One of my guilty pleasures is an ice-cold Manhattan Special Espresso Coffee Soda. Since they’re hard to find locally, I always stock up when I visit the Italian deli and savor one on the ride home. You can also find them online if you don’t have an Italian deli nearby. This bold drink perfectly blends espresso and soda, offering a unique flavor that’s not for the faint of heart. Recently, while enjoying one, I thought it would be the perfect way to give brownies or chocolate cake a delicious twist.

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Perfecting this recipe took a few tries. I discovered that using soda means you don’t need butter, oil, eggs, or water. My first attempt—adding espresso coffee soda to my usual recipe—resulted in rich flavor, but the brownies were too dense and underbaked. For my successful batch, I skipped the eggs, butter, and extra chocolate chips, and instead mixed a 10-ounce Manhattan Special Espresso Coffee Soda with 1/2 teaspoon baking soda into the dry ingredients. I even used the soda in the glaze for extra flavor. The result: ultra-moist, cake-like, decadent dark chocolate coffee brownies.

Dark Chocolate Espresso Coffee Soda Brownies - Manhattan Special

A quick tip: Manhattan Special Espresso Coffee Soda can fizz over as soon as you open it. To avoid spills, open it over a large bowl. After adding it to my brownies, I’m tempted to experiment with it in a cake or even as a barbecue sauce for sticky ribs.

Equipment

8 x 8 pan

Ingredients

Brownies

1½ cups all-purpose flour
1½ cups granulated sugar
½ cup unsweetened Dutch-processed dark chocolate baking cocoa
½ tsp salt
½ tsp baking powder
10 ounces (1 bottle ) Manhattan Espresso Coffee Soda, save 2 ounces for the frosting

Frosting

½ cup confectioner's sugar
¼ cup unsweetened Dutch-processed dark chocolate baking cocoa
2 ounces Manhattan Espresso Coffee Soda

Instructions

Brownies

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Coat an 8 x 8-inch baking pan with baking spray or butter.
Sift together flour, sugar, ½ cup cocoa, and salt in a medium bowl. Add 10 ounces of the coffee soda; mix well. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out almost clean. Cool completely in the pan on a cooling rack, about 1 hour.

Frosting

In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining ¼ cup cocoa, the powdered sugar, and 2 ounces of coffee soda until smooth. Pour glaze over brownies. Cut brownies into 4 rows by 4 rows.

Nutrition

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