(Skye McApline)
Not only does the festive gold leaf make Skye McAlpine’s Christmas brownies a true holiday table showstopper, but it also elevates the classic baked good into an exceptionally beautiful gift.
McAlpine told us that the recipe from her new book, The Christmas Companion, scales easily for batch baking and doesn’t take long in the oven, either. From a single recipe, you can get anywhere from two to four gifts, depending on whether you’re putting together a treat for an individual or a family.
When it comes to packaging, McAlpine likes to lean into whimsy. “One thing that’s quite fun is collecting vintage tins, which you can buy on eBay or at flea markets,” she said. She also loves using small paper cake boxes tied with ribbon, or simply cellophane finished with a pretty bow. “You can tie an ornament to it or add a candy cane,” she said. For a charming, understated look, she suggests greaseproof paper tied with red ribbon or red-and-white twine.
“They also keep for a really long time,” McAlpine added (up to two weeks in an airtight container), which makes them ideal for advance prep. But once you read the ingredient list, you’ll understand why they likely won’t last very long at all.
The following has been reprinted, with permission, from The Christmas Companion: Recipes, Crafts and Inspiration for a Magical Festive Season.
Christmas Brownies
By Skye McAlpine
This is a version of my favourite chocolate brownies from A Table Full of Love, here laced with candied peel, peppery ginger and fudgy marzipan, then topped with brushstrokes of shimmering gold leaf. They are extravagant in every sense of the word. It’s a good recipe for bake sales and for gifting, as it’s easy to scale up and make en masse. It’s also a hardy, foolproof recipe that is nigh-on impossible to go wrong with and so can be delegated to any willing helpers (even, and especially, small ones). They keep nicely for at least a week, if not two, making timings infinitely less sensitive than with other baked goods.
The gold leaf may feel like a little too much and is by no means necessary… but if not at Christmas, then when? I buy sheets of edible gold leaf online: while it’s not, as you might expect, what I would describe as cheap, it’s also not nearly as pricey as one might suppose… and it’s worth noting that a very little of it goes a long way.
Children and grown-ups alike will go wild for these.
Ingredients 150g dark chocolate, finely chopped 300g salted butter 90g cocoa powder 6 eggs 600g caster sugar 90g strong white bread flour ¾ teaspoon baking powder 150g crystallised ginger, coarsely chopped 150g candied orange peel, coarsely chopped 120g marzipan, coarsely chopped 10–12 sheets of edible gold leaf Edible glue, if needed Preparation
Heat the oven to 180˚C / 160˚C fan / Gas 4. Line two 25 × 18cm brownie tins with baking paper.
In a small saucepan, gently melt the chocolate and the butter together over a very low heat, stirring all the while to make sure the chocolate doesn’t catch. Add the cocoa and stir to combine, then set aside to cool.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk the eggs and sugar with electric beaters until light and creamy in colour. Now, gently whisk the cooled melted chocolate into the eggs. Fold in the flour and the baking powder. Lastly, fold in the ginger, orange peel and marzipan.
Divide the batter between the 2 prepared tins. Bake for 30–35 minutes until the tops feel firm to the touch and a light chocolate crust has formed.
Let cool completely in the tins before turning out. Even better, if you can, let them chill in their tins in the fridge for a few hours or overnight. Carefully apply the sheets of gold leaf, by lifting each sheet from the paper and draping it over the area you want to apply it (I do this in a random pattern on the block of brownies). It should stick immediately, but you can help press it down with the back of a knife, or use a dab of edible glue, if needed. Cut into small squares before serving.
The brownies will happily keep in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
Makes 36 small or 24 larger brownies
Excerpted with permission from The Christmas Companion: Recipes, Crafts and Inspiration for a Magical Festive Season by Skye McAlpine. Copyright © 2025 Skye McAlpine. Photography by Skye McAlpine. Published by Bloomsbury Publishing, October 2025.
Dining and Cooking