Football Brownies – rich chocolaty, chewy, made-from-scratch brownies cut into fun football shapes; a perfect treat for your Super Bowl Sunday.
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I must admit this recipe is my first attempt at making brownies from scratch. I am a brownie-from-the-box kind of girl. They are easy to bake and ridiculously yummy. Why bother with scratch when you have boxed brownie mix?!
Being a baker and a blogger, and wanting to bake outside my comfort zone, I thought it was time I tried to make brownies from scratch. It was a lot easier than I thought it would be {although I had to make a couple of batches to get the recipe just right}, but it turns out these Football Brownies are just as delicious as if they were made with boxed brownie mix except BETTER.
The Football Brownies use only a few ingredients: butter, sugar, unsweetened cocoa powder, kosher salt, vanilla extract, eggs, and baking powder. The white stitching is Vanilla Buttercream.
Of course, the key ingredient to these delicious Football Brownies is the unsweetened cocoa powder. I used Ghirardelli Unsweetened Cocoa Powder. I am kind of a Ghirardelli chocolate fan, particularly these.
There are several steps to baking the perfect Football Brownies from scratch. You'll need an electric mixer to make brownies with a similar texture and taste to a boxed brownie mix. The electric mixer adds air to the batter which gives your brownies a more cake-like texture - similar to brownies made from boxed mix only BETTER! If you skip the electric mixer your brownies will be denser and more fudge-like.
If you are hard-pressed for the time you certainly may skip the “from scratch” aspect and make your Football Brownies from boxed brownie mix. You will still be able to make them into fun football shapes regardless. Although it is way more impressive to make them from scratch. Be brave. They are worth it! 🙂
Once you have your scrumptious brownies and they have cooled completely, it’s time to make them into footballs. You can skip this step if you would prefer your brownies to just be square brownies.
To make your brownies into football shapes, you’ll need a football cookie cutter. I used this football cookie cutter, which I of course purchased from Amazon.
Remove the brownies from the pan, which should be simple enough if you lined your baking pan with parchment paper or foil. Once removed from the baking pan, use your football cookie cutter to cut football shapes into the brownie. You’ll want to maneuver it around in a manner that will give you the most footballs with the least amount of scrap. The scrap brownie will be good to snack on later or now.
Once you have your brownies cut into football shapes it is time to add the white stitching. I used my go-to Vanilla Buttercream recipe. Then using a Wilton #2 decorating tip, pipe the stitching and the half circle at the ends of the footballs.
Now step back and admire your work. Perfect for your Super Bowl party, right? Now take a bite. Mmmm…
Football Brownies from Scratch
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
- Line an 8x8 baking pan with parchment paper or foil, leaving an overhang on opposite sides. Lightly grease with cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a microwave safe bowl, combine butter, sugar, unsweetened cocoa powder, and kosher salt. Microwave for one minute and then stir mixture. Microwave for 30 second intervals until butter is melted and mixture is smooth. Set aside to cool slightly. You want it warm not hot.
- In a large bowl using an electric mixer, add vanilla extract to the slightly cooled chocolate mixture; stir on low speed just until combined.
- Add eggs one at a time, mixing on medium speed after each egg until well combined. The mixture should look thick, shiny, and well blended.
- Add flour and baking powder; mix on medium speed until you can no longer see the dry ingredients. Once batter forms, spread evenly in prepared baking pan.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes. Insert a toothpick into the center of the brownies; if it comes out slightly moist with batter it is done. Cool completely in pan on wire rack.
- Once brownies are completely cooled, lift up the ends of the parchment paper or foil liner, and transfer to a cutting board. Using your football cookie cutter, cut brownie into football shapes.
- Once you have your Football Brownies, using American Buttercream and a #2 decorating tip, pipe white stitching onto Football Brownies. Eat & Enjoy!
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