Chocolate is considered by many to be sacrosanct …
A Chocolate Brownie is one of the best ways to enjoy and appreciate the pure beauty of chocolate.
Simply chocolate, butter, eggs, sugar …and a bit of flour.
With top quality ingredients and a bit of a technique, you will end up with a dense, fudgey, velvety brownie ..and deeply chocolatey…
Tips for making great Chocolate Brownies:
- Dense fudgey brownies result from melting the butter, not creaming it. Creaming the butter and sugar allows air into the batter …resulting in a texture that is more like a cake.
- And speaking of melting the butter – this, along with melting the chocolate (and then adding the sugar into the warmth) enables the brownies to emerge from the oven with the shiny crackly surface.
- Two kinds of chocolate doubles the chances of a rich experience – this recipe suggests some pure unsweetened chocolate as well as adding some cocoa powder … and then, if that is not enough, more chocolate is added in the frosting.
- Two kinds of sugar – adding brown sugar along with the granulated sugar contributes both moisture and texture.
- No beating of ingredients – just gentle whisking – you do not want to incorporate any extra air into the batter.
- No leavening in brownies (leavening is for chocolate cake!) …the eggs will provide all the leavening you need.
- Thickness of these beauties is a personal matter. These were baked in a 9 x 9 pan; an 8 x 8 will also work, but the brownies will be a little thicker. A 9 x 13 pan will make them quite thin.
Chocolate Brownies
Ingredients:
¾ cup (175 g/ 1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter
3 ounces (3 squares / 85 grams ) unsweetened chocolate (not bitter)
1 ¼ cup (300 mL) granulated sugar
¾ cup (160 grams) dark brown sugar
¼ cup (60 mL) cocoa powder, sifted
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 tablespoon (15 mL) pure vanilla extract
1 cup (150 g) all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon (2.5 mL) salt
1 cup (250 mL) chopped toasted walnuts
Chocolate Frosting (recipe follows)
Extra chopped walnuts
Method:
- In a large bowl, over simmering water (not boiling), melt butter with the chocolate pieces, whisking until everything is melted, smooth, and warm.
- Gently whisk in both sugars and sifted cocoa powder, stirring until dissolved. Remove from heat.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs and vanilla together. Temper the eggs with a tablespoon or two of the warm chocolate. Pour the egg mixture into the chocolate and whisk together. Ensure that all ingredients are well incorporated.
- In a small bowl, stir together the flour and the salt. Whisk into chocolate mixture. Stir in nuts.
- Pour into prepared 9×9 (or 8 x 8) buttered (and parchment-covered) baking pan. Bake at 3500 F (1800 C) for 35-40 minutes – or until slightly puffed, and when an inserted cake tester comes out with a little bit of a crumb sticking to it – you want the centre to be firm but not hard.
Chocolate Frosting:
1/3 cup (85 grams) unsalted butter
1 cup (250 mL) confectioner’s sugar
¼ teaspoon (1.5 mL) salt
1/3 cup (85 mL) cocoa powder, sifted
2 teaspoons (10 mL) pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon (5 mL) instant coffee granules dissolved in 1 tablespoon (15 mL) hot water
1 ½ tablespoons (25 mL) heavy cream
In a food processor, mix soft butter with the cocoa powder, salt, and confectioner’s sugar until smooth. Add vanilla, dissolved coffee granules and heavy cream. Continue to process until thick and smooth. Add more confectioner’s sugar if it is too thin; add a little more cream if it is too thick.
Spread onto cooled brownies; sprinkle with chopped walnuts.
Questions and comments are always welcome alex@chilipeppersandpears.com
