Heart Shaped Brownies with Fresh Raspberry Buttercream
Heart Shaped Brownies with Fresh Raspberry Buttercream are the perfect Valentine (or any time!) brownies. Fudgy, decadent brownies sandwich a creamy homemade buttercream flavored with real raspberries. I’m in love!
Every time I make these Heart Shaped Brownies with Fresh Raspberry Buttercream, our girls go crazy.
But really, what’s not to love?
Fudgy, decadent brownies sandwich a sweet and creamy homemade buttercream frosting flavored with real raspberries. It’s a match made in heaven, the perfect Valentine brownies!
“Okay. I just died and went to heaven with the raspberry frosting! Seriously! My most favorite flavor is caramel, but I think I just found my new favorite! Thank you!”
Kay
If I had to choose just one dessert as my favorite, it would have to be a fudgy, chewy brownie.
And when you throw in some berries…well, I’m a goner.
I like to make these brownies because I know how much our daughters adore them. But it’s true. I like them, too!
The fresh raspberry buttercream tips these heart brownies over the top when it comes to special Valentine’s Day treats.
The frosting is bright and tangy, full of real raspberry flavor. And the vibrant pink color is compliments of the beautiful red raspberry alone. No artificial color is added.
Heart Shaped Brownies
I use cookie cutters to create the heart shaped brownies. With this recipe, I can make six larger brownie sandwiches, plus a number of smaller ones. Sometimes I choose to make a whole pan of smaller heart sandwiches, a nice size for a smaller piece of dessert.
After the brownies are cut out, I pipe the raspberry buttercream (with this piping tip) over one heart and gently press a second heart over the top.
Then I give the tops of the chocolate brownie hearts a little dusting of powdered sugar with a powdered sugar shaker. This not only adds pretty detail, but also helps to hide any imperfections made when cutting the brownies.
If you’re looking for a fun and super flavorful dessert for Valentine’s Day, give these brownies a try. They’re visually impressive, yet comforting like only a brownie knows how to be. Just ask the girls in this house. We’re in love.
Like this recipe? Save it to Pinterest!
Looking for more Valentine’s Day treats? These Yeast Donuts with Fresh Raspberry Glaze are lovely. Chocolate Mousse Cups are always a hit. And this recipe for Gooey Chocolate Mug Cake for Two is quick and easy, and so very good!
And here are a few treats I’d love to try! Red Velvet Cherry Dream Bars from 365 Days of Baking & More look so very fun. And this Chocolate Raspberry Bundt Cake from TidyMom has my name written all over it!
Heart Shaped Brownies with Fresh Raspberry Buttercream
Ingredients
for the brownies:
- ½ c. unsalted butter diced
- 3 oz. unsweetened baking chocolate chopped
- 1-1/2 c. sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 tsp. instant espresso powder
- 1-1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp. kosher salt
- ¾ c. all-purpose flour
- powdered sugar to sprinkle on the finished brownie hearts
for the fresh raspberry buttercream:
- 12 oz. raspberries fresh or frozen
- ½ c. unsalted butter at room temperature
- ½ tsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 3-1/2 c. powdered sugar
- pinch of kosher salt
Instructions
- for the brownies: Preheat oven to 325° F. Fold a long piece of heavy foil into a 13" wide strip and fit it inside a 9" x 13" metal baking pan, leaving foil overhang on the 2 long sides. Spray the foil lightly with nonstick spray. Set pan aside.
- In a large heavy saucepan over very low heat, stir butter and chocolate until everything is melted. Remove from heat and whisk in the sugar, and then the eggs, one at a time. Whisk in espresso powder, vanilla, and salt. Then sift the flour over the chocolate mixture and stir to blend well. Transfer batter to prepared pan.
- Bake brownies until slightly puffed and dry-looking and tester inserted into center comes out with some moist batter attached, about 20 minutes. Let cool completely in pan on rack.
- for the fresh raspberry buttercream: In a medium saucepan over medium heat, cook the raspberries, stirring frequently, until the raspberries are broken down into a very loose sauce. Line a fine mesh strainer with a double layer of cheesecloth, and then pour the raspberry sauce through to remove the seeds. To get all the raspberry juice possible, twist up the ends of the cheesecloth very tightly and press on the raspberry sauce with the back side of a large wooden spoon to extract the juice. Then pour the raspberry juice back in the pot. Simmer until the juice reduces to 1/4 cup. The juice will be very concentrated, deep red in color. Set aside to cool.
