Habanero Brownies are rich with chocolate and butter and spiced with a whole habanero pepper. The ganache on top just makes these brownies even better!

This recipe was inspired by a bottle of wine I bought while on vacation in New Mexico. I’m not usually one for organized tours, but one of the best days of the vacation was a white water rafting/wine tasting day we booked with a local Santa Fe tour operator.

The guide picked us up at our hotel at 7 am and drove us to the rafting take-off point.  After the rafting she picked us up for an afternoon of touring and tasting at local wineries. It was a great day and we tasted some nice wines, but by the 5th winery our palates were pretty overwhelmed. The last wine poured was a red wine made with chocolate and chiles. Well, that woke our palates up! What could be more New Mexican? So we bought a bottle for fun.

We were invited to dinner at a friend’s house this weekend and I decided to bring along the chocolate-chile wine to share. I wanted to make a dessert to go with it and that’s how this recipe came to be.

The Heat Level of Habaneros can vary…Make Your Habenero Brownies as hot as you like!

I love Habanero peppers. Yes, they can be quite hot, but they have a lovely, fruity flavor once you get passed the heat. I used a whole pepper because the one I had was not super hot. Because the heat level can vary from pepper to pepper, I suggest (unless you’re a real chile-head) you add a little at a time until you get the heat level you like. The butter, flour and sugar in the brownie does tame the heat a little.

A full tablespoon of cinnamon compliments both the chocolate and the chile in these Habanero Brownies. I used Ceylon, or true, cinnamon, which may also be labeled as “Mexican” cinnamon. Regular cinnamon (cassia) will also work if you can’t find Ceylon cinnamon.

This is my new favorite brownie!

Habanero Brownies

Yield: 32 small or 24 large brownies

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

Fudgy chocolate brownies with a spicy habanero kick.

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Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups (5 oz) cake flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon (preferably Mexican or "true" cinnamon)
• 9 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 6 ounces (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1" chunks
• 1 Habanero pepper, seeds and ribs removed, minced
• 1 1/2 cups (12 oz) granulated sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup Chocolate Ganache

Instructions

Prep the pan

1. Butter a 13x9 inch baking pan
2. Line the pan with either parchment or foil (see how to line the pan here)
3. Preheat the oven to 350°F

Make the batter

1. Sift together the flour, salt, baking powder and cinnamon, set aside
2. Combine the chopped chocolate and the butter in a microwave safe bowl
3. Microwave for 1 minute, stir to combine
4. Microwave in 30 second increments (stirring between) until all the chocolate is melted
5. Stir the minced Habanero and the vanilla into the chocolate mixture.
6. Add the granulated sugar to the chocolate mixture, stir to combine
7. Add the eggs, two at a time and stir until combined
8. Add the flour mixture and stir just until combined
9. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan
10. Bake until the brownies puff up a bit and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs (about 25-30 minutes)
11. Cool in the pan to room temperature
12. Spread the ganache evenly over the brownies
13. Refrigerate until the ganache is set and the brownies are firm
14. Use the parchment paper to lift the brownies out of the pan onto a cutting board
15. Cut into 48 squares (for clean edges wipe the knife with a damp cloth between cuts)

Notes

These brownies will keep at room temperature for several days.

You might also like:

Choc Orange Beet Cake

Triple Chocolate Pie

Mexican Hot Choc Cake

Butterscotch Ripple Blondies

Guinness Chocolate Fudge Cake

White Chocolate Raspberry Brownies

Habanero Brownies are spicy, sweet and will be your new favorite brownie. Get the recipe.