Spiderweb brownies are super easy and a really fun way to bring some Halloween flavor to dessert! These are perfect for a party or just a fun night in!
I have so many Halloween recipes that I love to make- from monster rice crispy treats, and Halloween donuts, to a fun sparkly Witches Brew and accompanying Witches Fingers, but these brownies are one of my absolute favorite treats to make!
Why I love this recipe:
- You can make these really fast and simple- with just a box of brownie mix and some store-bought frosting, or add the cream cheese layer for an extra touch of detail!
- The homemade brownie recipe is my tried-and-true favorite brownies- so those always taste delicious!
- The cream cheese colors come through looking like molten lava and always gets attention when you bring them to parties!
Ingredients Needed For Spiderweb Brownies
Homemade Brownies: unsalted butter, dark cocoa powder (regular will work fine too!), flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, espresso powder (optional but gives richer flavor), eggs, vanilla, chocolate chips
Cream Cheese layer: cream cheese, white sugar, egg, vanilla, Red and Orange food coloring (I used Americolor Gel food coloring- amazon affiliate link)
Spiderweb: White frosting (I used store bought!)
Do you have to make homemade brownies- can you use box brownies from the store?
Homemade brownies are 100x better BUT yes you can use store bought brownies- the baking time might vary a little so you will just have to keep a close eye on that.
Homemade vs Store Bought Brownie Mix
In the picture below without the cream cheese, I used a store-bought brownie mix, baked it, let it cool and decorated it. It was really easy and tasty.
My homemade brownies are way more delicious, thicker, and also easy to make if you have the ingredients on hand (I use the recipe for my s'mores brownies and red velvet brownies!). I like to use dark cocoa powder for a darker/black brownie to contrast nicely with the cream cheese.
How to make Spiderweb Brownies?
- Make the brownie batter. Reserve 1 cup of batter, then place the remaining batter in your greased 9x13 baking dish.
- Mix together cream cheese filling. Then divide in half and dye half orange and the other half red.
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- Add spoonfuls of the different colored cream cheese colors on top of the brownie batter- randomizing the colors, then gently swirl together.
- Spoon the reserved brownie batter on top of some of the cream cheese layer. Gently spread over the cream cheese just a bit. This will give it that cracked earth molten look after baking.
- Bake brownies for 30-35 minutes. A toothpick should come out clean.
- Allow brownies to cool completely then pipe on the web.
How to pipe on the spiderweb?
- Either use a piping bag and a small writing tip or just cut the corner off of a Ziploc baggie. Fill the bag with white frosting.
- Starting with the center of your web, pipe a circle/dot about the size of a nickel. I like to make mine a little off center but you can place yours wherever you want.
- Then pipe concentric circles outward of the center every ~1 inch or so.
- Pipe lines perpendicular to the circles, starting from the center and going out, spaced ever ½ -1 inches. I started with making 8 sections (4 lines all the way through), then cut each section in half to give me 16 sections.
- Add a plastic fake spider and you are done!
How to soften cream cheese fast:
Unwrap cream cheese and place on a microwave safe dish. Heat cream cheese for 15-30 second intervals with the microwave power set to 50%, repeat until cream cheese is soft enough to mix!
Other ways to pipe the spider web?
If you want you can add a spider web to just the corner of the pan of brownies, or cut the brownies into squares and pipe a web on each one- more work but also gives everyone a chance for their own spiderweb.
This recipe is so easy to make and always so fun to bring to a Halloween party! Make sure to check out some of my other fun Halloween ideas like these fun pretzel rods and these popcorn balls!
Video
Spiderweb Brownies
Ingredients
Brownies
- ¾ cup + 3 tbs unsalted butter
- ¾ cup dark cocoa powder*
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 teaspoon espresso powder optional
- 4 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup milk chocolate chips*
Cream Cheese layer
- 8 oz cream cheese- room temp
- ¼ cup white sugar
- 1 large egg
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- Red and Orange food coloring
Spiderweb
- 1 Cup White Frosting
Instructions
Brownies
- Preheat oven to 350°F and spray 9x13 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray
- In a microwave safe dish melt the butter. Microwave for 30 seconds, stir, and repeat until the butter is completely melted.¾ cup + 3 tbs unsalted butter
- Stir cocoa powder into melted butter making sure there are no clumps. Set aside.¾ cup dark cocoa powder*
- While butter mixture is cooling, in a separate small bowl combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.1 cup all purpose flour, ½ teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon salt
- In a stand mixer, or using a hand mixer, mix together the butter mixture (it’s okay if it’s still warm), sugar, espresso powder, and vanilla. Then add the eggs one at a time, letting each egg become fully incorporated into the batter before adding the next.2 cups sugar, 1 teaspoon espresso powder optional, 4 large eggs, 1 teaspoon vanilla
- By hand, with a large rubber spatula or mixing spoon, fold in the flour mixture. Folding in the flour will help the brownie batter keep the air in it.
- Fold in the chocolate chips.1 cup milk chocolate chips*
- Reserve 1 cup of batter, then pour remaining batter into prepared baking dish.
Cream Cheese Layer
- Mix together cream cheese, sugar, egg, and vanilla until smooth. Best done with a stand or hand-held mixer.8 oz cream cheese- room temp, ¼ cup white sugar, 1 large egg, ½ teaspoon vanilla
- Divide mixture in half, mixing in red food gel to one half and the orange to the other and stir until fully mixed in.Red and Orange food coloring
- Add dollops of cream cheese over batter, alternating between the red and orange, then gently swirl together- just enough to swirl but not so much to mix the colors together or with the batter below.
- Then add spoonful’s of remining brownie batter on top and next to the cream cheese. You can leaved the pattern blocky or gently spread the batter over the cream cheese a bit.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes or until set. Remove from oven and let cool completely.
Spiderweb
- Once cool, using a can of storebought white frosting (vanilla or cream cheese), or using some homemade buttercream frosting, pipe on the spiderweb.1 Cup White Frosting
- To make the spiderweb place a small circle of frosting on top of the brownies- this will be the center of the web. You can place this off to one side of the brownies or directly in the middle.
- Draw circles around this center about 1” apart, moving out from the center. After all the circle are drawn, pipe a line of frosting perpendicular to the circles starting from the center of the web out, repeat every 1-2’’ to fil in the web.
- Add a little plastic spider and then enjoy!
Notes
- Store any leftovers for 5-6 days in an air tight container in the refrigerator. You can also freeze for longer- just store in a freezer safe container.
Nutrition
Post updated on 9/16/22
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