Rich, dark and delicious, these triple chocolate ale brownies are super tasty. Not as sweet as most brownies, but smooth and mousse-like inside with a lovely crackly top.
Quite some time ago now, I won some tickets from Foodies South West to go to the Beer Festival at the St Austell Brewery. A beer festival is not something either I or CT had ever attended before and I think it’s rather unlikely we shall ever attend one again. My motivation was the opportunity to sample a chocolate beer that would be featuring there. Chocolate beer? Well I couldn’t resist could I.
Chocolate Beer
In my naivety, I assumed that if we turned up early, 11:30am, all would be quiet, we could try a couple of unusual beers, get some chocolate beer to take home and go before it started to get crowded. It didn’t quite turn out like I imagined. The doors had only opened half an hour before we got there, but the place was already heaving and a long queue had formed at the entrance. We eventually got in and were given 3 tickets each to get half pints of any beer we wanted.
Having fought our way down to the cellars and through the maze of barrels to get our drinks (I’ve sadly lost the names for these now), we tried to find somewhere to sit and sup our hard won halves. No such luck, all seats had long gone. It was standing room only and not much of that either. There was only one thing for it: to drink our beer.
The chocolate beer was actually quite nice, smooth and creamy with definite cocoa notes. Not being much of a drinker, it very quickly went to my head. I fought my way, rather unsteadily, back to the chocolate beer barrel and got another couple of halves. These two were destined, not to be downed immediately, but for the bottle that we had cunningly brought with us to take home and use in chocolate baking.
By this time, we had had enough. It was noisy, uncomfortable, dark (the sun was shining outside) and smelt rather too strongly of spilt beer and BO. But we still had two tickets left – what to do? I was just on the point of giving them to the first person who caught my fancy, when I bumped into an old friend who definitely likes his beer. He was more than happy to relieve us of the tickets.
Triple Chocolate Ale Brownies
Back in October, I had spotted a recipe for Young’s Double Chocolate Stout Brownies on Andys Kitchen and was just waiting for the right time to give it a whirl. Of course, I had to go one better and make mine into triple chocolate beer brownies.
Like most brownies, the recipe is very simple and it really doesn’t take long to prepare. The original recipe stated 250ml of stout, but as mine was beer I only used 200ml. My reason for this was because I didn’t want to make the batter too thin and stout is much thicker than ordinary ale.
Goodness, did these triple chocolate ale brownies smell good. They tasted really good too. Rich, dark and delicious. They should come with an Adult Only warning though. For the malty and bitter notes of the dark chocolate combined with the beer mean these are not at all sweet. Well maybe a bit sweet but you know what I mean.
I read somewhere that these sort of brownies will not produce a crisp top due to the amount of liquid. After all normal brownies contain no liquid at all. So I was delighted to find that mine were lovely and crackly all over the top.
The texture inside is smooth, mousse-like and rather moreish. Despite their irresistibility, we managed to keep them going for a few days. And like most brownies, they improved with age. They even survived me dropping the tin on the floor from a considerable height. I’m beginning to wonder whether I should patent them as the Indestructible Brownies TM.
CT smelt the beer straight off. Is it going to be like a steak and ale pie he wondered? Sadly not. He described it as being a working man’s brownie. The bitterness of the beer gives it a savoury tang and he wondered if he should be eating it in a room with a sawdust floor. It reminded him of Christy Moore’s song about “drinking black beer in the same public houses, smelling of smoke and strong whiskey”.
He also suggested that sticking one of these triple chocolate ale brownies in the sweet side of a Cornish tin miner’s pasty would make him very happy.
I’m really going to have to stop CT and his free association – he’s getting a bit keen on all this. I suppose it is only his usual round about way of saying that he really enjoyed these brownies.
Other Beer Recipes You Might Like
- Black velvet cheesecake swirl brownies with stout caramel sauce
- Chocolate ale fruit cake
- Chocolate Guinness cake
- Raisin & ale chocolate cake
Keep in Touch
Thanks for visiting Tin and Thyme. If you make these triple chocolate ale brownies, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below. And do please rate the recipe. Have you any top tips? Do share photos on social media too and use the hashtag #tinandthyme, so I can spot them.
