Soft and fudgy ube brownies studded with white chocolate, a delicious ube treat that you can’t find anywhere else!
What is ube?
If you aren’t familiar with ube, it is a purple root vegetable originating in the Philippines. It has a sweet, slightly nutty, vanilla-y taste and is commonly used in desserts.
Ube is often confused with taro and purple sweet potato. Taro is not as vibrant in color and sweetness and is used more often in savory dishes. On the other hand purple sweet potato has a more intense purple colour and sweetness. If you can’t find ube, purple sweet potato is often a great alternative.
Ingredients
- Unsalted butter: Butter gives these brownies that delicious fragrance. They also help them achieve the perfect balance of fudginess and softness.
- White chocolate: White chocolate sweetens the brownie batter and also increases the fudginess of the brownie.
- Granulated sugar: Regular sugar works best here, not a lot is needed as there is already a lot of sweetness coming from the white chocolate melted into the batter and the white chocolate chunks
- Salt: Salt helps to balance out the sweetness of the brownies
- Ube extract: Ube extract is concentrated ube flavor and helps give these brownies that extra ube purple color and flavor oomph that the ube halaya can’t provide.
- Large eggs: Egg helps to bind the batter together! Make sure you use large eggs.
- Ube halaya: Ube halaya aka purple yam jam is made from sugar and cooked ube to form a paste. This provides some of the ube flavor in these brownies, while also contributing to the structure of it!
- All-purpose flour: Aka plain flour, gives the brownies a little of structure. Not a lot is needed as these brownies are quite fudgy.
- White chocolate: The white chocolate in this step at the end is optional, but I think it adds great texture, sweetness, and flavor to the overall brownie! Use your favorite bar of white chocolate for the best flavor, but white chocolate chips work great too.
Tips for Making Ube Brownies
Use Room Temperature Ingredients
Bringing ingredients like butter, eggs, and ube halaya to room temperature ensures they blend more smoothly, creating a uniform batter. This leads to a more even bake and a better texture in the final brownie.
Line the Pan with Parchment Paper
Lining the baking pan with parchment paper makes it easier to lift out the brownies after baking. This also helps prevent sticking, which is especially useful given the sticky and dense nature of ube-based batters.
Chill Before Slicing
Allow the brownies to cool completely, then chill them in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 hours before slicing. This step helps the brownies firm up, making it easier to achieve clean, sharp edges. It also deepens the ube flavor.
Use a Metal Pan for Better Edges
A light-colored metal pan conducts heat more efficiently than glass or ceramic, giving the brownies crisp edges and a moist interior. Avoid dark pans as they may overbake the edges.
Ube Brownie Variations
Ube Mochi Brownies
Incorporate sweet rice flour (mochiko) into the batter for a chewy mochi-like texture. This variation combines the fudgy nature of brownies with the bounce and stretch of mochi, creating a unique hybrid dessert.
Coconut Ube Brownies
Add shredded coconut into the batter or swirl coconut cream on top before baking. The coconut enhances the tropical profile of the ube and provides a satisfying texture contrast.
Ube Crinkle Top Brownies
Sprinkle a thin layer of granulated sugar over the surface of the batter before baking to achieve a crackly, shiny crinkle top. This gives the brownies a classic brownie finish while still showcasing their vibrant purple color.
Ube Biscoff Brownies
Swirl Biscoff cookie butter into the batter before baking to add a caramelized, spiced contrast to the sweet, nutty flavor of the ube. This fusion adds depth and complexity to each bite.
Serving Suggestions for Ube Brownies
Serve with Ube Ice Cream
For a decadent dessert pairing, top warm or chilled ube brownies with a scoop of ube ice cream. This enhances the flavor and creates a cohesive ube-forward experience that’s rich and indulgent.
Dust with Powdered Sugar and Ube Crumbs
After cooling, lightly dust the brownies with powdered sugar and sprinkle with toasted ube crumbs or crushed dehydrated purple yam snacks. This adds visual appeal and a slight textural contrast.
Cut Into Mini Cubes for Dessert Platters
Slice the brownies into small, bite-sized cubes and serve them on a dessert platter for parties or gatherings. Their vibrant color makes them an eye-catching addition to any buffet table.
