Bring fudgy, chocolatey deliciousness to your Keto Valentine’s Day with these adorable, decadent heart brownies. They are easy to make and perfect for your honey or kids!
This post was originally published on January 19, 2019, and has been updated with fresh content and images, plus we’ve added a video!
Valentine’s Day is all about celebrating love and connection. The way I like to show my family that I love them is to bake them sweet treats! These Keto Valentine’s Day Brownies make the perfect gifts for both Nick and our girls.
The little red hearts are so cute! Zoey and Addie get so excited to see the brownies come out of the oven with the red hearts submerged into the brownies like magic. I hope you and yours love these beauties as well!
Why it works
- Ultimately fudgy, these low carb brownies are super chocolatey and crazy addicting.
- These Keto Valentine’s Day Brownies are actually really easy to make!
- Perfect for Valentine’s Day! This sugar free dessert is specially designed for cuteness overload – great to surprise your honey or make for your kids.
Ingredients
Powdered Monk Fruit / Erythritol Sweetener – My favourite low carb sweetener! I buy it in granular form from either SoNourished or Lakanto, then turn into into powdered form with a coffee grinder. Grab a clean coffee grinder, add about 1/4 cup granular sweetener and ‘blitz’ it for a moment or two – you’ve got yourself some powdered sweetener!
Instant Coffee – Adding coffee to chocolate desserts doesn’t usually add a lot of coffee flavour, if any at all; it simply amplifies the richness of the chocolate! In this case, I did add a touch more than I normally would, so you can just barely pick out the coffee flavour, but most likely only if you know it’s there! If you want zero coffee flavour, cut back the 1 tbsp to 2 tsp.
Red Food Colouring Gel – Food colouring gel is not the same as the liquid! Ever tried to dye something red with the liquid food colouring? It turns pink. I mean, if you want pink hearts, that’s totally cool too, I just personally really love the bright red hearts!
How to make Keto Valentine’s Day Brownies
The brownie
Start by heating your oven to 350°, then cover the entire outside of an 8×8″ baking pan with tin foil. Spray the inside of the pan with oil and set aside.
Melt the butter and set aside. In a medium bowl whisk almond flour, salt, cocoa and instant coffee, then set side.
Whip cream cheese until it’s nice and smooth. Sift in 1/4 cup of the sweetener and mix well, scraping the bowl once or twice. Stir in 1/2 tsp vanilla, then scoop out about 3 tbsp of the batter and set aside; this will be for the hearts.
Mix in the remaining sweetener, then the eggs, one at a time, scraping in between each addition, then stir in the melted butter and remaining vanilla.
Add the flour mixture to the cream cheese and stir just until combined. Scrape the batter into the prepared baking pan, then spread out evenly with a spatula.
The hearts
Mix red food colouring gel into the reserved batter that was set aside, until you have a bright red colour, then scrape it into a piping bag.
Pipe 9 hearts evenly onto the brownie batter using a fairly thin layer. During the baking process the hearts will sink into the brownie batter.
Bake it
Bake the brownie in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes. Depending on your oven it could be a few minutes sooner or a few minutes later.
You’ll know it’s ready when you see cracks around the edges of the brownie, the edges will begin to pull away from the edge of the pan and the very center will still be jiggly and have a shiny glaze to it.
Cool to room temperature and then refrigerate until completely cold before cutting into squares. Store in an air tight container in the refrigerator.
Watch the whole thing go down:
Expert Tips
- Begin with room temperature ingredients – this will help the mixing process.
- Make sure the tin foil comes all the way up all four sides of the baking pan. This helps to minimize the possibility of over cooked brownie edges.
- Scrape all the way down to the bottom of the bowl in between each addition – this will help to keep the batter lump free.
- If you have a small heart shaped cookie cutter, lightly press it evenly onto the brownie to use as a guide to make even shaped hearts.
- Don’t over bake – You’ll know it’s ready when you see cracks around the edges of the brownie, the edges will begin to pull away from the edge of the pan and the very center will still be jiggly and have a shiny glaze to it.
FAQ
Can I use red food colouring instead of food colouring gel?
We use food colouring gel rather than regular food colouring because gel will make your hearts red, whereas red liquid food colouring will make your hearts pink. If you want pink? Go ahead and use the liquid instead.
Why did my brownies crack?
If your brownies cracked, it means it has been over baked. You want the edges to be puffy, the center will still be jiggly and there could be very small cracks, not large cracks.
The brownies fell apart when I tried to get them out of the baking dish!
You need to let your brownies cool completely in the refrigerator until cold before attempting to remove them from the baking dish, otherwise they will crumble. Once cold, they are very firm and will not crumble.
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Keto Valentine’s Day Brownies
Ingredients
- 1 x 8oz full fat cream cheese room temperature
- ¾ cup powdered monk fruit / erythritol divided
- 2 tsp vanilla extract divided
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- ½ cup almond flour
- ½ tsp coarse sea salt grey or pink himalayan
- ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 tbsp instant coffee *see note 1
- 2 eggs
- Red food colouring gel *see note 2
Instructions
Equipment Needed
- 8×8 Baking Dish with tin foil
- Olive or Avocado Oil Cooking Spray
- Stand Mixer or Electric Mixer
- Medium Bowl
- Piping Bag
Directions
The Brownie
- Heat oven to 350°. Cover the bottom and side of a 8×8” baking dish with tin foil and spray the inside with olive or avocado oil, then set aside.
