These Valentine's brownies are a super cute, sweet, and delicious Valentine's Day treat for any chocolate lover. This heart brownies recipe is easy to make and fun, too!
Show your love on Valentine’s Day with this chocolaty treat. These brownies are fudgy and decadent. Top them with sprinkles or mini marshmallows for a perfect Valentine’s treat.
Just like my Valentine’s Toffee recipe, that only calls for a few ingredients and 10 minutes of prep time, these chocolate brownie hearts are also a quick and easy to make.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Super cute and fun idea for a Valentine's Day party.
- Freezer friendly. Save time by making a double (or triple!) batch of brownies at one time. They'll keep in the freezer for up to 4 months!
- An easy homemade gift to share. Just about everyone appreciates getting a batch of homemade goodies! If your kiddos are taking them as treats for their classmates, package them in cellophane bags tied with frilly red ribbon.
With a 9x3-inch pan and a heart-shaped cookie cutter, you can make six heart-shaped brownies. You’ll have delicious scraps that you can mix with ice cream, make truffles with, or just eat directly!
If you're looking for other Valentine party treats, check out my recipes for frosted sugar cookie bars and Saltine cracker candy. I also have a collection of 50+ Valentine Desserts for Gifting.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- butter: Either salted or unsalted will work, but if you use salted butter, omit the extra salt that this recipe calls for. You can substitute with plant-based butter if you'd like.
- white granulated sugar: If you'd like to make the brownies a bit healthier, you can use any cup for cup variety of granulated sugar substitute.
- large eggs: I haven't tried making brownies with flax eggs, but you can try it! If you're out of eggs, unsweetened applesauce is a fantastic egg substitute! For each egg the recipe calls for, substitute with ¼ cup of applesauce. For other suggestions, see my post, Egg Replacement for Brownies.
- vanilla extract: You can omit the extract, or use other flavors. Peppermint/mint, orange, and almond extract are all great options.
- all-purpose flour: To make the heart brownies gluten-free, substitute the AP flour with any cup for cup variety of gluten free all-purpose flour.
- leaveners: You'll need baking powder for this recipe. If you haven't used it in more than 3 months or so, it's best to test it for freshness. If the baking powder is too old, it won't produce the gas bubbles needed to cause the brownie batter to rise in the oven.
- unsweetened cocoa powder: Either regular or Dutch process is fine to use. Dutch process cocoa powder will give the brownies a darker color and deeper chocolate flavor.
Recommended Heart Shaped Cutters
Here are some cookie cutters that work well for making the Valentine's brownies:
How to Make Valentine's Brownies
Summary only. The complete recipe instructions are in the card at the bottom of this post ⬇️
- Combine the wet ingredients. The great news is, this is a one bowl recipe, and no electric mixer is necessary! Just whisk the melted butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract to combine.
- Add the dry ingredients. Stir in the flour, cocoa powder, salt, and baking powder.
- Bake, cool, then cut the heart shaped brownies.
Liz's Tips for the Best Heart Brownies
- For festive flair, feel free to stir up to ½ cup of chopped nuts, chocolate chips, or candies like red, pink, and white M&Ms into the batter for your Valentine's brownies.
You might also want to add some chocolate frosting and heart sprinkles on the top! - If your baking pan has high sides, I recommend removing the cool brownies from the pan before cutting out the heart shaped brownies.
- The easiest way to remove brownies from the baking pan is to line the pan with parchment paper. Cut the paper long enough that it hangs slightly over the sides of the pan. Simply hold the edges of the paper in your hands and use it to gently lift the entire batch up and out of the pan.
Storing and Freezing
Your Valentine's brownies will stay fresh for up to four days in an airtight container at room temperature.
Freezing: You can freeze brownies for up to 3 months in an airtight container. After they cool, cut slices and place them between sheets of parchment paper, then cover with plastic wrap. Place them in a freezer-safe airtight container.
Thaw your treats in the fridge or at room temperature before enjoying.
Brownie Recipe FAQ
The secret to moist brownies is fat. Oil or butter will help give you moist brownies
The ratio of fat and flour will give you a fudgy vs cakey brownie. Fudgy brownies have more fat, cakey brownies have more flour/
How you mix your brownies impacts the crust on top. If you add chocolate chips or not can also impact the crust on the brownies.
Other Easy Brownie Recipes To Make
Heart Shaped Valentine's Brownies
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter
- 1 cup granulated white sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt omit if using salted butter
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper, or grease with non-stick cooking spray.
- Melt butter on high power in the microwave or in a saucepan over medium heat on the stove.
- To a large mixing bowl, add melted butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract. Whisk well to combine.
- To the butter mixture, add cocoa powder, flour, salt, and baking powder. Stir to combine, until a thick batter forms.
- Pour brownie batter into prepared baking pan, and use a knife or offset spatula to spread into an even layer. Bake at 350°F for 20-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the brownies comes out dry, or with a few moist crumbs.
- Remove from oven and transfer pan to a wire cooling rack. Let the brownies cool for 20 minutes, then use a cookie cutter to cut heart shaped brownies out of the pan.
Helpful Notes and Tips From Liz
- For festive flair, feel free to stir up to ½ cup of chopped nuts, chocolate chips, or candies like red, pink, and white M&Ms into the batter for your Valentine's brownies.
- For easier cutting: If your baking pan has high sides, I recommend removing the cool brownies from the pan before cutting the heart brownies.
- The easiest way to remove brownies from the baking pan is to line the pan with parchment paper. Cut the paper long enough that it hangs slightly over the sides of the pan. Simply hold the edges of the paper in your hands and use it to gently lift the entire batch up and out of the pan.
vanesa
hi Liz!
your recipes are spectacular!!!
Could you give me the measurements in grams?
thank you
Liz Marino
So glad you liked them! I am not able to do that, but you should be able to find a way to convert them on line! best of luck!!