons butter, room temperature (2 tablespoons less than 1 cup)
- 4 eggs, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 6 drops peppermint essential oil
- 1 3/4 cups flour
- 1/4 cup dry hot chocolate powdered mix
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Hot Chocolate Peppermint Frosting:
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup dry hot cocoa powdered mix
- 3-4 tablespoons milk
- 7-8 drops peppermint essential oil, adjust according to taste
- garnish with pearls and sugar sprinkles, if desired
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Coat a 9x13 baking pan with cooking spray; set aside.
- Melt butter in a medium sauce pan over medium high heat, whisk in cocoa powder until combined; set aside.
- In a mixing bowl beat eggs, add sugar and mix on medium high until light and fluffy (approx 5 minutes)
- Add vanilla and peppermint essential oil drops.
- Slowly drizzle in (while mixing on low) cocoa mixture; mix until combined.
- Add flour half at a time; mixing with each addition.
- Add hot chocolate powdered mix and salt; mix.
- Pour batter into prepared pan.
- Bake 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick in the center removes clean.
- Allow to cool completely before frosting.
- Hot Chocolate Peppermint Frosting:
- In a large mixing bowl cream butter.
- Alternate adding 1 cup powdered sugar and milk; mixing between.
- Add dry hot cocoa powdered mix; mix.
- Add drops of Peppermint essential oil.
- Allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before frosting, mix one minute more.
- Frost cooled brownies and garnish with sprinkles, if desired.
- Slice and Enjoy your Hot Chocolate Peppermint Brownies Recipe!
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 512Total Fat: 26gSaturated Fat: 14gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 118mgSodium: 401mgCarbohydrates: 65gFiber: 2gSugar: 47gProtein: 6g
More Holiday Desserts
- Gingerbread Cake with White Chocolate Ganache
- Gram’s English Toffee Recipe
- Peppermint White Chocolate Sugar Cookie Bars
- Danish Butter Cookies Recipe
- Pear Upside-Down Bundt Cake Recipe
- Gram’s Christmas Caramels
- Nutella Pastry Stars
- Holiday Dark Chocolate Dream Brownies
Our Hot Chocolate Peppermint Brownies Recipe are sure to make your holidays merry!
One more thing before you go…
We love creating recipes and sharing our adventures with you, so if you can do us a huge favor it’d really support us! It’s easier to stay motivated to share our best with you when we hear from you! We adore our readers and it really makes our day to get comments, social tags/shares, or pins that you save for later to share with your family and friends.
Our hearts sing when you do.
We SEE you and we do our very best to respond to all the love! It also amps up our mo-jo so we get lots of awesome things done around here. Please reach out if you have questions or comments via our email: ruthie@cookingwithruthie.com. We’re excited to see you again soon!
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Love Always,
Ruthie & Madeliene
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