Of all the pastel-hued, brightly foiled Easter candy out there—the malted eggs, the big chocolate bunnies—nothing quite grabs my childhood heart like a Cadbury Creme Egg.
I have very vivid memories of eating Cadbury Creme Eggs as a child, except part of the memory includes not loving all of the goopy “yolk” inside. There was always just a little too much, and even then I didn’t love the sticky mess it made. One spring afternoon I took matters into my own hands, poured out half of the sugary filling and … fed it to my aunt’s cat. It made good sense at the time.
As an adult I want to partake in the joys of Cadbury’s seasonal offering, but I still don’t want the commitment to a whole, messy egg. Enter the Cadbury Creme Egg-inspired brownie, from the blog Love and Olive Oil. I like to think of this as a less messy version of the candy from which it’s inspired. Sure, it’s still a total sugar bomb, but I like to argue that using high quality cocoa adds some antioxidants, and going the homemade route cuts out whatever weird preservatives are lurking inside that hollow chocolate egg. And of course, with a brownie, you have portion control—if self-restraint is your thing, that is.
Creme Egg Brownies by LoveandOliveOil.com
These brownies are sweet — there’s really no denying it. But they’re fun to make — and make for the perfect homemade spring treat. So embrace your inner child, and go for it.
For brownies:
- 2/3 cup flour
- 2 tablespoons dark or Dutch processed cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 6 ounces milk chocolate, chopped
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into cubes
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For cream filling:
- 1/4 cup light corn syrup
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- Yellow food coloring (if you’re going for the full egg effect)
For glaze:
- 3 ounces milk chocolate, chopped
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into cubes
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line the bottom and sides of an 8-by-8-inch pan with parchment paper, leaving a slight overhang on two edges.
- Sift together flour, cocoa, and salt in a small bowl and set aside.
- Melt chocolate and butter in a double boiler or a medium-large bowl set over gently simmering water. Stir until smooth, then remove from heat. Whisk in sugars and stir until dissolved and mixture has cooled slightly.
- Whisk in eggs and vanilla extract until just combined (do not overmix). Sprinkle flour mixture over top and fold in to chocolate mixtureusing a large rubber spatula until just incorporated. Pour into prepared pan.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Transfer pan to a wire rack and allow tocool completely.
- For cream filling, beat together corn syrup, butter, vanilla, and salt on medium-high speed until smooth. Add powdered sugar, a littlebit at a time, mixing until creamy. Dump 3/4 of the cream mixture on top of cooled brownies and spread into an even layer. Add adrop of yellow food coloring to remaining cream mixture and stir until evenly colored. Drop dollops of yellow cream on top of whitelayer, and then swirl gently with a spatula. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or until set.
- Melt chocolate and butter together in a double boiler or a small saucepan set over low heat. Stir until smooth. Pour over cream filling,carefully spreading into a thin, even layer. Return to refrigerator and chill until set, at least 30 minutes, or overnight if possible(brownies are best when chilled overnight).
- Remove brownies from pan using the edges of the parchment paper to lift the entire block out of the pan. Using a large sharp knife,cut into 2-inch squares. Brownies will keep, refrigerated in an airtight container, for up to 5 days.
This story was published in the April print edition of Climate Magazine.