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Choclette x
Triple Chocolate Ale Brownies. PIN IT.
Triple Chocolate Ale Brownies – The Recipe
Triple Chocolate Ale Brownies
Ingredients
- 150 g dark chocolate (I used 100g 85% and 50g 70%)
- 175 g unsalted butter
- 200 g dark brown sugar
- 2 large eggs (I used duck eggs)
- 75 g wholemeal flour
- 50 g cocoa powder
- 200 ml chocolate beer or other dark ale
Instructions
- Melt the chocolate in a large bowl suspended over hot, but not boiling water along with the butter.
- Once melted mix in the sugar.
- Beat in the eggs until the mixture is thick and glossy.
- Sift in the flour and cocoa then fold in.
- Stir in the chocolate beer as carefully as you can.
- Pour into a 22 cm (9") sq silicon cake mould or lined tin and bake at 180℃ (350℉, Gas 4) for 20 mins. Or until the top is risen and crackly, but there's still a slight wobble in the middle of the bake.
- Leave to cool then cut into 16 squares.
Choclette says
Aveen – you could send some my way – our house is sadly bereft of cakes. This weekend, I’ve been baking for others. I think Guinness and stout just add to the serious richness of chocolate. Do give them a go if you can bare any more cake.
Aveen says
I made a guinness cake for St Patrick’s Day and I wonder if it was a bit like these – very very rich and while you couldn’t really tell it was stout in there, there was definitely a flavour of something other than chocolate. I might give these a go with the leftover guinness, if only I could use up all the cake that seems to be in my house at the moment!
Choclette says
Brittany – they tasted good too 😉
Les rêves d'une boulangère (Brittany) says
These look incredible! I love the look of the texture. A very interesting recipe too
Choclette says
My Little Space – thank you for your kind words.
Anne – the good news if you like beer is that there should be plenty left for you to drink whilst the brownies are cooking 😉
Sarah – I’m with you on the fudgey and moist.
Cupcakegirl – Guinness cake is lovely but so are these brownies.
CityHippy – it’s certainly the best use of beer I can think of too. These were good, but not so good that I have the desire to attend another beer festival any time soon.
Celia – ha ha, shiver me timbers, just keeping up with the good old Cornish smuggling tradition 😉
celia says
Beer and chocolate is a surprisingly good combination in baking! Your brownie looks very moist and fudgey – love the idea of you smuggling IN a bottle, so you could smuggle OUT some beer.. 🙂
cityhippyfarmgirl says
Ha ha ha! I think any miner would be happy to sample some of your ‘working man’s brownie’….Come to think of it, I think it would keep one city hippy farm girl quite happy as well.
Looks dense, rich and the perfect way to put beer to good use I say my girl.
cupcakegirl says
oooh they seel chocolate beer in the supermarket by mine. i might have to try this aswell as guiness cake
Sarah, Maison Cupcake says
These look fantastic, I like my brownies fudgey and moist. Chocolate beer sounds super!
Sarah, Maison Cupcake says
These look fantastic, I like my brownies fudgey and moist. Chocolate beer sounds super!
avillagepantry says
Thanks for this, my husband loves the sound of these and they look soo fudgy and delicious!
Anne says
Oooh the brownies look dark and glossy mmm! I am rather partial to the odd beer so they are very appealing to me!
My Little Space says
I have to agree with Mary. Totally insane! Bookmarked it for later use. Thanks for stopping by my blog earlier. You’ve a very lovely blog here. And thanks for sharing all those wonderful chocolate recipes. Hope to hear from you more often. Have a great day.
Kristy
Choclette says
VBB – hee hee, I guess we live and learn 😉
Oxslip – a brownie festival? Now your talking and you’ve got me thinking.
Carol – shhhhhh!
Thanks Pam
Pam says
They look decadent and delicious!
carol says
Loved this blog and the mental picture of your siphoning the beer into the bottle you had sneaked in… Brilliant x
oxslip says
I really like a half of ale – something nice and light like a summer ale – but am with you on beer festivals. I can’t see the appeal and dig my heels in when anyone tries to drag me to one.
