I love it when I have an occasion to make a dessert. I used to make tons of desserts, but with only the 3 of us, I feel guilty making dessert more than once a week. And whenever I make something sweet just for us, I try to do cookies, or something that is easy to cut the recipe in half. So when I get to bake for others, I’m always drawn to cakes and pies and such, just because I know it’s not something that I will make normally.
So I was super excited when I got to volunteer to make a dessert for Labor Day. But then the hard part was deciding what I wanted to make! I ended up deciding on this brownie torte. But the only problem was that it originally called for raspberries, and they were completely out of fresh raspberries where I stopped. (Teaches me to shop on the weekend of Labor Day, right??) But I saw some beautiful local blackberries and knew that they would be just as good – if not better!
Now, it may not look all that impressive in the picture, but this is one tasty dessert. Definitely not low in calories, but this one is sure to please everyone – the chocolate lovers and the fruit lovers! The recipe says it serves 16, but I can guarantee that this one is so good that everyone will want a second slice!
Tuxedo Brownie Torte
adapted from Pillsbury: Best of the Bake-Off Cookbook
serves 16
BROWNIE
1 (1 lb. 3.5 oz) pkg fudge brownie mix
1/2 cup oil
1/4 cup water
2 eggs
FILLING
1 (10-oz) package frozen blackberries, thawed
2 tablespoons sugar, divided
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 cup fresh blackberries
TOPPING
1 (8-oz.) package cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup powdered sugar
1 cup white vanilla chips, melted
1 cup whipping cream, whipped
GARNISH
1 tablespoon grated semi-sweet chocolate
Heat oven to 350°F. Grease bottom and sides of 9- or 10-inch springform pan. In large bowl, combine all brownie ingredients. Beat 50 strokes by hand. Spread batter in greased pan.
Bake at 350° for 40 to 45 minutes or until center is set. Cool 30 minutes. Run knife around sides of pan to loosen; remove sides of pan. Cool completely.
While the brownie is cooking, combine the thawed blackberries with 1 tablespoon of the sugar. Let sit.
In a blender or food processor, place the blackberries and any juices that have accumulated. Cover; blend until smooth. Place strainer over a small bowl, pour berries into strainer. Press berries with back of spoon through strainer to remove seeds. Discard seeds.
In a 1-quart saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch. Gradually add blackberry puree; mix well. Bring to a boil; cook until mixture is clear stirring constantly. Cool 5 minutes. Spread over brownie layer to within ½ inch of edges. Arrange 1 cup fresh blackberries evenly over blackberry mixture; refrigerate.
In medium bowl, beat cream cheese and powdered sugar with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add melted vanilla chips; beat until smooth. Fold in whipped cream. Cover; refrigerate 45 minutes.
Stir topping mixture until smooth. Spread 1-½ cups of the topping over blackberries . Pipe or spoon on remaining topping. Refrigerate at least 1 hour or until firm.
Before serving, sprinkle grated chocolate in 1 inch border around outside edge of torte. Cover and refrigerate any remaining torte.
Avanika [YumsiliciousBakes] says
Oh that looks absolutely fabulous! Brownie, cream cheese, and fruit, combined? Yumm! Bookmarked 🙂
Monet says
I also love getting asked to make dessert! Such a wonderful excuse to get into the kitchen. And while messy, this sounds absolutely delicious. I'm sure it is a crowd-pleaser! Thank you for sharing it with us!
grace says
layer upon layer of goodness. i love a torte, and that's that.
Brilynn says
I love having an excuse to bake big things too! For some reason I can't justify baking an entire cake just for me… I still do it, but it just isn't right!
The tuxedo brownie torte sounds great!
hannah {thepastrykook} says
this will please me a lot. so yum!
Joanne says
I've been trying to only bake when I have a crowd to hand it off to as well…only way to get off this…err…too many pounds that I've gained from blogging!
This torte looks delightful. Just the thing when having friends over!
The Comfort of Cooking says
Oh my gosh, I would be unstoppable with this dessert! You've got me sitting here, drooling at my desk, Deb! Great job on this, and thanks for sharing your lovely recipe and photo!
Rosa's Yummy Yums says
Absolutely droolworthy!
Cheers,
Rosa