Oreo Brownies

Oreo Brownies are topped with a layer of homemade Oreo Frosting. These easy homemade fudgy brownies are a delicious flavor variation on a classic brownie recipe.

These oreo brownies with oreo frosting are everything you want in a brownie - rich and fudgy brownies, and a fluffy oreo frosting.

Making homemade brownies is super easy - I switched things up a little from my classic fudgy brownie recipe and used black cocoa in the brownie recipe, which is what gives oreos their super rich chocolate flavour. These oreo brownies would make a great dessert or anytime snack.

I love brownies for how versatile they are - they can be eaten alone, used as a base for brownie bars like my peanut butter brownie bars and brownie caramel slice, or topped with a frosting like these oreo brownies.

If you don't want to add an oreo frosting to these brownies, you could also top them with a batch of my super easy brownie frosting. If you're looking for other brownie recipes, be sure to also check out my homemade cosmic brownies, my cheesecake brownie recipe, and my brookies recipe!

How to make brownies

The Brownie is ever so slightly adapted from Sarah Kieffer’s book, which is one of my absolute favourites to use for base recipes. Sarah makes her brownies in a 9” x 13” (which I sometimes do too, and it makes the most beautiful crackly top and fudgy brownie), but I made this one in a 9” pan to make it a teeny bit thicker, and subbed the cocoa for black cocoa to give it an oreo taste.

I highly suggest making this, but I also highly suggest getting Sarah’s book and making the original - they are some of the best brownies I’ve ever had, and the other recipes in the book are also crazy amazing.

These brownies are a stir together recipe and come together quickly.

• Melt butter and chocolate. This gives you a smooth base to use for your brownies. Remove from the heat and add the cocoa powder. This step helps prevent any cocoa powder lumps.
• Combine dry ingredients. Mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
• Combine wet ingredients. It is important that you combine the egg, sugar, vanilla extract and oil well, as you want to avoid over mixing the brownie batter once the flour goes in.
• Mix together brownie batter. The chocolate and butter mixture is incorporated into the eggs and sugar, then add the flour and gently mix.
• Transfer to pan. I used a 9 inch baking pan (23cm) for this recipe, but you can also make brownies in a 9 by 13 inch pan for a thinner brownie - just adjust the baking time.

What is Black Cocoa Powder?

Black Cocoa is cocoa which has been 'ultra dutched' - treated with an alkalising solution which removes the acid from the cocoa, making it super dark and rich in colour and also in taste. This is the same process used for making dutch cocoa, but black cocoa is just processed more heavily. Both dutch cocoa and black cocoa are an unsweetened cocoa powder.

Black cocoa adds an incredible depth of rich chocolate flavor to recipes - it is the cocoa used in Oreos that gives them the slightly bitter, rich taste, and I love using it where I can when I want a deep chocolate hit. You can sub black cocoa wherever dutch-process cocoa powder is called for in a recipe.

Oreo Frosting Recipe

I made an oreo frosting to top my oreo brownies. I used a German buttercream for the base, which is based on a pastry cream. Once the butter was incorporated, I added oreo crumbs.

It is important to not mix the buttercream too much once the oreo crumbs have been added in order for the mixture to not go too gummy.

To make oreo crumbs I separated whole oreos, discarded the filling, and processed the cookie part until it formed fine crumbs.

If you don't want to make a German buttercream, you could add oreo crumbs to a simple vanilla frosting recipe to make an oreo buttercream - a double batch of my vanilla buttercream would work great.

I like to make the pastry cream ahead of time, preferably the night before, but if you are in a pinch, you can spread it in a shallow plate or bowl, then pop it in the freezer to chill, stirring often (greater surface area = faster cooling). If you make the pastry cream before you bake the brownies, it should be cool enough by the time they are cool for you to proceed with making the buttercream.

How to fix a split buttercream

During winter sometimes it is hard to get butter to ‘room’ temperature, which may cause your buttercream to split slightly or not totally come together. If this happens (it looks like there are still chunks of butter in it), you can simply microwave a few tablespoons of the buttercream until melted, and then beat into the mixture. The temperature of the melted buttercream should be enough to warm up the mixture enough for it to come together. Don’t freak out! It happens to me all the time when the weather is cold or your butter isn’t quite warm enough.

Tips for Perfect Brownies

There are a couple of tips and tricks that will help to give you perfect brownies.

• Make sure that you use the right sized pan. I always make my brownies in a metal pan as I find metal pans give the most consistent result. If you want to use a ceramic or glass baking dish, you will need to increase the bake time slightly.
• Line your pan well to make it easy to remove the brownies after they are baked. I like to do this by either greasing the pan or spraying with cooking spray, then adding two layers of parchment paper that extend over the sides of the pan to form a sling. You can clip the parchment down using binder clips to help it stay.
• Make sure your ingredients are at room temperature, especially your eggs. To bring your eggs to room temperature quickly, you can place them in a bowl of warm water for 5-10 minutes.
• Do not over mix your brownies - you do not want to develop gluten, which can make them tough and cakey.
• Ensure that you do not over bake your brownies! It can be hard to tell when they are done, but you are better off with some slightly under baked brownies than over baked.

What is a neutral oil?

Neutral oil refers to the taste of the oil - so something that is neutral flavoured. The best oil to use for brownies is a neutral oil. It provides moisture and gives the brownies an amazing texture, while not taking away from the chocolate flavour. A neutral oil such as vegetable oil, canola oil, extra light olive oil or grapeseed oil would work great here.

How to tell when brownies are baked

This can be a little hard with brownies as you don't want to over bake them and risk getting dry or cakey brownies . The best way to tell if a brownie is baked is to go by sight - it should be set on top and not wobbly when you shake it.

You can also test your brownie with a toothpick, which should come out with a few moist crumbs attached.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can Brownies be made ahead of time?
Yes, these will store well. The brownie base can be made the night before and stored in an airtight container.

How do you store brownies?
Once the oreo brownies are frosted you will need to store them in the fridge in an airtight container. Bring to room temperature if you can before enjoying.

What is the best chocolate to use for Brownies?
You can use whatever you like here - I prefer something dark such as a bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate (something around 70% cocoa solids). A milk chocolate I find to be a little sweet for making brownies.

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