Hi Everyone! How are all my fellow foodies? Staying dry, I hope. So, I have always heard that April showers bring May flowers. But, here in Illinois, this year April showers brought May showers and May showers brought June showers. It just keeps raining! It’s crazy. The farmers in the family are getting pretty anxious because some crops are not planted yet and others need to be replanted. There are miniature swamps throughout the yard. And, there is flooding in many of our local communities. Fortunately, for us, we live in one of the highest spots in this county and our basement has never leaked. Thank goodness!
But, anyway, May came and went quickly and now June is almost gone. It seemed quicker than usual this year to me. I think because it was so very busy. May is chockfull of celebrations for this family. We have several birthdays, including mine. There are always graduations because we have such a large family. Mother’s Day, of course, is always celebrated in some way. And, then there is Cinco De Mayo. Now, I have absolutely no Hispanic heritage but I do love Hispanic food. So, Cinco De Mayo seems like a perfect reason to enjoy some really good food and have some fun making it too. I do love to make Mexican food. This year, we did a nacho bar with lots of toppings for blue and regular tortilla chips. I had shredded and seasoned chicken as well as taco-seasoned ground beef. Cody was home and we all loaded up our plates with chips and our favorite toppings and watched baseball while we munched. Then, I made little churro bites by frying up some chunks of leftover pound cake and then coating them with cinnamon and sugar. It was a good, good meal.
I wanted to take something to work to celebrate a belated Cinco De Mayo so I whipped up some of my Mexican Brownies. I really love this recipe because I use boxed brownie mix and add a few extra special ingredients and end up with a to-die-for spicy brownie. It is super easy and quick and you probably already have the fixins in your pantry. Now, you could make a from-scratch brownie but my family really loves the boxed brownies that I use. I do make them a little differently than it says on the box but I only change the pan size and the baking time. I always, always, always double the recipe so I use 2 boxes of the mix and then double up on the additional ingredients. I bake them in a 9 X 13 pan for 40 – 45 minutes. The result is a thick and gooey brownie with a dense fudge-like center and a little crunch on the edges.
For these Cinco De Mayo Brownies, I add some cinnamon and cayenne pepper to the batter and then sprinkle the baked brownies with a combination of powdered sugar, cocoa powder, cayenne, and cinnamon. The result is a luscious, fudgy, gooey brownie with unexpected spicy heat.
Now, I always use the Pillsbury family-sized fudge brownie mix. I use 2 boxes and then just double the additional ingredients. You will need water, canola oil and eggs as well as the brownie mix. You will also need ground cayenne pepper, cinnamon, powdered sugar, and unsweetened cocoa powder (sorry, I forgot to add that to the ingredients photo). And, you will need some cooking spray for your pan.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a 9 X 13 cake pan by spraying the bottom with cooking spray. Many times, I will line my pan with parchment paper and then spray the paper as well but this time I decided to do without the paper. Either way is good.
Stir together both dry brownie mixes with double the ingredients called for on the box. If you are using Pillsbury family-sized you will need ½ cup water, 1 ⅓ cups canola (or vegetable) oil and 4 eggs. You can just do this by hand in a large bowl. Once combined, add 1 teaspoon ground cayenne and 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Mix well. Now, if you want to ease your way into the concept of spicy sweets you could add only ½ teaspoon of cayenne. It is totally up to you. My brownie eaters like the heat that the teaspoon brings.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
Bake at 350 degrees for 40 – 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with no liquid batter. Try not to overbake the brownies. They are much better when slightly underdone so they remain really gooey. Remove the baked brownies from the oven and allow to cool for about 20 minutes or so. You don’t want the brownies to be too hot when you add the topping or the powdered sugar will melt.
Meanwhile, stir 2 Tablespoons powdered sugar, ⅛ teaspoon cayenne, ¼ teaspoon cinnamon, and 1 teaspoon cocoa powder together with a fork or small whisk.
Sprinkle this mixture over the top of the slightly warm brownies and press down just a bit with your hand to make sure the topping sticks. Let the brownies cool a bit more and then cut into squares. Enjoy!
Cinco De Mayo Brownies
Ingredients
For the Brownies
- 2 boxes family-size fudge brownie mix
- 1 1/3 cup canola or vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup water
- 4 eggs
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper from spice aisle
- 1 tsp cinnamon
For the Topping
- 2 Tbsp powdered sugar
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp cocoa powder
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Prepare a 9 X 13 cake pan by spraying the bottom with cooking spray.
- Stir together both dry brownie mixes with double the ingredients called for on the box. If you are using Pillsbury family-sized you will need ½ cup water, 1 ⅓ cups canola (or vegetable) oil and 4 eggs. You can just do this by hand in a large bowl.
- Add 1 teaspoon ground cayenne (or less is you prefer) and 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Mix well.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 – 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with no liquid batter. Try not to overbake the brownies.
- Remove the baked brownies from the oven and allow to cool for about 20 minutes or so.
- Stir 2 Tablespoons powdered sugar, ⅛ teaspoon cayenne, ¼ teaspoon cinnamon and 1 teaspoon cocoa powder together with a fork or small whisk. Sprinkle this mixture over the top of the slightly warm brownies and press down just a bit with your hand to make sure the topping sticks.
- Let the brownies cool a bit more and then cut into squares.
