Pink velvet oreo brownies

These brownies are incredibly fudgy and they have some extra, special add ins just for Valentine's day!

I feel like red velvet gets a lot of hype around Valentine's day, so I wanted to make something with a pink color for the holiday. These brownies have golden oreos folded into the center and they're topped with a perfectly pink buttercream frosting and a bit more crushed oreo for good measure! Think of it like a slice of sheet cake, with a deep chocolate and vanilla flavor.

The brownie layer is made with no special equipment. The end result has lots of chocolate flavor and a fudgy texture. You'll reserve a little bit of your brownie batter, press your golden Oreos in and then use the reserved batter to spread on top to ensure full coverage.

Once your brownies are baked and cooled, you'll make your buttercream frosting. The main flavor is vanilla, but it does have a bit of cocoa powder in it too. This helps with the coloring of the frosting and also gives it just a hint of chocolate flavor.

I went through a lot of different trials with food coloring. In the end, I liked this food color powder the best from McCormick, but any pink food coloring will work great. If I try any others I like, I'll be sure to update this post and share. You could also absolutely use a red food coloring. Whatever food coloring you choose, just remember to add it slowly because you can always add, but you can't remove!

These brownies are a great bake ahead option to celebrate Valentine's day because they freeze well and can also be baked ahead and stored in the fridge for at least a few days. I know Valentine's day is a silly holiday, but I love any excuse to bake something for myself or loved ones - so why not bake some pink brownies! The pink color is totally optional...but again, why not?

Ingredients: Brownies

• 1 stick (8 tablespoons, 1/2 cup) unsalted butter

• 2/3 cup (4 oz) semisweet chocolate

• 1/3 cup light brown sugar

• 3/4 cup granulated sugar

• 3 large eggs

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1/2 cup all purpose flour

• 1/3 cup cocoa powder

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 9 golden Oreos

Topping

• 1 stick (8 tablespoons, 1/2 cup) unsalted butter at room temperature

• 3/4 cup powdered sugar

• 1 teaspoon milk (I used 2%)

• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

• 1 teaspoon cocoa powder

• Pink food coloring of choice optional

• 1 golden Oreo

Total time: 3-5 hours including chill time Prep time: About 25 minutes Bake time: 24-26 minutes

Chill time: 2-4 hours

Equipment:

• 9x9 square pan (or 8x8)

• Whisk and spatula

• Parchment paper

• Stand mixer with paddle attachment*

*You can use a hand mixer instead for your frosting. A whisk can work too but I recommend using a mixer if you have one. Cooking instructions: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. And if you haven't already, take your eggs and butter out of the fridge to let them come to room temperature.

Make your brownies. In a large bowl, melt your butter in the microwave. Add in all of your semisweet chocolate (chopped or chips), stir to coat your chocolate with the melted butter, and then place back into the microwave for another 15-30 seconds. Leave your mixture be for about a minute, and then use your whisk to combine your chocolate and butter fully. Into your bowl, add in both sugars and continue to whisk. Next, add your eggs one at a time, continuing to whisk and adding the next egg once the last is fully incorporated. Continue whisking until your batter lightens in color and thickens, a few minutes. Add in your vanilla extract and whisk until fully incorporated. At this point, you'll incorporate your dry ingredients. Add in your flour, cocoa powder, and salt and use a spatula or large spoon to fold your dry ingredients in. Move slowly here and be sure to only mix as much as necessary.

Line a 9x9in square pan (or you can use an 8x8 pan and increase the cook time a bit) with parchment paper. I recommend ensuring all sides of the pan are lined, or you can lightly grease. Reserving a few tablespoons, dollop the rest of your brownie batter in and gently spread flat. Place your 9 golden Oreos into your brownie batter in three lines and gently press in. Then, cover your Oreos with the reserved batter and use any flat tool, or even a spoon, to lightly spread your mixture so that it is even and covering the Oreos completely.

Place your brownies into the oven to bake for 24 to 26 minutes. They should just barely jiggle when you pull them out of the oven but be set on the top.

Remove your brownies and allow them to cool fully. This will take a few hours at room temperature but you can speed this process up in the fridge or freezer once the brownies have been out of the oven for about an hour.

When your brownies have cooled fully, make your frosting. Into your stand mixer with the paddle attachment, or you can use a large bowl and hand mixer, add your room temperature stick of butter. Turn your mixer on at a medium to high speed for a minute. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of your bowl and the paddle attachment. Add in your powdered sugar and turn your mixer back up to a high speed slowly and leave it to combine for about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of your bowl and your paddle attachment again.

Add in your milk, vanilla extract, and cocoa powder and turn your mixer on again at a high speed to combine fully. Scrape down your mixer and paddle again.

Now it's time to incorporate your food coloring. Add your food coloring in small amounts until you reach your desired color. If you're using drops, add one drop at a time, and if you use a powder add about 1/4 teaspoon or less at a time. Before you add more coloring, be sure that the last addition has incorporated fully and scrape down the sides of your bowl and paddle attachment often.

Frost and finish your brownies. Once your frosting is the color you'd like, spread it on top of your brownies. Then, break up your remaining golden Oreo into small pieces and crumbs and sprinkle it over the top of your frosting however you'd like.

For the easiest slicing, place your brownies into the freezer or fridge for at least an hour until the frosting is firm. When you're ready to slice, remove your brownies from the pan and use a sharp knife to cut into 16 squares. You can also cut into 9 large squares and then diagonally into 18 triangles. Once sliced, you can store the brownies in the fridge for about 5 days, or store in the freezer to eat any time! I think they taste great just out of the freezer, but I usually give them about 5-10 minutes at room temperature before enjoying.

If you aren't able to or don't want to slice your brownies right away, you can also freeze the full pan of brownies unsliced overnight.

Carb and serving info: Carbs for full recipe: 528 Carbs per serving (1 of 16): 33

Carbs per serving (1 of 18): 29

Carbs from Oreos: 83

Carbs from frosting: 92

Note: Carb information is calculated based on the specific ingredients I used to cook with to help guide my own insulin to carb ratio when dosing before I eat my home cooked recipes.