… I know, I know but bare with me as I explain… you see my lovely editor at Lincolnshire Life Magazine has asked me to get my December recipes in early this year so this weekend is all about developing recipes for Christmas… it feels a bit odd to get my christmas spirit on so early but this year my idea is to concentrate on left-overs as I really feel that once the big day is over and all the energy has gone into that one giant meal there’s so much to play with and so many amazing things left in the fridge that this is the really exciting bit…
christmas cake brownies
my first idea was based on the fact that the christmas cake and the christmas pudding are a little bit of a ‘marmite’ food item, you either love them or hate them but however you feel about them there always seems to be some in the house and whilst it may appear as though they last forever, lurking in the back of the fridge, they should be eaten and enjoyed and crumbling them into these brownies seems like a great way for everyone to enjoy them… and you will enjoy them… I had these in the fridge overnight and they are the most incredible brownies i’ve eaten in a long while!
185g butter
185g good quality dark chocolate – at least 70% cocoa solids
3 large eggs
275g golden caster sugar
85g plain flour
a pinch of salt
40g cocoa powder
200g christmas cake or christmas pudding
grease and line a 20cm square brownie pan, pre-heat the oven to 160C
in a pan gently melt the butter and chocolate – do this over a really low heat and stir regularly – take it off the heat before it’s fully melted and set aside to cool, stirring again as it melts
in a large bowl beat the eggs and sugar with an electric mix for about 6 minutes until it doubles in volume and becomes pale, light and airy then pour in the melted and cooled chocolate and gently fold in until it’s fully combined
sieve in the flour, salt and cocoa and again, gently fold in, then crumble in the cake or pudding, including any icing or marzipan and pour the mixture into your brownie pan
bake on 160C for 25 mins then remove from the oven and let it cool in the tin – cut into squares and serve
you can read the rest of my left-overs recipes in the December issue of Lincolnshire Life Magazine that will be out in late November
eat and of course enjoy!
Oh what a fab idea Dom, love it. I do adore all those Christmas leftovers, but you're right, sometimes the Christmas cake hangs around a little too long – err, assuming I've made one that is!
GREAT idea Dom and I know that early Christmas feeling, I have been cooking FULL Christmas Dinner roasts and other meals for a magazine I am writing for……seems weird but we have loved the special meals! This is a FAB idea and recipe, Karen
We love Christmas leftovers !!
Rummaging through the fridge and seeing what there is, thinking up what to do with them or, better still, just piling a random selection on a plate and tucking in is a total joy.
This recipe looks fab, and I happen to have a small shop-bought Christmas pudding in the cupboard leftover from last year………..
thanks for this nice post. mouth watering images are very attractive. i will try this soon
thanks for this nice post, hope i will try soon
Dom that such an amazing idea! I might even be tempted to try Christmas cake if it's served like this. Might pass on to MIL for xmas day as I always request a chocolate pud!
That's a lovely idea for leftovers. I don't really envy you having to think about Christmas this early, though. The afternoon of December 24th is early enough for me.
I like it so much, give me give me 🙂
Why, when you invite people over at Christmas, do they bring a Christmas pudding as a gift? I've never understood it but this is a great way of using them up. They look fab.
There was a time when I used to make fruitcake, and there would have always been enough leftover to crumble into brownies.
These are amazing – have previously dipped small chunks of Christmas cake in chocolate for after-dinner sweets, and the taste was great, so I can only imagine that baking the cake and chocolate together into brownies makes it even better! It's also awesome crumbles and stirred through ice cream.
Have to say that even with only 2 of us there is no such thing as leftover Christmas cake, we're both greedy pigs. However we don't have Christmas pudding as the bloke doesn't like it, maybe if I buy a mini pud I could bake these and try and convert him to it's deliciousness…
Great idea Dom! 🙂
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I love Christmas cake and pudding. I love brownies. Never thought to combine the two – brilliant idea!
Good grief! When you have a brainstorm, it's a doozy! What a terrific use of chocolate and leftovers! Big hug on this one, dearie!
One of my favorite things about Christmas, when growing up, were all the goodies… so bring them on!! It's never too early for sweets 🙂
These brownies look absolutely mouthwatering!!!
Christmas already?! Can't complain when it produces such an amazing brownie – bring it on! I'm on the 'I don't like christmas cake/pudding' side but I'd definitely love these brownies.
Dom, these look outrageously good! I am not a huge fan of fruit cake but I definitely wouldn't say no to these! X
We never have leftover Christmas cake (because, you know, the one I make is always SO good!) but I LOVE this idea. What could be better than cake in brownies? I am in denial about Christmas. It's too soon!
What a great idea! I have 5 huge Christmas puddings lurking in the back of a wardrobe, as a result of successive Christmas boxes from my son's employer. This might be the way to reduce the pudding mountain.
This is an inspired use for leftover christmas cake which we always seem to have hanging around! Will definitely be giving these a try this year.
OMG these are like crack! We've had to ration in tiny portions when we took them to work. I love making and decorating but not eating Christmas cake and these brownies are delicious. So gooey.
Ridiculously moreish