Polar bear shortbread brownies

vegan Christmas treat with new iChoc White Barista Art

Baking belongs to the pre-Christmas season like the Christmas tree to Christmas Eve. If you love to bake, you need new, sensational projects – who would stop at ginger bread men? If you want to present something really special to your loved ones, you can try your hand at our vegan polar bears today. The cute North Pole inhabitants have a cuddly fur of buttercream and a delicious base of both shortbread and irresistible brownie. Our new iChoc White Barista Art rounds off the polar bear shortbread brownies with a delicious, chocolaty coffee note.

Ingedients

For a 8 x 8 inch square tin with loose base (9 pieces)

For the shortbread

  • 120 g plain flour
  • 70 g caster sugar
  • 0,5 tsp natural vanilla extract
  • 115 g dairy-free butter
  • 20 g chopped iChoc White Barista Art Chocolate

For the brownie

  • 60 g baking cocoa powder
  • 180 g plain flour
  • 170 g dairy-free dark chocolate, e. g. VIVANI Dark Cooking Chocolate
  • 110 g dairy-free butter
  • 120 ml aquafaba (chickpea brine)
  • 280 g caster sugar
  • 2 tsp instant coffee
  • 60 g roughly chopped iChoc White Barista Art Chocolate

For the frosting

  • 120 g dairy-free butter
  • 180 g icing sugar
  • 0,5 tsp natural vanilla extract
  • 20 g melted iChoc White Barista Art Chocolate

Aditionally

  • 27 dairy-free white chocolate buttons
  • 30 g dairy-free dark chocolate, e. g. VIVANI Dark Cooking Chocolate

How to make it

1. For the shortbread, preheat the oven to 180 ℃ fan and line the tin with greaseproof paper. Allow the paper to hang over the edges of the tin, this makes it easier for removing the bars when ready.

2. Sift the flour and sugar into a medium sized mixing bowl. Add in the vanilla extract and stir to combine.

3. Add in the cold butter. Using your fingertips, rub the butter into the flour mixture until crumbly dough forms. Then fold in the chopped chocolate.

4. Crumble the dough into the base of the tin and press down with your hands (dust your fingers with flour first) or an offset spatula.

5. Place the tin into the middle of the oven and bake for 20 minutes or until light and golden in colour. Remove from the oven and set aside.

6. Sift the cocoa powder and flour together in a medium bowl.

7. Melt the chocolate and butter in a bain-marie, stirring with a heat proof spatula. Remove from the heat and allow to cool for a few minutes while you prepare the aquafaba.

8. Add the aquafaba and sugar into a medium sized mixing bowl and whip up with an electric hand whisk on high speed for around 5 minutes until thick and glossy.

9. Sprinkle the instant coffee into the warm chocolate mixture and mix to combine.

10. Pour the chocolate over the aquafaba, and very carefully fold together with a spatula.

11. Once combined, sift in the flour and cocoa powder. Again, fold this in with a spatula until a rich and thick brownie batter forms.

12. Add in the roughly chopped chocolate and fold to combine. Pour the brownie batter on top of the shortbread base and level off with an offset spatula.

13. Place the tin into the middle of the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes. Once baked, remove the tin from the oven and allow to cool fully on a wire rack. Keep the brownie in the tin while it’s cooling.

14. For the frosting, melt the chocolate in a bain-marie, stirring with a heat proof spatula. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly for 5-8 minutes. While the water in the pan is still hot, add a fresh bowl on top and add in the dairy-free dark chocolate. Allow to melt while you make the buttercream.

15. In a large mixing bowl, add the dairy-free butter, whip with a hand mixer until creamy.

16. Sift in the icing sugar and add the vanilla extract. Whip on high speed for a couple of minutes to incorporate it. Add in the chocolate and whip to combine. You want it to be thick and creamy.

17. Transfer the buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a grass tip nozzle. Cut the brownie into 9 bars, and pipe the frosting over the top of the brownie squares to replicate the polar bears fur.

18. Press three white buttons into the buttercream, two for the ears and the third in the middle for the nose.

19. Pour the melted dark chocolate into a piping bag, cut off the tip and make two dots for the eyes and a nose. Allow to set before serving.

Our gratitude goes out to fabulous Holly Jade (The little blog of vegan) for this cute polar bears!

Scroll to Top