Mini Santa Hat Brownies Recipe

Ingredients:

Brownies:

• 2½ sticks butter
• 2 cups chocolate chips or chunks
• 1½ cup fine sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups of all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoon baking powder
• 6 large eggs
• 1 cup of chopped walnuts or almonds (optional)
  
  Note : You could also buy you favorite brownie mix at the store!

Mascarpone Buttercream icing:

• 1 stick (½ cup) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 8 ounces mascarpone cheese,  room temperature
• 2 cups confectioners powder sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• pinch of salt
   

Instructions:

Brownies:

1. Melt the butter gently in a sauce pan, on medium heat.
    
2. Add the chocolate and stir till it's completely melted.
    
3. Stir in the vanilla (and the chopped nuts if preferred).
    
4. Holding a sieve or sifter over the pan, to prevent the flour mess up the kitchen, and put the flour along with the 2 teaspoons of baking powder in and sift into the chocolate mix, stir until it's mixed well.
    
5. Turn the heat to low and start adding the eggs, one at the time, stirring till each one is incorporated into the mixture.
    
6. Once you have added all the eggs, wiped the sweat off your brown and grinned to yourself at the gooey chocolatey batter in-front of you, turn off the heat and spoon the batter into a couple of sprayed mini muffin trays or muffin moults. Fill each moult only ¾ full, to compensate the batter rising.
    
7. Bake in an preheated oven on 350 F. (180 Celsius.) for around 12 to 15 minutes. If the center looks still a little sticky compare to the rest, there perfect.

 Mascarpone Buttercream icing:

1. Beat butter and the mascarpone in a kitchen-aid or stand-up mixer with a paddle, untill light and creamy, (about 2 minutes).
    
2. Add the vanilla extract and salt. Then add 2 cups of sugar, half a cup at a time and continue beating until smooth. Add more sugar, if you want them to more sweet then normal. Turn off the mixer when you reach your desired consistency and sweetness.
    

Assemble:

1. Fill your frosting-icing into a piping bay or icing gun.
    
2. Cut a little of the top of the brownie, so you can stand them upside down, and have a flat surface to work with.
    
3. Cut the base (there where the green leaves where, but a finger tp lower) of your strawberries so they are flat to.
    
4. Pipe "a ring" (circular) of icing around the top of the brownie which you cut flat, and place a strawberry upside down in the hole of the ring, push slightly to secure in place.
    
5. Top the tip of the strawberry with a dot of buttercream to finish the mini brownie Santa-claus hat

Note: Makes 48 mini, or 24 Regular muffins.





Photo Credit: ? 
Photo found at: http://www.welke.nl/photo/rvg2011/Hihi-eetbare-kerstmannetjes.1342554896