But a brownie festival, featuring these and all your other brownies, that would be a good one to visit. You couldn’t tear my tickets off me at one of those
VegBoxBoy says
I like beer, I like chocolate – but mixing the two is not for me. But liking this post very much; made me chuckle.
I made a worse mistake than you; I once went to the evening session of the London beer festival. Lots of sawdust on the floor to mop up from the over enthusiastic lunch visitors. Not good.
Choclette says
CC – they are triple chocolate after all 😉
Johanna – I’m very lucky, he does tend to laugh me out of various situations!
Mary – hope you like them if you do make them AND manage to hang on to your sanity 😉
Ananda – no no, don’t sell out – just enjoy.
Ananda Rajashekar says
I’m sold out choclette seeing ur brownies divine! 😀
Mary says
I really have to try these. The color alone is enough to drive men mad. Women just go insane :-). It is a wonderful recipe. Have a great day. Blessings…Mary
Johanna GGG says
love the idea of beer in brownies – and CT’s comments – now I hope he was likewise keeping you amused during the beer festival – sounds like you would have needed some cheering up
The Caked Crusader says
I’ve never seen such dark glossy brownies – they look amazing
Choclette says
Nic – I’ve made a few things now with beer and it does seem to have a peculiar affinity to chocolate.
Joanna – good point, who wouldn’t want to smell of chocolate. I’m just wondering if you shouldn’t get yourself a job with ChocLit 😉 Now I do have a little influence over CT – I can bribe him with cake
Manu – they were really good and just got better each day.
Bridgett – sorry to report that they’re all long gone now 🙁
Bridgett ~ La Bella Cook says
Wow, I love how dark and fudgy these look. How divine! Send the extras my way, ok? Please?
Manu says
Such a lovely recipe! I never had chocolate brownies made with beer, it sounds delicious! 🙂
Joanna @ Zeb Bakes says
I will keep my eye out for some of that chocolate brew, I’d love to bake with it too! Gorgeous post Choclette 🙂
So dark and manly, suave and sophisticated and crying out for a main lead role in some advert or other. How about a man’s aftershave based on TCA Brownies? In fact why isn’t chocolate used in scent? You used to get chocolate bath bombs didn’t you….
I love CT’s flight of fantasy, more please CT!
Nicisme says
Beer in brownies, who would have thought that would work so well? Sounds very interesting and decadent to me!
Choclette says
Dom – you might just be missing out. They are surprisingly good. Are you not a beer fan either?
Choclette says
MCB – I’ve made a Guinness cake too, it was really good, but I haven’t made Nigella’s yet. Dan Lepard’s Chocolate, raisin and ale cake is pretty good too.
Hanna – chocolate and beer are one of those combinations that work surprisingly well, especially with the richer beers.
Gloria – thank you
Kath – thank you, glad you enjoyed it. Maybe catch up with you at the next festival then 😉
Jill – thank you. As you’ve probably gathered I’m not much of a beer drinker either, but I do find it goes very nicely in chocolate cake 🙂 Glad you enjoyed the post.
Dom at Belleau Kitchen says
they look interesting… not sure i’d be a huge fan but maybe they could be slathered in a sweet white frosting to look like a head of beer?… I appreciate the fact that you’ve created the recipe based on your chocolate beer find, that’s excellent stuff!
Jill@MadAboutMacarons says
Wow. Chocolate beer?! Amazing. I’m not a beer drinker but can just imagine these are fabulous, especially if not too sweet. Loved your story: can just imagine the scene 😉
Kath says
Ha ha, what a great post. That beer festival sounds great – spilt beer and BO – ooh now you are tempting me 😉 It sounds as if you found the perfect way to use your beer.
Gloria says
these brownies look delicious! gloria
Hanna says
Sound delicious! I havent dipped my toes in the world of baking with beer but these sound so yummy I might have to try!
MissCakeBaker says
I’m pretty clumsy so I like the sound of indestructible brownies! These look great. I’ve made nigella’s chocolate guinness cake before – I think ale and chic work really well together.