Fudgy Brownies with Dairy Milk & Cherries: Mistakes to Avoid for a Gooey Center

Brownies like these are the kind of thing you make when you want chocolate but don’t want to get involved with anything complicated. They’re fudgy, messy, and packed with melted Dairy Milk chunks and juicy cherries that make every bite a little surprise. No fancy skills needed, just good stuff thrown together and baked until perfect. Honestly, they’re just good brownies – nothing more, nothing less, and perfect for a meltdown Tuesday, a guilty Thursday, or even an entertaining Sunday.

Fudgy Brownies with Dairy Milk and Cherries

Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter
• 1½ cups white sugar
• ½ cup brown sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ¾ cup Cadbury cocoa powder
• 1 cup plain flour
• Pinch of salt
• A big handful (about 150g) of Dairy Milk chocolate, chopped
• About 1 cup halved cherries (fresh or frozen — frozen is fine, no need to thaw)
• Optional: nuts

Method:

1. Preheat your oven to 180°C, then grab an 8-inch baking tin and line it with baking paper (or just grease it well with butter, either works).
2. Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat, or use a microwave if you’re feeling lazy. Once it's fully melted, stir in both the white sugar and brown sugar while it’s still warm. Keep mixing until it looks glossy and smooth.
3. Let the mixture cool for a couple of minutes (so the eggs don’t scramble), then crack in the eggs, one at a time, stirring after each one. Add the vanilla extract and mix again until it looks thick and a bit shiny. It might seem slightly grainy, that's fine.
4. Add the cocoa powder, flour, and a pinch of salt straight into the same bowl. No need for separate bowls or sieving unless you feel fancy. Stir gently until everything comes together into a thick, chocolatey batter. It should be rich and fudgy; resist the urge to overmix.
5. Toss in most of your chopped Dairy Milk chocolate and cherry halves (and nuts too if you’re using them). Fold everything in so it’s evenly spread through the batter. Save a few cherries and chocolate pieces to press into the top if you want them to look good.
6. Pour the batter into the prepared tin, spreading it out evenly into the corners with a spatula. Press in the extra chocolate and cherries you saved.
7. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, depending on how fudgy you want them. Start checking around the 25-minute mark. The edges should look firm and slightly cracked, but the middle should still look soft and slightly underdone. That’s what makes them gooey once they cool.
8. Let them cool in the pan for at least 30 minutes (hard, we know). If you try to cut them too soon, they’ll be a bit messy. Once they’re cool, slice them up and dig in.

Tips & Tricks:

• You don’t need fancy cherries. Fresh cherries are great if you’ve got them, but frozen ones work just as well. Just toss them in straight from the freezer, no need to thaw. If they bleed a little into the batter, that’s part of the charm.
• Don’t stress over the perfect mixing technique. Once the flour and cocoa are in, stir just until they’re all together. It’s okay if it’s not super smooth. Brownies like to be left alone.
• Use whatever chocolate you have. Dairy Milk is lovely and creamy, but if you’ve got a bar that’s half-eaten or leftover Easter chocolate, chop it up and throw it in. Uneven chunks make it better; some melt, some stay solid.
• Err on the side of underbaking. When you poke a toothpick in the center and it comes out with sticky crumbs, you’re golden. If it comes out clean, you might’ve gone a minute too far. Still delicious, just a bit more cakey.
• Let them cool (at least a little). Warm brownies are a dream, but if you let them sit for 30 minutes, they’ll slice better and taste even more chocolatey. If you’re in a rush? Spoon some straight from the pan with ice cream, with zero regrets.
• Keep them in the fridge if you like chewy brownies. They firm up overnight and get that dense, cold, fudge-like goodness, especially good with morning coffee.
• Don’t worry if they look a bit rustic. These are the kind of brownies that are meant to look homemade. Cherries poking out, chocolate melted unevenly, the middle just a bit sunken? That’s exactly how they should be.