Copycat Cosmic Brownies have all the fudgy brownie goodness of iconic Little Debbie treats complete with thick chocolate ganache and rainbow chip sprinkles!
Take Fudge Brownies on a trip down memory lane in this copycat Brownies Recipe for the well loved Little Debbie’s lunch box snack!
COSMIC BROWNIES
Little Debbie Cosmic Brownies have been the go-to snack for road-trips, lunch boxes, camping trips, and so much more for decades. What school-goer hasn’t tried to swap a homemade cookie for one of these chocolatey, fun treats at least once? Kids and kids at heart can’t resist the chewy, fudgy brownie center, thick chocolate frosting, and the crunchy rainbow chips!
Sure you could pick up a box of Little Debbie Cosmic Brownies at any market or gas station, but this copycat recipe not only saves you trip, it saves some money too. Not to mention, Homemade Cosmic Brownies are fudgier than the store bought kind without using corn syrup or hydrogenated oils… aka you can feel good about you and the kids going back for seconds or thirds.
This Cosmic Brownies recipe is so delicious and deliciously easy, you may never buy a store bought box of these iconic treats again. To get the perfect soft and chewy brownies and rich chocolate frosting, you just need to follow a couple simple baking rules.
- First, make sure that you don’t over mix the brownie base when you combine wet and dry ingredients. Sifting the dry ingredients first ensures less mixing when you combine, so always sift or whisk dry ingredients in a separate bowl.
- Secondly, if it’s your first time (or fiftieth time) making a chocolate ganache, you want to be careful it doesn’t seize up. Seizing up and becoming grainy happens when cold milk meet hot melted chocolate. Bring the heavy cream and chocolate up to the same heat together, never add cold heavy cream to melted chocolate.
- Finally, when it comes to brownies you want to under bake them so they are are nice and soft. Use the toothpick method and if it comes out with moist crumbs, your Cosmic Brownies are perfect. If the toothpick comes out completely clean, they are over baked and will be less fudge-like.
You want to cool Cosmic Brownies completely before topping with the Chocolate Ganache so it will set properly. Once the brownies are set, feel free to pop them in the microwave to make them melty fudge goodness perfect with Vanilla Ice Cream! You can also skip the ganache and top your brownies with Cream Cheese Frosting or Rich Chocolate Frosting instead.
MORE DELICIOUS BROWNIE RECIPES:
Brownies
Cookie Dough Brownies
Cream Cheese Brownies
Marshmallow Crunch Brownie Bars
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VARIATIONS ON COSMIC BROWNIES
- Nuts: You can use English walnuts (aka regular walnuts) for a traditional fudge brownie, or try chopped almonds, peanuts, or pecans for a salty crunch in the sweet chocolate frosting.
- Turtle Brownies: For newer Little Debbie treat, bake the brownies in a muffin tin (or cut into round disks) and top with Salted Caramel Sauce and chopped peanuts instead of chocolate ganache.
- Coffee: A couple tablespoons of brewed coffee or a teaspoon of espresso powder will make these brownies even fudgier and chocolatier!
- Mix Ins: Add mix-ins you love to the brownie base like semi-sweet chocolate chips, mini marshmallows, peanut butter chips, chopped nuts, or Oreo cookie chunks.
- Toppings: Instead of the rainbow chips, you can sprinkle the ganache with rainbow or chocolate sprinkles, mini chocolate chips, or mini M&Ms.
EVEN MORE DELICIOUS BROWNIE RECIPES
Nutella Brownies
Oreo Brownies
Brownie Pie
Slutty Brownies
HOW TO STORE COSMIC BROWNIES
- Serve: Keep Cosmic Brownies covered with plastic wrap at room temperature for up to 4 days. If room temperature is too hot and melting the frosting, refrigerate.
- Store: You can keep Cosmic Brownies in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to1 week. Use parchment paper between layers so the frosting doesn’t stick.
- Freeze: Wrap Cosmic Brownies individually in wax paper before freezing for a quick go-to treat. Place brownies in a sealed container and freeze for up to 6 months.
Cosmic Brownies
Ingredients
Fudge Brownies
- 12 tablespoons unsalted butter , melted
- 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar , packed
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1 1/4 cup flour
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Chocolate Ganache Frosting
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/3 cup candy coated chips , rainbow
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9x13 baking pan with baking spray.
Whisk together cocoa powder and melted butter until smooth.
Whisk in sugar, brown sugar, eggs and vanilla.
Sift together flour, cornstarch and salt then whisk it into the wet ingredients until just combined.
Spread into baking pan and bake for 16-18 minutes.
Cool completely.
Chocolate Ganache
Add chocolate chips and heavy cream to a large microwave safe bowl and microwave for 1 minute.
Let sit for 2 minutes then stir until smooth and glossy.
Spread over brownies and sprinkle rainbow chocolate chips while ganache is still wet.
The directions for mixing the ganache say to add milk, but it is not in the ingredients list.
Sorry about that. Milk isn’t needed for this recipe, just the heavy cream. I’ve edited the recipe card to read correctly now. Thanks for catching that.
can I use salted butter and just omit the salt?
You can try that but there’s no telling exactly how much salt is exactly in the butter especially since it can vary between brands. Good luck!
Where can you buy the rainbow chips?
I added a link in the recipe card for the rainbow chips. Just click on the green link and it’ll take you to the ones I used. Thanks!