Brownie Swirl Cake

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I’m going to tell you all that I had high hopes for March.  I know that Spring is right around the corner and I was all excited to share some “healthy” (well, more healthy than usual) recipes with you so that you didn’t have to swear off the website while you readied yourself for Spring Break or whatever it is that you have looming around the corner that may require you to wear some less-skin-covering clothing items.

Much to absolutely no one’s surprise, that ended quickly.  I promise that I’ve been making juices and salads for you, but in between all of those green and healthful things there is cake.  So.  Much.  Cake.

Well, since March is my birthday month and I’m always in search of the perfect cake for my birthday anyway, I decided to embrace my cake madness and MAKE ALL THE CAKE!  Followed by eating all the cake, and posting all the cake.

all the cake

Last year I made pretty much the best cake ever – a three layer rich chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting and finished off with a dark chocolate ganache.  It was heavenly.  It’s going to be really hard to top.

But not everyone has hours to dedicate to cake-making.

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So, what if you have a birthday say, tomorrow, and you want to do something a little more special than just a box cake mix and you don’t know what to do because you have a job and a life and not enough hours in the day?

That’s where this comes in.

You get the ease of a box mix but with super fancy sprinkles and swirls that make it look like you worked really hard.  And the weirdest part?  Somehow you use brownie mix and a cake mix and it magically turns into this fun and pretty marbled sensation.

Not too shabby, huh?

So in honor of March, I’m going to say IT’S MY BIRTHDAY MONTH AND I CAN EAT CAKE EVERY FRICKIN’ DAY IF I WANT TO AND NO ONE CAN STOP ME.  And if you feel the need to celebrate March (officially renamed “Cake Month”) with me, then more power to you!  We’ll save all that healthy stuff for next month or something (or I’m sure I can sneak a recipe or two in between the cake).

For now, I’ll take another piece of cake please.

Brownie Swirl Cake

Yield: One 9- by 13-inch cake

Ingredients

  • *1 (15.25 oz) box cake mix
  • *1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • *1 egg
  • *1/2 cup milk
  • *1 "Family Size" box Brownie mix
  • *1 recipe frosting (or just a large can of frosting, I won't tell)
  • *Sprinkles, if desired

Instructions

  1. 1. Preheat oven to 350°F and spray 9x13 pan with cooking spray or line with foil/parchment.
  2. 2. In a medium mixing bowl combine cake mix, oil, egg and milk. Beat together for about 1 minute, until ingredients are incorporated.
  3. 3. Spread batter in the bottom of the prepared pan (it will be thick). I find the easiest way to do this is to wet my hands with water and use them to press and spread the mix until it covers the bottom of the pan.
  4. 4. Make your brownie batter according to the directions on the box. Pour the brownie batter on top of the cake layer.
  5. 5. Bake approx 25-30 minutes until center is set, err on the side of slightly underbaking than overbaking. What I ended up with was delicious brownie outsides (I like the dry brownie outside) and a nice, cakey inside. Surprisingly tasty.
  6. 6. Frost and top with sprinkles, if desired.
https://wee-eats.com/2013/03/03/brownie-swirl-cake/

 

[ Adapted from Cookies N Cups ]

8 thoughts on “Brownie Swirl Cake

  1. Everyone needs a shortcut recipe or two in their repertoire…and this one not only seems tasty, but is pretty too! Happy Birthday month to you!!! Eat all the cake you want! In fact, I think that for March, you should post a new cake recipe every week 😉
    P.S. I made that choco-pb Smitten cake for Nate’s bday this year…it’s like the best cake EVER, right?? 🙂

  2. EAT ALL THE CAKE!
    good call for March…i mean, farmers’ markets technically all mostly open up in April, soooooo…think of all the planning you can do ahead of time for healthy, right? for now, CAKE.
    i remember last year’s cake; it’s actually the thing i always recall whenever i see a version having to do with peanut butter and chocolate elsewhere; i always go back to your cake and how magical it looked. now i’m super intrigued by how brownie mix and cake mix can bake together at the same time. my mind can’t handle this at this particular hour of the morning. mind = blown. also, how pretty does that turn out! so pretty.

  3. Delicious! AMAZING! I was reluctant but was pleasantly surprised, it was one of the best desserts I’ve made! I served (white cake/ brownie mix marble cake) it warm with ice cream and carmel topping. However, when I was making it, it was hard to judge the timing, I needed to keep it in the oven longer than directed. 5 stars! I’llI’ll definitely be making it again!

  4. I’m getting ready to try this for my granddaughters birthday. So your saying I don’t need to swirl the cake mix and brownie mix together after I put them in the pan.–

  5. I totally grabbed a chocolate cake mix instead of another brownie mix, this recipe has kept me from launching into panic mode as I need it for an event tonight. Thank you for saving my hide! Ps I used sugar free mixes and then layered in sugar free peanut butter cups…topped with sugar free can icing and serving with vanilla ice cream!

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