Peppermint Brownies

These Christmassy brownies are decadent, fudgy, and yet refreshing. With peppermint and white chocolate chips, these brownies are a great addition to the festival of Christmas goodies that adorn this season.

Tips and Tricks

What’s the best replacement for an egg?

The original recipe for these brownies calls for 3 eggs. There are several vegan replacements for those, but each will create a different quality in your brownie.

If you love your brownies to be dense and fudgy, stick with the recipe below, which calls for 3/4 cup of silken tofu (a 1/4 cup for each egg). If you prefer your brownies cakey, use 3/4 cup of aquafaba instead.

Do I have to use white chocolate chips?

You can absolutely use whatever chips you prefer. White chocolate goes great with peppermint, but vegan white chocolate can be tough to get. Enjoy Life’s dairy free mini white chocolate chips (pictured left) are great if you can get your hands on them.

What if I don’t like peppermint?

The great thing about brownies is you can make them any way you like and they almost always come out delicious. Feel free to swap out the flavorings for something you prefer: raspberry liqueur (framboise) would go great, or triple sec for a hint of orange.

Using peppermint extract:

It goes without saying that peppermint is a powerful flavor. With peppermint extract, a little goes a long way. If you’re not one of those cooks that usually measures how much extract they add to their bakes, consider doing so with this recipe. Eyeballing it might create brownies that are inedible.

Ingredients:

Brownies:

  • 3/4 cup (1 and a half sticks) plant based butter

  • 2 cups sugar

  • 1 cup Dutch process cocoa powder

  • 1 tsp kosher salt

  • 1/2 tsp baking powder

  • 1/2 tbsp peppermint extract

  • 3/4 cup silken tofu (or aquafaba - see note above)

  • 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

  • 1 1/2 cups vegan white chocolate chips (mini or regular sized)

Peppermint icing (optional):

  • 1 cup powdered sugar

  • 1/2 tsp peppermint extract

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit and lightly grease a 9 x 13 inch pan.

In a medium sized pan over medium heat, melt the butter. Take off the heat and add the sugar. Stir to combine, then return the mixture to the heat just until the mixture starts to look shiny. Take off the heat and place in a large bowl.

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Add the cocoa powder, salt, baking powder, and peppermint extract to the sugar mixture. Mix thoroughly, then add in the silken tofu. The mixture will thicken and look somewhat like chocolate mousse.

Add the flour and the white chocolate chips and mix until everything is fully incorporated.

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Spoon the batter into the pan and smooth. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the brownies are fully baked. Take out and let cool for at least 30 minutes.

Once they’re cool enough to the touch, make your peppermint frosting (if using). Place your powdered sugar in a small bowl, and add the peppermint extract. Stir lightly. Add hot water a tbsp at a time and stir rapidly. Stop when you have a mixture that’s thickened, but easy to spread on your brownies.

Take a small spoon, spread the icing on the brownies diagonally (or any way you like).

Cut the brownies into whatever size you like and serve!