Brownies – Will Bake for Shoes

I love any excuse to bring delicious treats to the office and was stoked when Ghirardelli asked me to try out a recipe from their website using some of their products. I always bake cupcakes for work and felt it was time to branch out and bake something really different. Brownies are classic, but not really interesting to me, until I found this recipe. The pumpkin puree provides a unexpected twist on a classic brownie recipe and kicks up the look of this dessert with the swirl of pumpkin and chopped pecans. I fully consider these to be ridiculously photogenic brownies and I should have expected nothing less by using Ghirardelli.

I baked these in a 9×9 metal pan and used parchment paper to line the pan. This was my first time baking with parchment paper and I loved that nothing sticked to the pan in the end (and made clean-up a breeze!) These brownies are really decadent and I seriously recommend making these for an upcoming holiday party or get-together (your office buddies and friends will thank you.) They are pretty easy to make and look amazing when they are done in about an hour. Check out the ingredients below and see what I changed for my batch.

Ingredients – Makes 16 Servings:

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Ghirardelli Chocolate Pumpkin Pecan Brownie Recipeby Gemma Stafford December-1-2015Ingredients1 Cup Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Chips3/4 Cup Unsalted butter3/4 Cup Plain Flour1/4 Cup Ghirardelli Unsweetened Cocoa Powder1/2 Tsp. Baking powder3 Large Eggs1/2 Cup White Sugar1/2 Cup Soft Brown Sugar3/4 Cup Pumpkin Puree1 Egg1/4 Cup Brown Sugar1/4 Cup Heavy Cream1/4 Tsp. Pumpkin Spice MixA pinch of SaltInstructionsFor the Brownies:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. In a medium sized pan, heat the butter and sugar until just hot.
3. Remove from heat then add ½ cup of the chocolate chips and stir until it has all melted.
4. Leave to cool for 5 minutes, then beat your eggs into the mixture in the pan one at a
time
5. Add the flour and cocoa and beat well together.
6. Stir in the rest of the chocolate chips and ½ of the pecans (I omitted the pecans in my brownie mix and saved them all for toppings). Pour the brownie mix into
your lined baking tray.For the Pumpkin Mixture:
1. Beat all the mixture ingredients together well in a bowl using a hand whisk or wooden
spoon, then pour over the top of the brownies. Spoon the pumpkin mix on top in large dollops and roughly swirl / fold the pumpkin into the
brownie mix.
2. Roughly chop the remaining pecans and sprinkle on top. ( I bought chopped pecans, but chopped them down even more.)
3. Bake in the oven for 40 minutes. It will be ready when a crust has formed on the top.
4. Leave to cool, then transfer to a wire rack, cut into cubes and enjoy.
DetailsPrep time: 15 mins Cook time: 40 mins Total time: 55 mins Yield: 16 Servings

For a video tutorial on how to make these brownies, you can find it on Ghirardelli’s website here.
In case you need another reason to bake these brownies, or any other treat, Saturday December 5th is Ghirardelli Baking Day. This has been officially declared a National Holiday in San Francisco by Mayor Ed Lee and you are invited to bake the day away and participate for a chance to win some sweet prizes (like a KitchenAid Mixer or Ghirardelli baking products) by using #sweetestsecret on your social posts. Details and conditions can be found on the Facebook Event page. The day will be full of holiday recipes centered around the sweet not-so-secret ingredients of Ghirardelli chocolate as well as Tips and Tricks from Baking Experts Caroline Artiss and Gemma Stafford. (Gemma Stafford is the creator of this brownie recipe!)
Baking in silence is no fun and I always listen to music when I am baking or decorating in my kitchen. Ghirardelli must have known this and has a Spotify playlist to get you in the mood to bake for the holidays. I’ll be participating on Saturday and hope you’ll find some inspiration to bake too.
Enjoy the brownies and stay tuned for more baking posts this month!

This post was sponsored by Ghirardelli. All opinions expressed are my own.