Chocolate Orange Brownies

Deliciously rich and fudgy Chocolate Orange Brownies. These homemade brownies are quick and easy to make – you don’t even need an electric mixer. Plus I’m sharing all my secrets for making beautiful, shiny top brownies every time!

Calling all chocolate orange lovers 🧡

Today is all about deliciously rich Chocolate Orange Brownies. These homemade brownies have that signature crinkle top and a soft, fudgy middle.

Made with real chocolate and filled with fresh orange zest and fruity orange chocolate, they make for a sweet dessert or homemade treat.

You don’t need an electric mixer to make these brownies and they’re ready to eat in under an hour. Run, don’t walk!

why you will love this recipe

• Soft, chewy and chocolate-y
• Bursting with orange flavour
• No electric mixer needed
• Ready to eat in under an hour

recipe testing

Confession: I only recently became a chocolate orange convert. One Terry’s Chocolate Orange and I was smitten. Out of that revelation came my Chocolate Orange Cake (ohh that ganache frosting), my chunky New York-style Chocolate Orange Cookies and my Chocolate Orange Self-Saucing Pudding.

And now it’s time to fully appreciate that glorious combination in a fudgy chocolate brownie. You would think, with all the brownie recipes I’ve worked on over the years, that creating a chocolate orange one would be a cinch.

But it still took a few tries to get this one just right (comfortably human over here). My first attempt was surprisingly bad. I used very dark chocolate for the brownie base and I added an entire Terry’s Chocolate Orange into the batter.

But my ratios were out, resulting in a dry, crumbly brownie with burnt chocolate bits and no crinkly top whatsoever.

Then I remembered the lesson I learnt when testing my Big Batch Brownie recipe. Whisking the eggs and sugar together first helps create shiny top brownies.

So for round two, I used slightly sweeter dark chocolate (and less of it), swapped out the brown sugar for caster sugar, switched up the method and whisked the eggs and sugar first, and halved the amount of chocolate chunks.

The result was good – really good. The shiny top was there and the texture was wonderful. I just wanted a little more flavour and a little more fudge factor, so for round three, I added a fraction more melted chocolate and orange zest. It was a triumph.

what you will need

You only need a handful of everyday ingredients to make these chocolate brownies. In fact, if you’re not a choc orange fan, you can use this recipe as a base for a really, really good brownie – just omit the orange zest and swap Terry’s Chocolate Orange for chocolate chips. Here’s what you will need:

• Caster sugar: Or granulated sugar.
• Eggs
• Dark chocolate: I recommend using a block of good quality dark chocolate between 45-70% cocoa. Personally, I prefer a sweeter 45% dark chocolate in this recipe.
• Butter
• Plain flour: Or all purpose flour.
• Cocoa powder: I recommend using 100% natural cocoa powder.
• Orange zest: Freshly grated. Use the zest of two large oranges or three smaller ones to ensure plenty of orange flavour.
• Orange chocolate: I usually use Terry’s Chocolate Orange, but you can use any orange chocolate you can find.

how to make them

If you’ve never made brownies before, you’ll be thrilled to learn how easy they are to make. This brownie recipe is surprisingly quick. You don’t even need an electric mixer – just a large mixing bowl and a whisk will do!

Here’s how to make them in four simple steps (detailed instructions are in the recipe card below):

1. Whisk together sugar and eggs for 30 seconds.
2. Add melted dark chocolate and butter and stir.
3. Add flour, cocoa, salt and orange zest and stir.
4. Finally, add chocolate orange chunks. BAKE.

the secret to shiny top brownies

Everyone wants to know the secret to making shiny top brownies. Over the years, I’ve tried many techniques found online. But what I’ve discovered is that it’s much easier than you’d think.

The foundation is a good brownie recipe, of course. A dud and no matter your technique, you might never get that crinkly top. But a good brownie recipe with the right ratio of fat and sugar to flour, should give you a wrinkly top and a fudgy middle.

The fine layer on top of a brownie is a thin layer of meringue from the eggs and sugar. The more sugar in the recipe, the more reliable the shiny top.

So this not only includes the actual sugar in the recipe but the quantity and type of chocolate too. This is why brownie recipes that also have chocolate chips in them, typically result in shiny tops.

I’ve found the easiest way to ensure a shiny top is by whisking the eggs and sugar together by hand first. This helps dissolve the sugar and strengthen the bond between the sugar and eggs.

Using caster sugar or granulated sugar instead of brown sugar will also help create a crispy, crinkly top.

frequently asked questions

more orange bakes

• Chocolate Orange Cookies
• Orange and Poppyseed Cake
• Orange Almond Loaf
• Chocolate Orange Cake

Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave a comment below. Hungry for more? Join me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter for more amazing recipe ideas.

Let’s Bake

Chocolate Orange Brownies

Yield Makes 16 1x

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 7 reviews

Prep: 15 minutesCook: 35 minutesTotal: 50 minutes

Deliciously rich and fudgy Chocolate Orange Brownies.

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Ingredients

• 200 grams (1 cup) caster sugar or granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 115 grams (1/2 cup or 1 stick) unsalted butter
• 200 grams (1 and 1/3 cup) dark chocolate (45-70% cocoa), broken into pieces
• 70 grams (1/2 cup) plain flour or all purpose flour
• 20 grams (1/4 cup) cocoa powder, sifted
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Zest of 3 medium-sized oranges (or two large ones)
• 75 grams (1/2 cup) Terry’s Chocolate Orange, roughly chopped

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F) standard / 160 C (320 F) fan-forced. Grease and line an 8-inch square baking pan with baking or parchment paper.
2. In a large mixing bowl, add sugar and eggs. Whisk together by hand for 30 seconds or so, just until creamy and combined.
3. In a large microwave-safe bowl, add butter and dark chocolate. Heat in the microwave, stirring every 20 seconds, until melted and smooth.
4. Add melted chocolate and butter to egg mixture. Whisk by hand until smooth.
5. Add flour, cocoa powder, salt, and orange zest. Stir gently using a spatula until a thick, smooth brownie batter forms. Gently stir through chocolate orange chunks.
6. Pour brownie batter into prepared pan and smooth out into one even layer. Bake for approximately 30-35 minutes or until shiny on top. Brownie should no longer wobble in the middle and a toothpick inserted into the centre should come out almost clean.
7. Leave brownie in pan to cool completely. Then cut into small squares to serve. You can store brownies at room temperature or in the fridge. They also freeze really well.

Notes

Dark chocolate: I recommend using a block of good quality dark chocolate between 45-70% cocoa. Personally, I prefer a sweeter 45% dark chocolate in this recipe

Cocoa powder: I recommend using 100% natural cocoa powder.

Terry’s Chocolate Orange: If you don’t have access to Terry’s, you can use any orange chocolate you can find.

Brownie base: You can use this recipe as a base for regular chocolate brownies. Simply omit the orange zest and replace the orange chocolate with regular chopped chocolate or chocolate chips. 

Storage: These brownies will keep well in an airtight container at room temperature or you can keep them in the fridge. Our family loves to have brownies cold! You can heat leftover brownies in the microwave (10-20 seconds) to make them warm and gooey inside. You can also freeze any leftovers.

Nutrition Information

Serving Size: I brownie Calories: 230 Sugar: 19.9 g Sodium: 57.2 mg Fat: 13.1 g Carbohydrates: 26.2 g Protein: 3 g Cholesterol: 51.1 mg

Nutrition information is a guide only.

Author: Jessica HolmesCategory: BrowniesCuisine: Australian

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