Chocolate Orange Brownies

These chocolate orange brownies are fudgy, rich and utterly delicious and made with a wonderful mix of dark chocolate, orange zest, and chocolate orange chunks. They are easy to bake, and create that wonderful brownie texture with a deep flavour and citrus finish, with a crinkly top. 

I have made this recipe many times now as it’s a personal favourite, and they have that ideal brownie texture. The dark chocolate base creates a better texture, more delicious flavour, and a more reliably fudgy finish to the bake. 

Notes from The Patisserie

The delicious texture and moistness of a brownie is heaven in a bite, and with the addition of the chocolate orange, these are utter perfection in my opinion. I make these in the same way as the majority of my other brownie recipes.

I live in the UK, which means we have easy access to a brand call Terry’s chocolate orange, and it’s just incredible. It has the perfect balance of the orange oil flavour with the milk chocolate, and works as a dream in these brownies. 

If you don’t live in the UK, there are alternatives that you could use to bake with instead. My first suggestion would be to use basic milk chocolate chunks, and add the zest of an extra orange, or use a strong orange based flavour extract over all. 

After melting the chocolate and butter together, everything happens in one bowl. The brownies are packed full of flavour, because adding orange zest as well as chunks of Terry’s chocolate orange, add’s a genuine zesty hit that satisfies the taste buds. 

This recipe is so similar to my classic triple chocolate brownies, just with a couple of alterations to suit the terry’s chocolate orange brownie theme, is ideal for getting ahead.

Updates to the recipe January 2026

After originally publishing this recipe in 2015, the recipe has evolved over time due to ingredient changes and more modern baking ideas for a better bake and consistency

I you are using Terry’s chocolate orange in the base like me, I recommend using 150g of Terry’s chocolate orange. The product has changed weight throughout the years, so if you find you are slightly short, simply top it up with extra dark chocolate instead

I have updated the dry quantities a little (35g cocoa powder = 50g cocoa powder) and (85g plain flour = 100g plain flour) as I prefer this version. If you liked it before, you can use the smaller quantities. The bake timings and methods remain the same.

Ingredient notes & tips

Dark chocolate is something that some bakers are a little afraid of as you don’t all necessarily love the bitter flavour that it can create. By the time you marry it with the rest of the ingredients, it doesn’t taste bitter at all. I would always recommend the 70% or higher cocoa content. I use supermarket own dark chocolate where possible, or bakers chocolate, not a brand 

The Terry’s adds the orange flavour naturally with the chunks throughout the brownie mixture, as well as a little in the base brownie. If you are unlucky and you can’t buy Terry’s where you are, that is totally fine – you can use any chocolate orange based chocolate, or you can use a milk chocolate, and add in extra orange zest or orange oils. 

I find the natural flavour of the orange zest best, but a valencian orange extract is my favourite alternative – they have strength, without too much acidity – it wonderfully balances with the sweetness of the brownie. 

As you can see from the images, these are the fudgiest and most glorious things on the planet. You want to bake the brownies, ideally in the correct size tin like mine for the baking times/temperatures, and bake until there is a small wobble in the middle.

The wobble doesn’t meant that the brownies are underbaked, but you may think it. The entire tray shouldn’t wobble, this might mean it needs a bit longer, but once that smaller central area wobbles, let the tray cool fully and then set the brownies in the fridge. This will firm up the chocolate and butter again, and create that fudge texture. 

How to get a shiny and crinkly top

The method of whipping the eggs and sugar until pale, doubled in volume and mousse like helps create that delicate top layer that people love. I tend to use my stand mixer when whipping the eggs and sugar (I find light brown soft sugar creates a wonderful flavour, as well as the natural molasses helping the top of the brownie) because it just makes it quicker. 

You can whip the eggs and sugar by hand, with a balloon whisk, and it will totally work – you just need to stick at it. When you lift the whisk out of the bowl, the mixture should leave a trail for at least one full second before melting into the bowl. 

How to make chocolate orange brownies 

Full instructions on how to make the chocolate orange brownies can be found in the recipe card below

Starting off with a base of dark chocolate that contains at last 70% cocoa, and some chocolate orange chocolate (I use Terry’s chocolate orange – if you don’t have this, you can use a total of 200g of dark chocolate instead) and you melt with butter. A block butter creates richness, but a baking spread also works.

The texture of the eggs and sugar without whipping is quite thick, and whilst a lot of brownie recipes use this method, the air that you create by mixing them together for a few minutes creates the crinkly top you all adore on the top of a brownie. 

Folding in the dry ingredients helps maintain that texture, you can sift the dry ingredients if you are worried they are lumpy, and then also add in the orange zest. I like to use a finely grated zest for better distribution, but chunky bits of zest also works.

Baking in a 9″ square tin creates the best bake and size of piece for me – and the timing is designed for this size tin. I always recommend cooling the brownies fully, and then setting the tray in the fridge for a few hours before slicing for the perfect portion. 

FAQs

Storage and freezing

These brownies last for 4-7 days, at room temperature, or in the fridge. If you like them cold and fudgy like me, I keep them in the fridge. They also freeze very well for 3+ months 

Related recipes

It’s not secret that I adore chocolate orange – I already have oodles of other chocolate orange recipes on my blog, so I think that says it all really… One of my first recipes to get seriously popular was my chocolate orange cookies, which are amazing by the way, like I have no joke made them over 50 times.

Also love this flavour combination?! I have other delicious recipes such as my no-bake chocolate orange cheesecake, my chocolate orange drip cake and even my six-ingredient no-bake chocolate orange tart.