This easy recipe for the best raspberry white chocolate brownies yields dark chocolate brownie bars with a chewy edge and a fudgy center (but not too fudgy). You can keep them plain or incorporate nuts or seeds to garnish them.
How do you like your brownies? Do you prefer fudgy brownies or chewy brownies? Do you like to eat the centrepiece or an edge? The trouble is there's no such thing as perfect.
What I would call the perfect brownie might be your least favourite iteration. The fact is that I cannot come up with a brownie recipe that will please everyone because we all like different things.
This recipe makes brownies that I think are the perfect brownie: a brownie with chewy edges and a fudgy middle. It's a variation on the recipe for classic brownies with walnuts and one I've jazzed up for Easter, topping the brownies with Mini Eggs. I've even used this base recipe to make gluten-free brownies with millet flour and a peanut butter swirl!
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What You Need to Make Raspberry Brownies
Most every brownie recipe you'll come across all have the same basic ingredients, but a few are key to achieving the desired texture:
- Fat: I prefer to bake with butter, melting it with the chocolate. The water in the butter will help dissolve the sugars, which in turn contributes to a shiny crust on top. Butter also provides more flavour.
- Chocolate, preferably semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate with at least 70 % cocoa solids. If you use chocolate chips, these have a lot of sugar and you may need to adjust this recipe
- Sugar (granulated and/or brown sugar): choose granulated sugar if you like to have that shiny paper-thin flaky crust on top of brownies and use more sugar to make sure it forms. Superfine sugar dissolves even faster and will help you achieve a shiny top
- Eggs: in brownies, you often see little to no leavening agents used and so the moisture from the eggs acts as a leavening agent here but also helps dissolve the sugar to make a shiny top
- Flour: the less flour you use, the more fudgy the brownies will be, but I find too little can lead to a brownie that is too dense and too greasy. I like to add enough flour to brownie batter so that it can absorb the fat and lead to a more chewy texture that's not so moist
- Cocoa powder—use Dutch-processed cocoa powder to give the brownies a deeper chocolate flavour that dark chocolate alone can't
- Leavening agents: classic brownies don't have leavening agents, but like with cookies, you can add just a little baking powder so that the brownies rise taller yielding a slightly less dense, more open texture.
- Other flavour ingredients: you may see vanilla extract and even espresso powder to further enhance the flavour. Bitter coffee notes are known to enhance the chocolate flavour.
- Raspberries: I used fresh raspberries, which I sprinkled over top. Be careful if you want to use frozen brownies, they may be too wet in this recipe, leading to a gummy texture!
- White chocolate: invest in better quality white chocolate made from cocoa butter, sugar, and milk solids, as opposed to white baking chips which aren't actually chocolate.
Please see the recipe card for the exact ingredients and quantities.
Substitutions
After a few attempts and many, many brownies consumed, I ended up with this recipe, where some of the cocoa in a typical brownie recipe is replaced with dark chocolate. If you need help making baking substitutions, check out my guide for how to replace the cocoa powder with dark chocolate (and vice versa).
Brownies are made from a simple list of ingredients and your substitution options are limited. Here are some places where you can deviate:
- dark chocolate: I used 70 % dark chocolate from Cacao Barry. This is a semi-sweet chocolate verging on bittersweet. If you don't have access to this brand of chocolate, feel free to use a Lindt dark chocolate bar or any high-quality chocolate with at least 50 % cocoa content. If you are unsure, read about the different types of chocolate for baking.
- cocoa powder: I used a Cacao Barry brand cocoa powder called Extra Brute. It is a Dutch-processed cocoa powder that is a dark colour with a reddish tint and higher in fat. You can replace it with any brand of Dutch-processed cocoa powder, but a lower-fat cocoa powder will have an impact on the texture of the brownies.
- sugar: I used granulated sugar (white sugar), but feel free to use a combination of brown sugar and white sugar if you prefer. Do not use icing sugar. Superfine sugar works very well in this recipe and creates a shinier brownie crust on top.
- raspberries: I used fresh raspberries—frozen raspberries may work but could also lead to a wet layer on the surface of the brownie if they release too much water. Proceed with caution!
- nuts: Feel free to add chopped walnuts to the brownie batter if you like nuts in your brownies!
Types of Chocolate For Brownies
When you make brownies with chocolate, ideally you should use the best chocolate for baking you can get, specifically dark chocolate that has a deep, dark flavour and that isn't overly sweet.
To make these one-bowl brownies, I used Ocoa chocolate from Cacao Barry, which is a 70% cocoa dark chocolate with a rich chocolate flavour. You can find it at IGA grocery stores in Quebec in 1-kilo resealable bags.
If you don't live in Quebec, you can order this chocolate online (and many other Cacao Barry products) via the Vanilla Food Company website. They ship across Canada and to the United States! This means that we all have access to professional quality chocolates at the click of a button. They also carry two types of Cacao Barry cocoa powders, which I highly recommend.
How to Make One-Bowl Brownies
The beauty of these white chocolate raspberry brownies is that the brownie batter is mixed in the same bowl you use to melt the butter and chocolate. This means fewer dirty dishes and an easier way of assembling the ingredients without any fuss.
