Cherry Brownies with Chocolate

These are the ultimate cherry brownies! They are made with chocolate and cocoa powder and are topped with fresh cherries and even more chocolate in the form of ganache.

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three brownies topped with ganache and fresh cherries on a platter.

If you love chocolate, then these cherry brownies are for you. I’ve made many batches of brownies over the years: Romanian Meringue Brownies, Cheese Cake Brownies, Vegan Brownies, Black Bean Brownies, Zucchini Brownies and so on, but I’ve never made any containing 500 g/ 1.1 lbs of chocolate.

Absolute chocolate madness! Chocolate in the fudgy brownie recipe, chocolate on the cherry brownies, and lots of fresh juicy cherries to make things perfect.

I found this cherry brownies recipe in a German recipe magazine a few years ago. As cherries were not in season then, I made a mental note to bake them the following summer. As “following summer” was last year, I had no luck at all; there was not one cherry to be found in our tree.

So, I put off baking them until this summer. These chocolate cherry brownies are the last dessert I managed to make with the cherries growing in our garden.

For more ways of dealing with a glut of cherries, learn How to Preserve Cherries or make some Cherry Sauce.

Recipe ingredients

ingredients for making cherry brownies with chocolate.

Cherries: Fresh sweet cherries; you will need 700 g/ 1 ½ lb weighed before pitting. Fresh sour cherries are also a good option.

Chocolate: When baking with so much chocolate, I always recommend using the best brand you can afford; the cake can only be as good as the chocolate is.
- I recommend using European-style chocolate (German, Swiss, Belgian, etc.) for genuine results. I use chocolate with 50 to 70 % cocoa.

Cocoa powder: Unsweetened, Dutch-processed cocoa powder.

Brown sugar: It helps make the brownies moist and chewy; I would not substitute it with white granulated sugar.

Other dry ingredients: All-purpose flour, baking powder, and a pinch of salt.

Butter: I recommend using European-style unsalted butter; it contains more fat and less water and makes the baked goods richer and fluffier.

Eggs: Large eggs at room temperature.

Heavy cream for the topping.

How to make cherry brownies?

Batter

Preparations: Preheat the oven. Grease a square baking dish (about 24x24 cm/ 9.5x9.5 inch) and line the bottom with parchment paper with an overhang on two sides. A rectangular tin of roughly similar size is ok.
Dry ingredients: Mix flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.
Melt chocolate and butter: Fill a pan with hot water, about a quarter full. Place the heatproof bowl on top, and make sure that its bottom doesn’t touch the water. Add cubed butter and chopped chocolate (1) and stir until melted and smooth (2). Don't let the mixture get too hot, remove it from the heat if it gets too hot.

collage of two pictures of melting chocolate and butter in a pot.

Beat the eggs and the sugar in a large bowl with a hand mixer for about 5 minutes or until thick (3). Alternatively, use a stand mixer.
Immediately stir the melted chocolate mixture into the sugar mixture.
Add the flour mixture and mix only shortly, just enough to combine the ingredients (4).

collage of two pictures of stirring batter for making chocolate brownies.

Pour the brownie batter into the prepared tin and level (5).
Bake for about 25 minutes (6).
The brownies should remain gooey in the middle and not get too dry. Let cool completely in the pan; they will set more while they cool.

unbaked and then baked brownie in a small square baking dish.

Topping

Place the cooled cake on a serving platter.
Wash and pit the cherries (a cherry pitter works best). Set aside.
Prepare water bath: Chop the chocolate finely. Place it in a small heatproof bowl. Fill a pan with hot water, about a quarter full. Place the heatproof bowl on top, and make sure that its bottom doesn’t touch the water.
Stir until melted and smooth. Transfer to a larger bowl and let cool slightly while you whip the cream.
Whip the heavy cream shortly (7). Add 2 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder and continue whipping until stiff.
At first, fold only about ¼ of the whipped cream into the chocolate. Once incorporated, fold in the rest. Work carefully but rather quickly (8).

collage of two pictures of whipped cream and then mixed with cocoa in a bowl.

Assemble

Spread about ¼ of the chocolate-cream mixture over the cake. Top with about ½ of the fresh fruit.
Cover with the remaining chocolate cream and the remaining cherries.
Place the cherry chocolate brownies into the refrigerator for about 2 hours or until set.
Cut into pieces using a sharp knife before serving.

Expert tips

Always use a digital kitchen scale in baking; it guarantees for best results. A scale is particularly important in this recipe as it will allow you to measure the butter and flour exactly; these are the two ingredients that are most difficult to measure with a cup.
Also, chopping and measuring the chocolate into cups is very inaccurate.

Bain-marie: When melting the ingredients, ensure that the bowl with the butter-chocolate mixture and then chopped chocolate for the ganache doesn’t touch the water in the pot and that the water never gets too hot. If the water threatens to come to a simmer, remove it from the heat source and continue stirring until the mixture is smooth.

Recipe FAQ

Can I use frozen cherries?

Yes. Defrost the cherries in a sieve and drain the excess liquid well. Pat them dry with paper towels and continue with the recipe.

How to tell if the brownies are done?

The baking time depends very much on your oven. Shake the pan gently; if the batter still wobbles in the middle, they are not done yet. Bake for another 3-4 minutes and check again.

How to store?

Refrigerate the chocolate cherry brownies in an airtight container for 3-4 days. Don’t keep them at room temperature for more than 1 day, less if the weather is hot. As the cherries are uncooked, they will spoil quickly at room temperature.

one chocolate cherry brownies on a silver platter.

More cherry cakes

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The Ultimate Cherry Brownies (with Chocolate)

Recipe ingredients