The fudgiest brownies with the fluffiest festive buttercream, these delicious Eggnog Brownies are going to be the hit of your holiday parties!
Who else freaking loves brownies?!
Let’s be real here: between cake, pie, and brownies, where do you stand?
Because I personally love them all, but if you hand me a fudgy brownie loaded with some kind of fudge or frosting or caramel sauce? I’ll be your BFF for life.
If there was a creepy guy in a van – the kind your parents warned you to never take candy from – and he was handing out these eggnog brownies?
I’d probably be in trouble.
This page includes step by step instructions, as well as tips and notes. If you’d like to skip all that, feel free to scroll down to the full, printable recipe card at the bottom of the post. There is also a “jump to recipe” button at the top of the page if you’d rather not exercise your scrolling finger!
I know that pie is ubiquitous with the Thanksgiving-Christmas holiday season, but I feel like they’re more a turkey day treat. Christmas is meant for festive cookies and over-the-top cakes, rum and bourbon balls and fudge.
And eggnog everything.
Since discovering how much I loved eggnog a couple years ago (it was helped by lots of rum and these Eggnog Cheesecake Squares), I’ve tried to create one or two new recipes a year with it.
Last year, my Spiced Chocolate Eggnog Cake ended up being one of my favorite desserts. I knew I wanted the ermine frosting from that cake to end up in some other recipe this year.
And who doesn’t love a brownie with a layer of icing as thick as the brownie itself?
Of course, if you’re not a fan of mountains of icing, feel free to cut the recipe in half for a more manageable, brownie-centric bite.
Or just make the full recipe and dip your Christmas cookies in the extra icing. I wouldn’t be opposed.
You could also cheat and use boxed brownie mix if you really want to. Just be sure you add some espresso, vanilla, and an extra egg yolk. You really want the final product to be super fudgy.
I’m just not sure these would fly as brownies if they had that cake-like texture
Let’s keep cake as cake and brownies as the heavenly chocolate squares they are, thanks.
LOOKING FOR MORE RECIPES USING EGGNOG?
- Chocolate Eggnog Cupcakes
- Eggnog Bread Pudding with Warm Whiskey Sauce
- Black Bottom Eggnog Pie
- Red Velvet Eggnog Cheesecake Trifle
- Eggnog Cheesecake Cookie Cups
- Eggnog Bundt Cake
HELPFUL KITCHEN TOOLS FOR MAKING EGGNOG BROWNIES:
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Eggnog Brownies
Ingredients
Fudgy Brownies
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons espresso powder
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 10 tablespoons butter
- ¾ cup cocoa powder
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup brown sugar packed
- 2 eggs + 1 egg yolk
- 3 tablespoons dark rum
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Eggnog Buttercream
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup eggnog
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 tablespoon dark rum or rum extract
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Fudgy Brownies
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8×8 baking pan with parchment or aluminum foil, and butter the bottom and sides. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, combine flour, espresso powder, and salt and whisk together. Set aside.
- In a double boiler (or a metal bowl set over a pot of boiling water,) add butter, cocoa, and sugars. Melt and mix until the ingredients form a batter, about 8-10 minutes. The mixture will still be grainy when it’s ready.
- Remove the bowl from heat and cool slightly. Add the eggs, rum, and vanilla, stirring until well combined.
- Stir in flour mixture until just combined. Pour batter into prepared 8×8 baking pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick comes out mostly clean. Allow to cool completely.
Eggnog Buttercream
- In a medium saucepan, whisk together sugar, flour, and nutmeg until well blended. Place saucepan on stove over medium heat and, while whisking, add in eggnog. Whisk until no lumps remain.
- Continue to whisk until mixture comes to a low boil and thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon. Remove from heat and cool for 45 minutes-1 hour.
- In a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, or with a hand mixer, beat butter for 3-5 minutes until pale and creamy. Pour in cooled eggnog mixture ¼ cup at a time, mixing well between additions, until light and creamy. Don’t stress if it looks a bit curdled – just give it a few more minutes and it will come together.
- When it’s almost ready, add rum and vanilla and whip until incorporated. Spread buttercream evenly in a thick layer over brownies, then sprinkle with ground nutmeg. Refrigerate covered or slice & serve immediately.
Emily says
The Brownies were 4 out of 5. Super fudgey and rich!! The frosting was probably 3 out of 5……I don’t know what I did wrong, but it didn’t thicken up and stayed rather runny and glaze like. Suggestions?!