Chelsea's Messy Apron

Simple, healthy recipes without sacrificing taste!

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Brownie Bites

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Fudge-y, chocolate-loaded, molten Brownie Bites are easy from-scratch brownies filled with chocolate that stays gooey!  Brownie Bites are like miniature molten-lava cookie cups.

Up close stack of finished Brownie Bites with oozing melted chocolate.

My two all-time favorite desserts are brownies and cookies. Even though I’m not very original, it’s true. So what happens when you combine the two into a cookie-brownie hybrid? Well, this just might be my new favorite treat!

These mini bites of chewy, soft, fudge-y brownies feature a chocolate center that stays soft and melty. And that makes them kind of like a miniature molten lava cake, doesn’t it? Molten lava cookie-cake? Yes, please!

Brownie Bites are made from scratch, and yet, they’re so simple to make. They’re quick to whip together and truly impressive tasting. You’ll find a quick photo overview below of the process for making Brownie Bites, and that’s  followed by a few tips for success.

Process shot-- images of the steps to make Brownie Bites.

How to make Brownie Bites:

  1. Measure dry ingredients: Flour, cocoa powder, brown sugar, white sugar, baking powder, salt, and miniature chocolate chips.
  2. Mix dry ingredients until combined.
  3. Combine semi-sweet chocolate chips and butter.
  4. Microwave in bursts of 15 seconds, stirring in between each burst, until melted and smooth.
  5. Add in egg and mix until smooth.
  6. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients, using a spatula to blend every bit of wet into the dry.
  7. Gently mix to combine; do not over-mix.
  8. Use a tablespoon measuring spoon to measure dough into each mini-muffin cavity.
  9. Yield will be about 15 Brownie Bites.
  10. Chop a chocolate bar into small squares.
  11. Place the squares of chocolate right on top of the unbaked brownie. Don’t press down or cover with dough.
  12. Bake! Here’s how they look fresh from the oven.

Up close plate of of finished Brownie Bites with oozing melted chocolate.

Brownie Bites tips

  • Generously grease your miniature muffin tin with cooking spray. If your baking pan typically sticks, add a light dusting of cocoa powder or flour. Here are my favorite mini muffin pan they work like a charm. (Not sponsored; affiliate link).
  • Use Dutch process cocoa powder: The cocoa powder really makes these Brownie Bites swoon worthy. Seriously! Definitely use Dutch process cocoa powder (as opposed to regular cocoa powder),  because regular cocoa powder makes Brownie Bites less flavorful. If you’d like to learn more about why Dutch cocoa is a better choice, you can read an informative article here. Here’s the exact cocoa powder I use and love (affiliate link).
  • Allow time to cool: Right out of the oven, these little gems look irresistibly fudge-y and delicious; however, they need some time to set. The chocolate center stays “molten” and soft for quite a while, so allow time for the rest of the brownie to firm up. Chocolate chips resist melting and firm up quickly so that’s why we use a chocolate bar. Brownie Bites are best after cooling for about 45 minutes to an hour; they’re soft, chewy, and the center is still gooey.

More chocolate desserts:

5 from 7 votes
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Brownie Bites
Prep Time
20 mins
Cook Time
10 mins
Standing time (in pan)
15 mins
Total Time
45 mins
 

Fudge-y, chocolate loaded, molten Brownie Bites are easy from-scratch brownies filled with gooey melty chocolate. These Brownie Bites are like miniature molten-lava cookie cups!

Course: Dessert, Snack
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Brownie Bites
Servings: 15 brownie bites
Ingredients
  • 1/3 cup white flour
  • 1 and 1/2 tablespoons Dutch process cocoa powder See Note 1
  • 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons white sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon EACH: baking powder, fine sea salt
  • 1/4 cup miniature chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 (4 ounce) Lindt dark chocolate bar or a milk chocolate bar
  • Optional: Maldon sea salt flakes
Instructions

  1. DRY INGREDIENTS: Combine the 1/3 cup white flour, 1 and 1/2 tablespoons dutch process cocoa powder, 1/4 cup light brown sugar, 2 tablespoons white sugar, 1/4 teaspoon baking soda, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 cup miniature chocolate chips. Whisk to combine and then set aside.

  2. WET INGREDIENTS:Use a separate small microwave-safe bowl to combine 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips with 2 tablespoons butter. Microwave for 25 seconds, stir for 15 seconds, and return to the microwave for another 15 seconds. Remove and stir until smooth (return to the microwave another 15 seconds as needed until melted). The mixture will be thick. Stir until smooth and at room temperature. Add in the egg and stir again until smooth.

  3. COMBINE: Use a spatula to scrape all of the wet ingredients into the dry. Mix until completely combined. It may not seem like it's coming together at first, but keep stirring until you have a thick dough. Scrape the edges of the bowl as needed and don't over-mix.

  4. BAKE: Generously grease a mini muffin tin (these don't work in regular sized muffin tins) with cooking spray. Use a tablespoon measuring spoon to measure out dough and place in each mini muffin pan cavity. You should get 15 cookies. Open the chocolate bar. There should be large squares; cut each chocolate square into 4 smaller squares and gently place one square into the top of each cookie. Don't press it down much; it doesn't need to be covered by dough. Bake for 10-12 minutes, being careful to not over-bake, so these stay soft and fudgy.

  5. REMOVE: Remove the pan from the oven and let stand for 10-15 minutes or until firm enough to easily coax out of the muffin tin. I use a dessert spoon and tines of a fork to gently pull them out. They are a bit gooey coming out of the oven so they need time to firm up. It's okay if the middle sinks a little, because it will stay soft from that chocolate added in the center. Because we're using a chocolate bar instead of chocolate chips (that are resistant to melting), the chocolate should stay soft and gooey for about 45 minutes after baking. If you want gooey leftovers, microwave any remaining cookies for 5-10 seconds. If you like salty sweet flavors, add a sprinkle of Maldon sea salt flakes to the top of these.

  6. Enjoy warm.

Recipe Notes

Note 1: Brownie Bites need Dutch process cocoa powder instead of standard cocoa; read the post for my favorite or use Hershey's Special Dark cocoa powder.

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Comments

  11. Jess @ On Sugar Mountain says

    oh man Chelsea these are so going into my holiday baking plans! As if I need to add more baking to that huge list but DUDE I am going to make room for these because they are brownies and cookies all in one awesome bite! 😀

    Reply

  22. [email protected] says

    Ok, so when I went to pin these little cuties, I had to literally pin them onto three different boards so I would be certain that I could trace back to them (brownies, cookies and cake). That is just how insane they are! You are slowly taking over my Pinterest account. 🙂

    Reply

  23. Olivia - Primavera Kitchen says

    5 stars
    Molten lava cakes are my FAVOURITE!!!!! These look absolutely AMAZING, Chelsea! I have to make this recipe her win Brazil for my family! They love when I make something that is not very popular here in Brazil cause they enjoy to try new things. I’ll pin it for later 😉

    Reply

  27. Julia Stearns says

    5 stars
    These fudgy molten lava brookie cups are so Instagrammable and adorable! As you know I made it a short while ago and it was lovely! Thx for sharing!

    Reply

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