- With a stand mixer, cream the butter with a paddle attachment on medium high speed about 2 minutes, until butter is lightened in color and a bit fluffy. Add 2 cups of powdered sugar, the 1/4 cup of cooled raspberry sauce, lemon juice, and salt. Mix until smooth. Add another 1-1/2 cups of powdered sugar and mix until smooth. Fit a pastry bag with a medium-large round tip (I use a this tip) and fill with fresh raspberry buttercream.
- to create the brownie hearts: Run a knife around the inside edge of the brownie pan. Use the overhanging foil as an aid and gently lift the brownies from the pan. The brownies should be about 1/2" thick, so ensure that your cookie cutter is taller than 1/2". Press heart-shaped cookie cutters (the cookie cutters used in my photos measure 3" wide and 1-1/2" wide) firmly into the cooled brownie. Use a thin metal spatula to lift the cookie cutter filled with brownie from the foil. Gently press the brownie out of the cookie cutter. Repeat the cutting process until your brownie looks like a big piece of Swiss cheese. (Don’t throw away the scraps, they’re awesome little nibbles!)
- With the pastry bag filled with fresh raspberry buttercream, pipe a line of frosting around the inside edge of one of the brownie hearts. Then fill in the inside of the line with frosting, too. Top with another brownie heart, gently pressing down to make a sandwich. Repeat until all your brownie hearts are completed.
- To finish, sprinkle the brownie hearts with powdered sugar. I like to fill a powdered sugar shaker with powdered sugar and gently tap the side to let the powdered sugar rain down.
With the heart-shaped cookie cutters I use, I can make six large brownie heart sandwiches, plus several smaller ones. Or I can make about 20 of the smaller brownie heart sandwiches.
Notes
Nutrition Information:
This post was previously published in 2012. Some of the photographs and some of the text were updated in 2019.
Would strawberries work as well for the filling?
I do believe it would, but I have not tried it myself. I’m guessing there will be more water content in the strawberries, so the strawberries might need to be cooked down/reduced??
Okay. I just died and went to heaven with the raspberry frosting! Seriously! My most favorite flavor is caramel, but I think I just found my new favorite! Thank you!
So happy you liked this recipe, Kay!
I just made these for the second time and handed them out for Valentine’s Day.  The best compliment is when someone asks for the recipe (which I gladly share!).  Two batches of brownies and one batch of the buttercream was  perfect.  I did cut the buttercream sugar to 3 1/4 cups and it was just fine. Thanks for a great recipe!
Can I use brewed coffee instead of espresso powder?
ThanksÂ
Hi April – one is liquid, one is dry. You could use finely ground coffee or just skip the espresso powder.
I am wondering how much ahead of time these can be made.
Would these freeze well or rather not? Thinking of making these for a wedding but want to save the stress on the day before if possible.
these came out beautiful, time consuming though
So happy these brownie hearts turned out beautiful for you! Yes, time consuming…but fun for special occasions or simply playing in the kitchen. :)
These are literally the best brownies I have ever made! The sweet raspberry brings the whole brownie to life! I have made these at least 6-7 different occasions (work, family gatherings, personal stash) and always receive so many compliments on them! Thanks for sharing such a yummy recipe! I will continue to make these! :)
So wonderful! I love this. Thank you for coming back to let me know!
Hi, is it possible to make 2 layers of brownies ..  put the frosting on one layer of brownie stack the one on top of it then do the heart cutout . Wouldn’t that be less time consuming or does it not look good?
Wow. These fudgy brownie hearts filled with raspberry buttercream could certainly melt my heart! Pinning now to try very soon!
I made these and they are yummy! Have you ever frozen them?
Hi Debra – I’m so glad you like this recipe. It’s one of our daughters’ favorites! I have only frozen the brownies on their own, without the buttercream, and that works great. I think it would be worth trying to freeze them with the buttercream, though – please let me know if you give it a shot!
I think the baking time on the brownies is off. The top of the recipe says bake time 45 mins but in the recipe it says 20 mins which seems too short a time. Is 45 mins correct? Thanks!
Hello Lisa – “cook time” includes both the brownies in the oven and the raspberry sauce on the stovetop. I hope you liked this recipe!