Easy Santa Hat Brownies Recipe
Easy Santa hat brownies make for a fun, feastive treat the whole family can get involved with. These no stress Christmas brownies will be a hit with kids of any age!
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I love getting the kids into the kitchen to do easy projects at the holidays.
The key word there?
Easy.
Otherwise, I don’t love it so much.
I mean really if it’s too hard, someone’s probably crying and it might be me.
But these easy Santa hat brownies?
Total winners!
There were no tears, no frustration, and a super cute result!
Plus what kid doesn’t love a brownie that’s all decorated with icing?
Mine all go crazy for them.
And double crazy because Santa hat brownies meaning Santa’s coming… and soon!
Ingredients and Kitchen Supplies
Here’s what you need for Santa hat brownies:
- Brownie Mix – Yes, you can make this from scratch, but it is a lot easier to just pick your favorite boxed brownie mix. Make sure you also have the ingredients on the brownie box mix.
- Frosting – We got pre-made red icing for Santa’s hat and used white frosting for the details. We recommend store-bought red because when you use food dye with white icing, it tends to turn pink, not red. You can use homemade classic buttercream, peppermint frosting, or store bought.
- Optional Decorations – For added flair, you can use sprinkles, mini-marshmallows, candy canes, or other seasonal candies.
To make Santa hat brownies, you may want:
- Square Baking Pan – We recomend using a square pan for this so that you can more easily make triangle shapes.
- Piping Bags – You can use piping bags if you want to be fancy or neat. Otherwise, a butterknife works just fine.
How to Make Santa Hat Brownies
1. Bake the brownies.
Preheat your oven to the temperation on the brownie mix box and mix the batter according to the instructions on the brownie box.
Line your square baking dish with parchment paper.
Bake the brownies according to the package instructions, usually about 35 to 45 minutes.
Make sure they are cooked through and not too gooey.
2. Prepare the brownies.
Let the brownies to cool completely.
Once cooled, carefully lift the sheet of brownies out onto a large cutting board.
We recommend cutting off the edges for a neater finished product, but you do not have to do this.
3. Cut the brownies into triangles.
We recommend dividing the brownies into 2 to 3 sections to help create uniform sizes in the brownies.
Carefully cut either one or two parallel cuts down the center of the brownies to create two to three distinct rows.
Starting on the first row, cut at a rough 45 degree angle top to bottom.
Remove the half-triangle from the end of the row and either eat it or feed it to your kids.
Starting at the tip of the first diagnal cut, make another cut to make a roughly even looking oblong triangle that resembles a Santa hat.
Continue making oblong triangle shapes in the first and second row of brownies, discarding the half-pieces at the end by eating them or feeding them to your kids, until you have made all of the brownies into triangles.
4. Decorate the Santa hat brownies.
Very important! Flip each triangle upside down – this helps with spreading the icing without breaking them apart.
Spread the red icing over the majority of each triangle, leaving the the pointy tip clear and a strip at the bottom clear as well.
Once you have added the red icing, pipe or spread your white icing over the bottom and top of each hat.
You can now add additional decorations, like sprinkles, candy canes, or other Christmas candies.
Serving and Storing
Serve Santa hat brownies at your holiday gathering or bring them to your next Christmas party.
This is a great recipe to make with your kids because they can help decorate the hats and will almost certainly enjoy eating them.
To store, place the hats in an air tight container and refrigerate the.
They should stay fresh for about 5 to 6 days.
Tips and Tricks
- Use a square pan to make slightly thicker brownies so the brownies don’t fall apart as easily when made into triangles.
- We are generally in favor of modifying brownie batter with chocolate chips, chocolate sauce, and other additions, BUT for these, leave the modifications out because they can alter the consistency of the brownies and make it easier for them to fall apart.
- The only exception to the do not modify the brownies is that you can add a 1/4 to 1/2 a teaspoon of peppermint extract for a festive flavor. You can also use our peppermint buttercream icing to add that extra peppermint flavor.
- Make sure you are decorating the underside of the brownies. If you decorate them topside up the flakey brownie top will sort of break off into the icing layer.
Other Christmas Treats
Want to share other festive treats with your friends and family? Try these holiday favorites:
- Easy Santa Cookies
- Homemade Christmas Tree Chocolate Candy
- Easy Candy Cane Hearts
- Store Bought Cookie Dough Hacks Stuffed Cookies
- Easy Cinnamon Roll Christmas Tree for Christmas Morning
- The Best Cute and Easy Sprinkles Sugar Cookies
- Store Bought Sugar Cookie Dough Hacks: Dipped Sugar Cookies
- Melting Snowmen S’mores
- Easy Cinnamon Roll Wreath for Christmas Morning
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Equipment
- 1 set of piping bags
- 1 square baking pan
- 1 sheet parchment paper
Ingredients
- 1 package of brownie mix
- 2 cups red icing (about one container of store bought)
- 1 cup white icing
Instructions
- Preheat your oven according to the instructions on the box of brownies you use.
- Prepare a square (or rectangular) baking pan by lining it with a piece of parchment paper.
- Prepare your brownie batter mix according to the instructions on the box and then pour into the prepared baking pan.
- Bake the brownies according to the package instructions (about 35 to 40 minutes).
- Remove the brownies from the oven and allow to cool completely.
- Carefully remove the brownies from the pan. If you used parchment paper, you can pull it out gently on the sides.
- Gently flip the brownies upside down onto a cutting board so the side that was down in the pan faces up.
- You can slice the edges off brownies for a cleaner look or leave them intact.
- Make either 1 to 2 paralle cuts across the entire width of the brownies, making two to three equal sized rows.
- Using a sharp knife, make a cut at the end of the first row of brownies at a sharp angle. It should form a half-Santa hat shape between your cut and the edge of the brownies.
- Remove the half-hat and eat it now or give it to the kids.
- Make a second angle cut to form a triangle shaped or Santa hat brownie.
- Following the pattern of angles, keep cutting out Santa hat shaped brownies until you reach the other end. You can also save, eat, or feed the other end to the kids.
- Repeat this process for each row, until you have made all the brownies, except for the ends, into Santa hat shapes.
- Spread your red icing over all but the bottom edge and tip of each triangle. Decorate the bottom of the brownie for an easier time spreading the icing. Repeat for each triangle.
- Spread the white icing over the tips and bottom edges of each brownie, finishing the red and white Santa hats.
- You can now add additional sprinkles, marshmallows, candy canes, or other festive candies to make the Santa hat brownies your own.