Pair with Coconut Coffee or Milk Tea
Serve ube brownies with coconut-infused coffee or ube milk tea. These drinks complement the dessert’s flavor while making for a culturally rich and modern serving suggestion.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do ube brownies last?
These brownies will last up to 5 days when stored in an airtight container in the fridge, or up to 3 days when stored at room temperature.
If you store them in the fridge keep in mind that they’ll be a lot harder and fudgier than when stored at room temperature. Personally, I love that texture but you can heat the brownies up in the microwave for 10-20 seconds to bring them back to that soft texture if that is what you prefer.
Can I freeze ube brownies?
Yes, these brownies are perfect for freezing! When defrosted they’ll almost be exactly the same as the day you baked them.
If freezing them make sure you cut them into squares and wrap them individually in plastic wrap before putting them in the freezer. Otherwise, you’ll have to defrost the whole batch all at once in order to eat them.
When you’re ready to eat them just place them in the fridge overnight to defrost or on your countertop at room temperature for an hour.
Where do I find ube halaya?
Ube halaya aka ube jam can be found in all Filipino groceries and some Asian groceries. I do find that it can be difficult to find sometimes, however, it is also readily available online!
If you can’t find it at all you can make your own using frozen or fresh ube and sugar.
Where can I get ube extract?
Ube extract is a little easier to find than ube halaya and you can find it in most asian groceries. Just look in the baking aisle and it should be with all the other flavorings.
Why are my brownies so hard?
The main reason behind hard and dry brownies is overbaking them. Brownies need less time than you think to make them. They are ready to come out of the oven once a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a couple of moist crumbs.
If the toothpick comes out clean you’ve already overbaked them. Keep an eye on them and check them 5 minutes before the estimated completion time.
Let’s Get Cooking
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Ube Brownies Recipe
Soft and fudgy ube brownies studded with white chocolate, a delicious ube treat that you can’t find anywhere else!
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 12 squares 1x
- Category: Bars
- Method: Easy
- Cuisine: Asian Fusion
Ingredients
- 120g Unsalted butter (1/2 cup)
- 225g White chocolate, roughly chopped (8 oz)
- 100g White sugar (1/2 cup)
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Ube extract
- 2 large eggs
- 115g Ube halaya jam (1/2 cup)
- 150g All purpose flour (1 1/4 cup)
- 100g White chocolate, in chunks (3.5 oz)
- Purple sweet potato powder, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C/355F and line an 8 inch square baking pan with parchment paper
- Combine the white chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl and melt over a double boiler or in the microwave until smooth
- Remove from the heat and cool slightly
- Combine the sugar, salt, ube extract, eggs and ube halaya in a large bowl and whisk until smooth
- Slowly add the melted chocolate mixture to the ube mixture, whisking continuously until smooth
- Add the flour into the batter and stir until just combined
- Add the white chocolate chunks and fold to combine
- Transfer the batter to your lined baking tray and bake for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs
- Cool completely and dust with sweet potato powder
- Then slice into squares and enjoy!
Delicious! I can’t stop eating it. I ate like 1/4 right out of the oven (after cooling for a little bit). I used a scale and may have gone a few g over on some of the ingredients. My eggs may have been a little old (but not rotten yet) and I skipped the topping. I used a glass baking dish, forgot to alter the baking time, but it still came out as soft as normal brownies come out.
My husband said “this is the best ube dessert you’ve made so far”. He likes it better than the Catherine’s ube roll cake (which was also pretty amazing IMO). I could see it being a little sweet for some people. If I made it again in the future, I would probably cut down on the white chocolate chips at the beginning. Unless you recommend cutting back on the sugar first, Catherine?
Made these for Friendsgiving and they were a huge hit. Two batches, and they were all gone by the end of the day. I used white chocolate chips as opposed to chunks. Same thing just smaller pieces. And I cooked them for a bit longer than you recommended (About 45-50 mins). Otherwise perfect recipe. Definitely keeping this one in my back pocket for get-togethers.
recipe was fireeeee but is it actually 3848.9mg of sodium LMAO T_T
These are amazing!! I made these for a birthday party and they were such a hit. I almost ruined them at first while melting the white chocolate and butter together (I think it separated?), but Catherine actually had a tip about ganache from another recipe that totally saved me! (Fridge for 30 min immediately and then mix until smooth). They tasted so good that my husband didn’t want me to bring them to the party. So grateful for this recipe!