BYU Mint Brownies

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Homemade mint brownies are easier to make from scratch than you think. With simple homemade frostings these mint brownies are brownies elevated.

For 3 years I worked on BYU (Brigham Young University) campus in the freshman dorms’ cafeteria.  One of the most popular desserts was the mint brownies.  They are so popular that they always had 2 different variations on hand.  There were mint brownies with nuts and mint brownies without nuts.  We would make trays and trays of them and I was always amazed at how fast we would go through those trays.  They really were wonderful but my particular favorites were the ones without nuts.

One day I stumbled upon the recipe that they posted online for those who had visited and wanted to make them.  The recipe had been reduced to a standard recipe size rather than the bulk we made it in.  Over the years I’ve messed with the recipe trying to simplify it down.  Because frosting is actually really simple to make and uses items I have always have on hand I’ve chosen to stick with homemade.

If you’ve always thought that frosting was too hard to make try making these.  You will be pleasantly surprised how easy it is to make.  I also went with peppermint extract instead of straight mint because most of the mint extracts I’ve found taste rather medicinal.  The peppermint gives that same mint-iness without that weird aftertaste.

This is my go to brownie batter that I’ve used in many other ways, for example, in Strawberry Cream Cheese Brownies, S’mores Brownies, and Toasted Coconut and Caramel Brownies.

These are the single most requested dessert I make.  Whenever I need to make a treat to take to a big gathering I make these.  I rarely come home with any leftovers much to the chagrin of my family.  These also freeze really well.  I cut them into squares and then freeze them separated slightly in waxed paper.  When we want them I pull a few squares and let them thaw for about 5 minutes.

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Mint Brownies

Prep Time

15 mins

Cook Time

30 mins

Total Time

45 mins

 

Servings: 15 brownies

Author: Jade

Ingredients

Brownies:

• 1 cup butter melted
• ½ cup cocoa
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 4 eggs
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 ¾ cup flour
• ½ Tbsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 cup chopped walnuts optional

Mint Icing:

• 5 Tbsp butter softened
• 2 1/3 cup powdered sugar
• 3 Tbsp milk
• ½ tsp peppermint extract
• 1-2 drops green food coloring
• Dash of salt

Chocolate Icing:

• 5 Tbsp butter softened
• 2 1/3 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 4 Tbsp milk
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• Pinch salt

Instructions

Brownie batter:

1. Melt the butter and mix in cocoa and sugar.  Add eggs, flour, baking powder, and salt.  Mix well.  Add nuts, if using.  

2. Pour batter into a greased 9 by 13 baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-35 minutes. Cool.

Mint Icing:

1. In a medium sized bowl, beat butter with a hand mixer or in a stand mixer.  Add salt and powdered sugar.  Beat until smooth and fluffy.  Add mint extract and food coloring.  Mix.  Add milk a little at a time until the consistency is a little thinner than cake frosting.

2. Spread mint icing over brownies.  Place brownies in the freezer for a short time to stiffen the icing. Alternatively, use store bought vanilla icing and add 1/2 tsp peppermint icing and the 1-2 drops green food coloring.

Chocolate Icing

1. Using same bowl as the mint icing, beat the remaining butter with a mixer.  Add salt, cocoa powder, and powdered sugar.  Beat until smooth and fluffy.  Add vanilla extract and add enough milk to thin to frosting consistency.  Spread over chilled mint icing.

2. Keep refrigerated.

Recipe Notes

These freeze well.  Cut into squares and lay on waxed paper. Place in a ziploc bag.  To eat, remove desired number of squares and allow to sit for about 5 minutes before eating.