Black and White Brownie Bars
These Black and White brownies were born from an interesting twist. When I first conceptualized the idea of a unique brownie, I was thinking chocolate and vanilla something….. Then I remembered the famous Black and White Cookie and the inspiration grew from there. I love this write up from the ny eater about the history of this classic cookie.
Creativity
While in the process getting ready to decorate the brownie, a new idea surfaced and that’s where the black and white brownie was born.
The one thing that always challenges me as a pastry chef is creativity. However, the more I’m in the kitchen, the more creativity emerges. Most of the time, I’m finding that ideas seem to hit me in the middle of a baking project. Has that happened with you? Love to hear where you get your creativity. Leave a comment down below.
The kitchen definitely gives you a environment to get those creative juices flowing!
Black and White cookies are so traditional and its always fun to see them. I always love the appeal these cookies have with the black and white contrasting colors. They just look super cool. And, you don’t know whether to dive into the vanilla or chocolate section first!
Recipe
I use my favorite brownie, chocolate and vanilla buttercream recipes, taking regular items I used frequently in the kitchen and turning them into something different and unique.
Since I’m making thin brownie bars, I use a 1/4 sheet pan and a smaller recipe, about half of a brownie recipe to make them.
Black and White Brownie Assembly
I first grease and line my sheet pan with parchment paper and pour my brownie batter in the pan and bake it off.
The parchment makes it really easy to remove the brownies. I like to run a knife around the edges to loosen it first.
Once baked and cooled, it makes for a perfect palate for decorating. I grab both my chocolate and vanilla buttercreams and place each into a piping bag with a medium plain tip.
Starting on the left side, I pipe four vertical row of shells, then 4 rows of shells going the opposite direction. Ending with 4 rows of dots piping till I have half of the brownie covered in chocolate buttercream.
I then take the vanilla buttercream and repeat the whole process with the remaining half of the brownie till it is fully decorated.
A chocolate drizzle completes the decorations and make them look super scrumptious. I used Ghirardelli dark chocolate melting wafers.
I had a hard time not diving into one of these ASAP, but will power failed me. They were so awesome!!!
Tip
One thing you could also do is pipe two rows of chocolate, then alternate with two rows of vanilla, then keep rotating the colors to get a really neat zebra type effect as well. Would really give it a different signature black and white effect.
Once decorated, place them in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes to an hour before slicing. They slice up well as the buttercream has had time to chill and makes for cleaner cuts.
Thin Crust
I really like these thin brownies as you get just a perfect tasting of brownie along with the buttercream. Almost like a thin slice of cake, or equivalent to a thin crust pizza. It really works!
I cut them into squares alternating the chocolate and vanilla bars on a serving platter. I wonder which one you’ll choose first?
Other Brownie Recipes
Check out a couple of my other brownie recipes:
