What the Fudge Brownies made with cocoa because chocolate prices are insane

What the actual fudge has happened to chocolate prices in the past few years. 

I'm going to admit in the past I have never really kept track of prices so much, I was buying in bulk, frequently and often at wholesalers so the prices were not super clear. But over the past few years I had a bit of a blogging hiatus so there was a break between my chocolate buying and let me tell you chocolate has more than doubled in the past couple of years.

I know you all already know but seriously, baking with chocolate costs a lot!

So because I've been doing some testing of different toppings and frostings and I needed to make lots of brownie cups (like brownie cupcakes) in an economical way I wanted to come up with a brownie version that was delicious but a little more economical. 

Look at these gorgeous cups of chocolatey deliciousness.

They have lovely shiny tops (thank you icing sugar melted in the cocoa/butter mixture), I made them with grocery name brand cocoa and you can't even tell.

They are yummy just on their own but pair perfectly with so many different frostings. I did a version with edible cookie dough (Click here for cookie dough recipe) and caramel sauce (Click here for caramel sauce recipe) which I had to actually ban myself from making again for a while because I ate too many.

Anyhoo however you enjoy them, you will be able to enjoy them just a little bit more knowing you're saving money every time you bake.

Happy Baking

XX

Linda M

Top brownies with your favourite topping here I've added edible cookie dough scoops with homemade caramel sauce and fresh raspberries 

What the Fudge Brownies (Cocoa Brownies ) makes 12 slices or brownie cups. These brownies can be baked in a square baking tin (8Inch or 20cm) or muffin tins as shown in the picture. 

65g (2 1/4 oz) cocoa
90g (3 1/4 oz) icing sugar
185g (6 1/2 oz) unsalted. butter
3 eggs
110g (3 7/8 oz)flour
110g (3 7/8 oz)brown sugar
135g (4 3/4 oz)white sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 160C (325F) grease a 12 hole muffin tin. Alternatively line a 8x8 inch or 20cm square tin with baking paper.

Melt butter, add cocoa and icing sugar and whisk, the aim is to try dissolve the icing sugar to help achieve the shiny brownie top after baking, so you may need to rest for a minute and mix again to help dissolve the sugar.

Get shiny crackly brownie tops every time with this important step

Mix the white sugar and eggs then add the brown sugar and mix until pale and creamy. This will take about 3 minutes. The photo below shows what the mixture should look like.

Mix the eggs and sugar for about 3 minutes

Mix in chocolate mixture along with vanilla.

Mix in flour and salt and mix until fudgey and combined.

Bake for 25 minutes, the tops should be shiny and a skewer inserted should come out with a little bit or crumb, not completely dry but not wet.

Allow to cool in tin for a few minutes and flip out on wire rack. To flip out place a wire rack over the top of the baking tray hold onto the sides and flip over. Shake the tray a little or slightly twist. If you have not greased the tray prior to baking you might need to run a knife around the edge of each brownie.

Eat brownies as they are or top with your favourite frosting.

💕

Original photos and recipe from the Bubble and Sweet blog ©Linda McCubbin 2025. I love when people share my blog ideas and give credit. Please feel free to link back to my blog for non commercial purposes or contact me. Affiliate links and adds may earn me money, however all ideas and opinions are my own.

Linda Mccubbin is a blogger, baker, maker and author of the cookbook ' Sweets on a Stick': More than 150 kid friendly recipes for cakes, candies, cookies and pies on the go!. Published in the US in 2011 (under my previous name Linda Vandermeer).

Chocolate Peanut Butter Layer cake with chocolate sour cream frosting and cookie dough filling

Chocolate peanut butter layer cake with Oreo edible cookie dough layers.

The Destroyer had his 17th birthday a few weeks back and he let me choose the birthday cake flavour. 

I asked Bubble what type of cake I should make and she said "I think he likes peanut butter and chocolate", and tbh I'm not sure if that is true or if I have just been making peanut, chocolate, Oreo flavoured cakes for him for so many years that we all think that it's true.

This beautiful cake is 4 cake layers with alternating dark black cocoa and peanut butter cake, layers of edible cookie dough with crushed Oreo, an Italian Meringue buttercream layer and crumb coast with homemade caramel and finished off in delectable chocolate sour cream frosting (which is my current obsession).

The cut slices are visually super attractive with the alternating layers of cake and filling.

Alternating cake layers are as visually attractive as they are delicious

In a controversial move for a tall cake I used Chocolate sour cream frosting which I am a bit obsessed with at the moment. Although it is insanely delicious it is quite soft and not ideal for fancy smooth cake finishes so I just swirled it about and added some strawberries, raspberries and just before serving added some Oreo's on top.

All the good things in one cake

There are a lot of components to this cake so I made the chocolate cake a few weeks earlier and froze it wrapped in cling wrap stored in an airtight container and then defrosted it the night before I assembled the cake. I made the Peanut Butter cake in the morning and whipped up the edible cookie dough frosting and Italian Meringue Buttercream whilst the cake was cooling. I made the sour cream frosting after the cake was stacked and covered the whole cake straight away and popped into the fridge.

Happy Baking 

XX

Linda M

Honestly how lovely do these cake slices look waiting to be served 💕

Peanut Butter Cake makes 1x 6" cake, recipe can be doubled

125g (4 3/8oz) plain (all purpose) flour
1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

90g milk

28 g (1oz) butter
50b (1 3/4oz) smooth peanut butter
2 eggs (room temperature)

Grease and line 1 X 6" round baking tin oven to 160C (325F).

Combine the flour, baking powder and salt, I did not sift but if your flour needs a sift you should probably do that so your cake batter is not lumpy at the end.

Heat the milk and butter together until the butter is melted and whisk in the peanut butter. I popped my milk and butter into a microwave safe bowl and heat in microwave on high for 1 minute.

Pop the eggs into a large bowl and whisk until pale and creamy, approximately 3 minutes with an electric hand mixer. See the picture below for progression of consistency. After 1 minute the eggs will appear light, but you want to keep on going for the full 3 minutes. It is possible to mix with a hand whisk but it will take a little longer.

Add the remaining ingredients alternately starting and ending with the flour as follows:

1/3 of the flour, then mix;

1/2 of the wet peanut/butter, then mix;

another 1/3 of the flour, then mix;

remaining half peanut/butter, then mix;

remaining flour mix until combined and then keep mixing for another 30 seconds to 1 minute.

Pout into the prepared baking tin and bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour until golden brown and a skewer comes out of the cake clean. 

Remove from oven and turn out onto a wire rack to cool prior to cutting and decorating.

To Assemble

6" Peanut Butter Cake (recipe above)

6" Midnight Sky Black Cocoa Cake 1/2 recipe (CLICK HERE FOR RECIPE)

Edible chocolate chip cookie dough substitute Crushed Oreo for chocolate chips (CLICK HERE FOR RECIPE)

Chocolate Sour Cream Frosting (recipe below)

Italian Meringue Butter cream (CLICK HERE FOR RECIPE)

Strawberries, raspberries and Oreos for decorating (optional)

6" cake board

Slice the chocolate cake and peanut butter cake in half horizontally. You will end up with 4 cakes.

Take half the edible cookie dough and press it onto the top of one chocolate layer and do the same with the remaining half of the cookie dough and other chocolate cake. I find it easiest to press the cookie dough into a disk between the flat palms of my hand and pop it on top of the cake. 

Secure one layer of the chocolate cake to the cake board with a little dollop of buttercream. I like to use the flat bottom of the cake to get a secure flat first layer. 

Top with a layer of peanut butter cake, spread with a thin layer of  buttercream underneath to attach to the cookie dough layer. Then top with a layer of the Italian Meringue buttercream. I used about 2/3 of a cup. I added a layer of homemade caramel (Optional CLICK HERE for caramel recipe) pop the cake into the fridge to set before proceeding.

You will need to ensure each cake layer is even as you build up.

Top with a third layer of cake using the second cookie dough topped chocolate cake and pop into fridge again to set.

Top with final layer of peanut butter cake once again using a thin spread of buttercream on the bottom to attach it to the cookie dough filling. I normally like to make sure this cake is the other 'bottom' cake and turn it upside down so the bottom is the top of the cake for a perfect flat finish (but I did not do that here-not sure why).

Give the cake a thin layer of Italian meringue all over as a crumb coat.

Pop into fridge and chill. Once the cake is firm remove from fridge and cover with chocolate sour cream frosting. 

Cover the edges and top with all of the frosting. I simply used a palette knife to cover the cake but use whatever process you are used to. I swirled the frosting around to give an old fashioned retro look.

Chocolate sour cream frosted cake.
Also how amazing are the Australian Native flowers from my garden in the white jug !

Top with strawberries and raspberries if desired and store in fridge. If you want to add Oreo's do so just before serving.

Sour cream Chocolate Frosting Recipe - this frosting is super delicious and is perfect for brownies. This recipe is enough to frost this tall 4 layer 6" cake on the outside, or frost a dozen cupcakes or a batch of brownies.

115g (3 7/8oz) unsalted butter at room temperature
130g (45/8oz) icing sugar
40g (1 3/8oz) cocoa
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
120g (3 7/8oz) sour cream 

Mix together butter and icing sugar until combined. 

Add cocoa and vanilla and combine well. 

Add in half sour cream and salt and mix until just combined, add remaining sour cream and mix until just combined and creamy, do not overmix.

Perfect Birthday cake for boys 17th birthday party or really just any reason

💕

Original photos and recipe from the Bubble and Sweet blog ©Linda McCubbin 2025. I love when people share my blog ideas and give credit. Please feel free to link back to my blog for non commercial purposes or contact me. Affiliate links and adds may earn me money, however all ideas and opinions are my own.

Linda Mccubbin is a blogger, baker, maker and author of the cookbook ' Sweets on a Stick': More than 150 kid friendly recipes for cakes, candies, cookies and pies on the go!. Published in the US in 2011 (under my previous name Linda Vandermeer).

Salted Caramel Sauce with honey and vanilla

Homemade caramel is so easy to make with just a few ingredients and it genuinely tastes so much better than store bought. I know it seems tricky but if you follow the simple steps I have shown in the pictures below it's not really that hard.

The key is to have all your ingredients ready, watch the syrup colour closely and take it off the stove as soon as it reaches the perfect golden colour. The photo's below show the progression from clear to gold over about 6 minutes. But once it reaches that golden stage you don't have a lot of time. 

Make sure you have a safe spot to pop your hot saucepan onto to whisk in the cream, and also that the cream and butter are already measured and your whisk is already out and ready to go.

Oh and defiantly make sure you warm your cream. If your cream is prewarmed before you pour it in, it will not seize or become a big clumpy mess when you add it to the super hot syrup. A few seconds in the microwave to get the cream lukewarm will make a big difference to your caramel making experience.

This batch in the photo's has a touch of honey, salt and vanilla to add flavour, but really you can leave all those ingredients out. 

Edible cookie dough recipe CLICK HERE

I drizzled this caramel onto some chocolate chip cookie cups filled with scoops of cookie dough frosting (CLICK HERE for cookie dough recipe) and it was incredibly decadent. Then I followed up with brownie cups filled with the same frosting and they were even more delicious.

Once you learn how to make caramel sauce you'll be reluctant to ever buy it again it's so easy and seriously tastes so much better.

Happy Baking 

XX

Linda M

Caramel Sauce for drizzling or dipping - yield just over 1 cup. Best storage is airtight sterile glass container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks. Can be stored in fridge or frozen. I have used a little honey in this sauce, if you prefer you can use liquid glucose or light corn syrup. 

200g (7 1/8 oz) white granulated sugar
45 g (1 5/8oz) water
1 tsp honey
40 g (1 3/8oz) butter (heated in microwave for 20 seconds)
120 g (4 1/4oz) cream (heated in microwave for 30 seconds)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla

Put water, honey and sugar into a saucepan and stir very gently.

Cook on medium heat until the sugar is dissolved. DO NOT STIR!

Increase heat until the mixture boils and becomes a clear syrup and then starts to turn golden.

If necessary swirl the pan very gently and only a little to cook evenly, do not stir. 

Cook until the colour reaches the desired strength of caramel, around 6-8 minutes. The one in the pictures was simmered for approximately 6 minutes.

Remove from heat, add the cream whisk , then add the butter and whisk until well combined 

Add the vanilla and salt and whisk again. Pour into a clean jar.

This caramel is drizzle consistency, if you want it thicker return to heat (at medium low) after adding cream and butter and cook for a little bit longer until it thickens. The consistency in these pictures is for drizzling or dipping and it will not harden. 

I stored my caramel in a clean glass jar at room temperature and it lasted for 2 weeks. Ensure your glass is very clean and the utensils you put into it are also clean. You can also store in fridge or if you want freeze smaller portions in ziplock bags and defrost in fridge as needed.

I used a disposable zip lock bag to pipe the sauce onto the cookies

💕

Linda McCubbin is a blogger, baker, maker and author of the cookbook ' Sweets on a Stick': More than 150 kid friendly recipes for cakes, candies, cookies and pies on the go!. Published in the US in 2011 (under my previous name Linda Vandermeer).

Original photos and recipe from the Bubble and Sweet blog ©Linda McCubbin 2025. I love when people share my blog ideas and give credit. Please feel free to link back to my blog for non commercial purposes or contact me. Affiliate links and adds may earn me money, however all ideas and opinions are my own.