Step 1: Combine the butter and dark chocolate in a large bowl set over a pan of water (image 1). Heat the water on the stove until it simmers and let the butter and chocolate slowly melt together until smooth and glossy (image 2).
Step 2: Take the pan off the heat and add the sugar to the bowl of melted chocolate and butter (image 3). Then whisk in the eggs one at a time (image 4), adding the next egg only when the previous one is completely mixed in.
Step 3: Sift the dry ingredients together (image 5) because cocoa tends to create lumps, then add the dry ingredients to the bowl of brownie batter and stir it in (image 6). Fold in the white chocolate chunks (image 7).
Step 4: Spread the brownie batter in a square brownie pan using a mini offset spatula (image 8), then scatter a few raspberries and extra white chocolate chunks (image 9). Bake until the edges and top of the brownies are set, but the centre will still be a little fudgy (image 10). Let cool before cutting into squares.
Brownie Baking Tips
Please use a metal pan to bake brownies. The bars will have a better texture if you bake them in a metal pan. If you use a glass pan, they may be more dense. Read all about the different types of baking pans to understand the difference.
Don't overbake your brownies! These white chocolate brownies are moist and have a fudgy middle, but they aren't too dense. The edges are a little chewy. I baked these brownies for 35 minutes to ensure chewy edges with a fudgy middle because that's how I like them. Feel free to bake them even less for a gooey centre.
If you overbake these, the top will be less shiny and the brownies may be dry.
Serving Suggestions
Brownies are greatly enjoyed as is, but you can also eat them "à la mode," topped with vanilla bean ice cream or dark chocolate ice cream. Another favourite of mine is to serve these with Oreo ice cream or mint chocolate chip.
Brownie Baking FAQs
If you struggle to cut brownies because they stick to your knife, try using a plastic knife instead of metal! The plastic cuts cleanly through brownies without sticking. You can also use the straight edge of a plastic bowl scraper.
The shiny top on brownies comes from dissolved sugar. Make your brownie batter with superfine sugar, which dissolves faster and more easily than granulated. Also don't overbake brownies because this will also reduce the shine on top.
Some bakers like to whip the eggs with the sugar to encourage the sugar to dissolve, but I find this isn't necessary.
Other Bar Recipes
If you like these brownies, here are more dessert bar recipes to bake:
If you tried this recipe for the best raspberry white chocolate brownies (or any other recipe on my website), please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you!
📖 Recipe
Raspberry White Chocolate Brownies
Ingredients
- 115 grams unsalted butter
- 175 grams dark chocolate (70 % cocoa content) or your favourite semi-sweet or bittersweet dark chocolate
- 250 grams granulated sugar
- 3 large egg(s)
- 95 grams bleached all-purpose flour
- 45 grams Cacao Barry extra brute cocoa powder or your favourite Dutch processed cocoa powder, sifted to remove lumps
- 2.5 mL Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt
- 100 grams white chocolate plus a little extra for garnishing, coarsely chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF (175 °C). Butter a 9x9-inch (23x23-cm) brownie pan. Line the bottom with parchment. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, melt together the butter and the chocolate. You can do this over a pan of simmering water or in the microwave at power level 5, pausing from time to time to stir a little so that the mixture heats evenly.
- Add the granulated sugar to the bowl of melted chocolate and butter, and stir it in.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well between each addition. Dump in the flour, cocoa powder, and salt, and stir it in.
- Fold in the chopped white chocolate.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the surface with a mini offset spatula. Sprinkle with extra chopped white chocolate and fresh raspberries.
Notes
- This brownie recipe fits in a metal 9x9" square pan.
- Use a metal pan which is a better heat conductor than glass. Brownies baked in a glass pan may take longer to bake but also may overbake after removing them from the oven as the glass retains the heat for longer.
- For the dark chocolate, I used Cacao Barry Ocoa 70 % dark chocolate. If you don't have access to this brand of chocolate, feel free to use a Lindt dark chocolate bar or any high-quality chocolate with at least 50 % cocoa content. If you are unsure what the cocoa content means, read about the different types of chocolate for baking.
- For the cocoa powder: I used a Cacao Barry brand cocoa powder called Extra Brute. It is a Dutch-processed cocoa powder that is a dark colour with a reddish tint and higher in fat. You can replace it with any brand of Dutch-processed cocoa powder, but a lower-fat cocoa powder will have an impact on the texture of the brownies.
- For the sugar, I used granulated sugar (white sugar), but feel free to use a combination of brown sugar and white sugar if you prefer. Do not use icing sugar. Superfine sugar works very well in this recipe and creates a shinier brownie crust on top.
- Raspberries: I used fresh raspberries—frozen raspberries may work but could also lead to a wet layer on the surface of the brownie if they release too much water. Proceed with caution!
- nuts: Feel free to add chopped walnuts to the brownie batter if you like nuts in your brownies!
- To cut the brownies easily and cleanly into squares, use a plastic bowl scraper or a plastic knife! Don't use a metal knife because it may stick. Chilling the brownies before cutting helps.
Nutrition
This post is sponsored by Cacao Barry. I was compensated monetarily and with product. Thanks for supporting the companies that allow me to create content . As always, please know that I wouldn’t work with a sponsor nor recommend a product if it wasn’t worth it.
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