Brownie Hearts w/ Raspberry Buttercream and Fresh Raspberries

We were up in Chicago visiting last week and to top off the craziness that comes along with staying in a non child-proofed home for that long, we decided to throw a little Valentine's day lunch date. My mom likes planning parties as much as I do and this one was her idea! It was a very small get together (5 people plus my kids) that just kind of came together perfectly by the end of the week.We brainstormed for a few days and came up with a quick and easy menu that had hardly any prep work.

The menu consisted of:


DRINKS
Prosecco w/ Cran-Grape Hearts (adult beverage)

Tropical (junior water) w/ Cran-Grape Hearts (kiddie drink)

APPETIZER
Tomato and Fresh Mozzarella Skewers drizzled with Balsamic Vinaigrette

MAIN COURSE
Tomato and Roasted Red Pepper Soup w/baby goldfish crackers
Mini Hot Ham and Cheese Sandwiches (I will post this recipe soon)

forgot to take a pretty finished picture of these with the soup

DESSERT
Brownie Hearts w/ Raspberry Buttercream and Fresh Raspberries

The brownie recipe I used for the hearts was from Martha Stewart. I just changed it up by baking it in a heart shaped 'doughnut' pan and adjusting the baking time.

• Vegetable oil, cooking spray
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
• 3 sticks unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 12 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 3 cups sugar
• 6 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray heart shaped pan with non-stick cooking spray. Coat an 8-inch square cake pan with cooking spray, line bottom with parchment, then spray parchment.
   
2. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Place butter and chocolate in a heatproof mixer bowl set over a pot of simmering water, stirring until chocolate melts.
   
3. Attach bowl to mixer, add sugar, and whisk on medium-high speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time, then vanilla. Reduce speed to low, and add flour mixture.
   
4. Fill each heart shaped cavity with about 2 T. of batter. Bake until set but still soft, about 5 minutes or until top springs back when touched. Pour remaining batter into square pan and bake about 18 minutes. about 3/4 of the way through baking, pull the pan out and add sprinkles if you'd like. Let cool in tins and pan on wire racks.
   
5. Cut out hearts from brownie in pan using a heart-shaped cutter approximately the size of the inside of the heart cavity. Fill each heart with 3 raspberries. Pipe raspberry buttercream onto hearts. Add sprinkles of your choice. Top with a mini heart brownie.

 Raspberry Buttercream (adapted from Martha Stewart's Basic Buttercream recipe)

• 2 sticks butter
• 1C. powdered sugar
• 1/4 C. half and half
• 3/4 tsp. raspberry flavoring 

Mix everything together until well combined!

I decorated the leftover brownies with the buttercream and valentines cupcake decorations. 

The brownies were so rich and chocolaty and the raspberry buttercream was so flavorful and creamy. This was a winning combination in my book!

**A special thank you to my Mom for buying me the heart shaped doughnut pan that made this recipe possible!