November 1, 2010

Brownies


"I don't understand why people don't make brownies all the time - they're so easy and so wonderful."
Nigella Lawson

Thank you, Nigella, for thou hast shown me the light.  Brownies are truly wonderful; with their wonderful flaky top, cakey outer and gooey middle.  Don't forget the oh-so-chocolatey taste.  Plus, they are super easy to make and always a crowd pleaser.


Ingredients 23 x 32cm brownie tin (approx 9 x 12.6 inch)
375g soft unsalted butter/margarine
375g very good quality dark chocolate
6 large eggs
1 tbsp vanilla extract
500g caster sugar
225g plain flour
1 tsp salt (omit if using salted butter/margarine)
300g chopped walnuts or pecans (optional - can substitute choc chips or other bitty ingredient instead)

Method
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.  Line a 23 x 32cm rectangular tin (or equivalent) with baking paper and set aside.

2. Melt the butter and chocolate together in the microwave, or in a heavy based pan.



3. With an electric mixer, beat the eggs, sugar and vanilla together until well blended.


4. When the chocolate mixture has cooled a bit, beat it into the eggs and sugar until just blended.  If you beat it on too high speed for too long, the brownies will be more cakey than fudgy.


5. Fold in the flour, and nuts if you're using them.

6. Scrape into the lined tin and flatten the mixture out with a spatula.

7. Bake for about 25 minutes in the preheated oven.  When the brownie is done, the top should be have a thin layer of flakiness but the middle should still be dense and dark.  Make sure you don't overcook them!



8. Cut into slices as big or small as you want.  I like about a 6cm square; the brownies are pretty rich.


You can add caramel in the middle, too - split the brownie batter into half.  Pour half in the pan and bake it for about 10 minutes or until the top is cooked-ish.  Then pour caramel in and the rest of the brownie over the top.  Make for another 10 - 15 minutes.



The caramel was a real hit with my friends.



So, whip up these delicious brownies for whatever event you next have on - believe me.  They are pretty much the best.

8 comments:

  1. *drools* as soon as I recover from this stupid cold I am going to give this recipe a go! :P

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  2. aimlesswandererNovember 06, 2010

    Is the caramel supposed to make it chewy like the other ones?

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  3. happypanda - :D I hope they turn out well! Get well soon.

    Aimlesswanderer - I've made these brownies with caramel about 3 times, all using a caramel sauce kind of thing. One time, the caramel disappeared; one time, the caramel went all chewy; one time, the caramel was all gooey on the sides and absent in the middle.
    I really don't know exactly how to make it chewy, but if you use the caramel recipe I'm going to post soon then the caramel should stay gooey.

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  4. These look really tasty. You should post these over at www.dishfolio.com

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  5. They sure were a hit. Caramel good. Nom nom nom. I approve!!!

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  6. Nice recipe, this is really yummy. There is nothing to argue about. Keep posting stuff like this i really like it. thank you for sharing this recipe..

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  7. great post, I really like it. Thanks for posting. :)

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  8. Love the food! You’re amazing. This menu is fantastic:) It sure will help everyone who’s looking for a perfect menu like this. Thank you for sharing this recipe.

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