Brownie Oreo Dirt Cake with Chocolate Whipped Cream

This brownie Oreo dirt cake was first published on The Culinary Jumble (my previous blog) in 2017. The recipe information has been amended slightly to include spelt flour.

This cake was made for my son’s 10th birthday. Regular readers will know that every birthday in our house gets a celebratory cake. Unless it’s mine, then there is none. Poor me. 

Seriously though, I wouldn’t get the same pleasure in making my own cake and so in all honesty, I just don’t bother with a lot of fuss. Recently, we had an outrageous chocolate overload cake  and this time around, it is a dirt cake.

My son is football mad at the moment. He really wanted a cake in the shape of a football shirt. And in Neymar’s colours. One look at an example cake was enough to say no. All the intricate icing gave me a panic attack. Cake decorator, I’m really not.

Thankfully, I was able to very skilfully steer him away from the shirt and onto a dirt cake. Well played, mamma.

For those of you who haven’t yet come across these, the “dirt” aspect of the cake is made from crushed Oreos. I have to say how surprised I was. It looked and felt authentic. The texture was exactly the same as dry dirt. Doesn’t sound appetizing, but you get the point. 

I made a brownie base as opposed to a cake mainly because I find brownies so much easier to make (they don’t need to rise the same way as sponges do). Regular readers will know how enamored I am with brownies, so if they are also a favourite of yours, check out my dark chocolate marshmallow, caramel brownies, or my Oreo brownies:

I have a standard go-to brownie recipe and way of baking it (think fudgy and gooey). However, this brownie Oreo dirt cake has a firmer texture (by baking it longer). I needed the base to be fairly solid because I was going to top it with a ton of chocolate cream. Not to mention, a shed load of crushed Oreos.

I chose the recipe because it works without fail, but that said, you could use any cake as it is the Oreo crumbs that make it a dirt cake, when all’s said and done.

The topping is super simple to make – just melt some chocolate and add to whipped cream. You could even make it with Nutella instead of chocolate, like I did with my Ferrero Rocher meringue cake. As well as covering the whole cake with “dirt”, I also added a little grass and a few decorations, although these are entirely optional.

It’s a massive cake and will easily feed 10-12 people.

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Brownie Oreo Dirt Cake with Chocolate Whipped Cream

Servings 12 slices

Ingredients

Brownie:

• 200g (7 oz) dark chocolate
• 200g (⅞ cup) butter
• 100ml (3 tbs + 1 tsp) milk
• 1 tbs instant coffee (see note 1)
• 120g (⅔ cup) brown sugar
• 130g (⅔ cup) white sugar
• 3 eggs (medium)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla sugar or extract
• 80g (⅔ cup) spelt flour (see note 2)
• 30g (¼ cup) cocoa

Cream Topping:

• 500ml (2 cups) whipping cream
• 200g (7 oz) milk chocolate

Decorations:

• approx. 25 Oreos (ground into "dirt")
• decorations (grass and worms, or anything else you fancy)

Instructions

Brownie:

• Pre-heat the oven to 170°C (338℉) and grease a fairly large square or rectangle spring-form baking pan (mine was 27cm x 17cm / 10in x 7in).
• Slowly heat the chocolate and butter in a pan until just melted.
• Mix the coffee (if using) together with the milk, and pour into the chocolate mixture. Let it cool for about five minutes.
• In a large bowl, whisk the sugars with the eggs, and if you're using vanilla essence rather than vanilla sugar, add it now.
• Add in the cooled chocolate mixture, and whisk just until combined.
• Mix the flour and cocoa together, then quickly whisk into the wet ingredients (don't over work it, just until everything is combined).
• Pour into the prepared tin and bake for around 20-25 minutes (until an inserted skewer comes out clean). Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely (leave the cake in the pan).

Cream topping:

• Melt the chocolate and leave it to completely cool. In the meantime, whisk the cream until it is thick and stiff peaks form.
• Add around a third of the cream to the chocolate and mix until well combined, then pour the cream/chocolate mixture into the remaining cream and mix until it is evenly distributed.
• Pour over the cooled brownie and then refrigerate overnight. It doesn't have to be overnight, but I find it gives the brownie a nice, neat slice when it has been refrigerated (a few hours would be enough time for it to set). Please note that the chocolate whipped cream does not go rock hard and keeps a consistency similar to mousse.
• Crush the Oreos in a food processor until you are left with fine crumbs. Just before serving, sprinkle them over the cake and decorate with whatever else you fancy (the grass was created by cutting up bits of green shoe-lace candy).
• Cut into chunks and enjoy! Any leftovers, keep in an airtight container and store in the fridge.

Notes

 

1. If you do not want to use coffee, just omit it from the recipe.
2. You can use regular flour instead of spelt. I have successfully baked my go-to brownie recipe with both flours, without any noticeable difference.

 

Disclaimer:

I have converted grams to cups/ounces/tablespoons using online converters. Although I have no reason to believe they are inaccurate, please be aware that I have not made the recipe with imperial measurements.

In addition, many ingredients are different in Europe compared to North America. I do all I can to offer possible alternatives and to ensure the best possible outcomes for everyone. However, results cannot always be guaranteed if you have not used the same ingredients, measurements or methods as me.

Lastly, I do everything I can to ensure that my recipes (and instructions) are accurate and easy to follow. However, I am human, and don't always get it right. If you notice anything strange, a mistake, or even a typo, please let me know in the comments.