These Cherry Chocolate Brownies are super easy to make in just one bowl. They are rich, moist, and outrageously chocolatey, with a fudgy texture, and loads of fresh chopped cherries. Plus, they get bonus points for having a shiny, crackly top. Not cherry season? Make it without cherries!
Although brownies are usually baked in a 9x13 rectangle or 8x8 square baking pan and then cut into squares, as in almond flour brownies, they can also be made in a cast iron skillet.
They often have a gooey, fudgy center and a crispy edge, thanks to the cast iron skillet's ability to distribute heat evenly.
Skillet brownies are typically served warm with a scoop of ice cream, where the ice cream begins to melt into the warm brownie, making it the ultimate decadence.
It works particularly well when incorporating chopped fresh cherries into the brownies, as sometimes the presence of cherries can make it challenging to cut them into neat squares.
This cherry chocolate brownie recipe is a slight modification of the brownie recipe found on loveandlemons.com, which itself originates from the Weeknight Baking cookbook.
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Why you'll love it?
- Basic pantry ingredients
- Chockfull of fresh sweet cherries
- Easy one-bowl recipe
- Outrageously chocolatey
- Fudgy texture
- Shiny, crackly top
Ingredients
Scroll down to the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and amounts.
- Cherries - Use sweet, ripe fresh in-season cherries as in black forest mug cake.
- All purpose flour - Flour is essential in every baking recipe! It provides the needed structure. Remember to fluff up your flour before measuring to make sure you're adding the correct amount and not too much.
- Cocoa powder - I use Hersheys natural unsweetened cocoa powder.
- Powdered sugar – It contains cornstarch, which thickens the cherry chocolate brownies batter, giving it a fudgy texture rather than cake-like.
- Semi sweet chocolate chips - Although you can make cherry chocolate brownies without chocolate chips, the addition of melty bits of chocolate makes them even more chocolatey and decadent.
- Oil - While many recipes for brownies use unsalted butter, oil makes it moist and fudgy.
- Sugar - While one and a quarter cups of sugar may seem like a lot, it's essential for providing the necessary sweetness and balancing the deep, dark cocoa powder.
- Eggs - Essential for helping the brownies puff up in the oven, like the Nutella brownies, because there is no leavening used in the cherry chocolate brownies recipe.
Substitutions and Variations
- Not cherry season? Skip the cherries
- Use almond extract or cherry liquor to give a black forest cake vibe.
- Skip the chocolate chips or use dark or white chocolate chips.
How to make?
You can find full printable recipe below, but here is a quick overview of the procedure along with step-by-step photos.
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Tip: Skip the skillet and use a 8x8 inch square baking pan instead. Also, you can halve the recipe to bake in a 6-inch skillet or double the recipe to bake in a 9x13 inch pan.
Step 7 - Bake at 325 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes.
Pro tip: It's better to remove the cherry brownies from the oven a bit early than to overbake them. Bake until a toothpick inserted comes out with just a crumbs attached.
To serve - If you prefer serving it directly from the cast iron skillet, enjoy them warm, topped with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. If you plan to slice them into wedges, allow them to cool completely to reduce the likelihood of crumbles while slicing.
How to store?
- Room temperature: Store any leftovers at room temperature in an airtight container for 2 to 3 days.
- Fridge: Refrigerate the cooled brownies in an airtight container for up to a week. Allow them to sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before enjoying.
- Freezer: They can also be frozen for up to a month.
Tip: Make sure to transfer the brownies from the skillet to an airtight container before refrigerating or freezing them.
Helpful tips
- Skillet -I prefer using a cast iron skillet for baking because it's oven-safe. If you're using a different type of skillet, ensure that it doesn't have any rubber handles and that it's completely oven-safe.
- Don't overbake - Bake until a toothpick inserted comes out with just a few crumbs attached, for the fudgy texture.
More easy desserts
Cherry Chocolate Brownies
Ingredients
- 1 cup chopped Cherries (about 8 ounces whole cherries)
- 2 Eggs large
- ½ cup Vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ cups Sugar
- ¾ cup All purpose flour
- ⅔ cup Cocoa powder
- ½ cup Powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ½ cup Semi sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. Lightly spray a 9 or 10 inch cast iron skillet with cooking spray. If you are using a 8x8 square baking pan, I recommend greasing and lining it with parchment paper. It makes it so much easier to remove it from the pan.
- Prep cherries - Remove the pits and cut each cherry into 4 to 6 pieces, depending on their size. Measure 1 cup.
- Add eggs, oil and vanilla into a large bowl and whisk together.
- Add the sugar and whisk until very smooth.
- Place a sieve over the bowl. Pour the flour, cocoa powder, powdered sugar and salt into the sieve, then softly tap or shake it until all the dry ingredients are sifted into the bowl, breaking any lumps with the back of a spoon.
- Stir in chopped cherries and chocolate chips, using a spatula. Transfer batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly.
- Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with crumbs attached. It's better to remove the brownies from the oven a bit early than to leave them in too long.
- Serve warm topped with vanilla ice cream or cool completely before slicing.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information, based on third-party calculations, should be seen as estimates, not guarantees, as various factors like product types, brands, processing methods, and more can alter the nutritional content in recipes.
Recipe is slightly modified from Loveandlemon.com.
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Maggie
This looks amazing, can we use frozen cherries?