- Melt the butter and set aside. In a medium bowl whisk almond flour, salt, cocoa and instant coffee, then set side.
- Whip cream cheese until it’s nice and smooth. Sift in 1/4 cup of the sweetener and mix well, scraping the bowl once or twice. Stir in 1/2 tsp vanilla, then scoop out about 3 tbsp of the batter and set aside; this will be for the hearts.
- Mix in the remaining sweetener, then the eggs, one at a time, scraping in between each addition, then stir in the melted butter and remaining vanilla.
- Add the flour mixture to the cream cheese and stir just until combined. Scrape the batter into the prepared baking pan, then spread out evenly with a spatula.
The Hearts
- Mix red food colouring gel into the reserved batter that was set aside, until you have a bright red colour, then scrape it into a piping bag. Pipe 9 hearts evenly onto the brownie batter using a fairly thin layer.
Bake It
- Bake the brownie in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, until the edges have begun to pull away from the sides and started to form cracks. The center will still be jiggly but have a shiny glaze to it.
- Cool to room temperature and then refrigerate until completely cold before cutting into squares. Store in an air tight container in the refrigerator.
Notes
- Adding instant coffee to chocolate desserts doesn’t usually add a lot of coffee flavour, if any at all; it simply amplifies the richness of the chocolate! In this case, I did add a touch more than I normally would, so you can just barely pick out the coffee flavour, but most likely only if you know it’s there! If you want zero coffee flavour, cut back the 1 tbsp to 2 tsp.
- Food colouring gel is not the same as the liquid! Ever tried to dye something red with the liquid food colouring? It turns pink. I mean, if you want pink hearts, that’s totally cool too, I just personally really love the bright red hearts!
- Begin with room temperature ingredients – this will help the mixing process.
- Make sure the tin foil comes all the way up all four sides of the baking pan. This helps to minimize the possibility of over cooked brownie edges.
- Scrape all the way down to the bottom of the bowl in between each addition – this will help to keep the batter lump free.
- If you have a small heart shaped cookie cutter, lightly press it evenly onto the brownie to use as a guide to make even shaped hearts.
- Don’t over bake – You’ll know it’s ready when you see cracks around the edges of the brownie, the edges will begin to pull away from the edge of the pan and the very center will still be jiggly and have a shiny glaze to it.
My hubby said they were great, very soft and fugey
I’m so glad he liked them! My husband also loves these, I’ve got them in my fridge already half eaten before V-Day dessert 🙄
Oh wow. These brownies sure look romantic and beautiful. I’ve tried all sorts of brownies but never with cream cheese. I just must make this. I bet it taste amazing. The texture looks so good! Saving to make for Valentines. Thanks!
Awe thanks Natalie!
Aren’t those little hearts adorable!! I would never have thought to add food coloring to the batter and piping them on there, so cute! And I am with you on staying in for valentines day, definitely makes for a more relaxing evening!
Thanks Donna 😀
These brownies are so cute! I love that they are low carb too. Perfect for Valentine’s Day!
Thanks Sharon!
Loving that these are low carb and the hearts in the center are so pretty! Perfect V-Day treat for those on Keto 😀
Thank you Tammy 🙂
The brownies with the hearts are adorable. What a treat for those who have to watch their sugar intake or just want to cut their calories. I bet your kiddos had a great time sampling the goodies. And you are so right — chocolate and coffee go hand in hand.
Thanks so much Marisa!
Awww how cute! These are super cute for Valentine’s Day
Right? So cute! Thanks Nicole 🙂
These look fantastic! We love to eat low-carb so these would go over well in my house. I also really like that they’re dressed up for Valentine’s day – super cute!
Thanks Jenni!
These are just too cute, especially for Valentine’s Day. I love that I can sneak one of these without feeling guilty!
Right? Thanks Jessica 🙂
You have my heart with those hearts! These brownies are so cute! I’m sending this recipe over to my cousin. Her 8-year-old is getting into baking. She’s going to love these!
Thanks Krista! 😀
These are so cute. I love how simple and easy these are too. Those hearts are perfect for Valentine’s Day – I know someone who will love this. Gotta share.
Thanks Veena!!
That is some fudgy goodness right there! These brownies look so yummy and decadent!
Thanks Denise 🙂
These brownies are super cute! And they look incredibly decadent inside too! I bet my girls would love for us to make these together and would have so much fun making the hearts! 🙂
Thanks Sherri!
What a fun and cute idea! The low carb aspect definitely helps keep us on a healthier track, too. This is so perfect for Valentine’s Day!
Thanks Sara 🙂
These are adorable! Great tips for the food color gel. Can’t wait to make them for Valentine’s Day!
Thanks Wendy!