Some things you just can’t improve on. Fudgy, Dense and rich brownies are one of them. These are not for the faint hearted or those on a diet. I have never worked out the calorie content nor do I want to!

These are MUCH better the second day, and are at their best when having been stored in the fridge overnight and then brought to room temperature.

For this recipe it is important to use a good quality rich cocoa powder and good quality eggs. Check often while baking to ensure you don’t overcook them or they will not be fudgy.

Adapted from Salt Lake City Examiner

1 1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons dark cocoa powder
320g/11 ounces quality dark chocolate (60-72%), chopped coarsely
225g/8 ounces butter/2 sticks, cut into 1 inch cubes
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
5 large eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F/180 degrees C. Line a 9×13x2 pan with baking paper and grease the paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt, and cocoa powder.

Fill a large saucepan about 1/4 – of the way with water and bring to a simmer. Place a large heat proof bowl over the simmering water (the bottom should not be touching the water) to make a large double boiler. Place the chocolate and butter in the bowl of the double boiler and stir occasionally until the chocolate and butter are almost completely melted and combined. Once they are melting, the heat from the chocolate and butter that is already melting will help to melt the rest of the unmelted butter and chocolate in the bowl. Turn off the heat, but keep the bowl over the water of the double boiler and add both sugars. Whisk the sugars until completely combined and remove the bowl from the pan. Let it cool before adding the eggs so that you don’t scramble and cook them into your batter.

Add three eggs to the chocolate and butter mixture and whisk until just combined. Add the remaining 2 eggs and whisk until just combined. Add the vanilla and stir until combined. Do not over beat the batter at this stage or your brownies will be cakey instead of fudgy.

Sprinkle the flour mixture over the chocolate. Use a rubber spatula (not a whisk!) to fold the dry ingredients into the chocolate mixture. Fold the ingredients together until there is just some of the flour mixture visible so that you don’t overwork the batter.
Pour the mixture into the pan and smooth the top with your spatula. Bake the brownies for 30 minutes (rotating the pan half-way through baking)

Check to make sure the brownies are completely done by sticking a toothpick into the center of the pan. The brownies are done when the toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs.

Cool the brownies completely before cutting and serving.

Makes 24 small brownies.

I don’t really have anything new to post but I just thought I would share how super cool and cute this JellyBelly dispenser is!!

My hubby put one in my bag to surprise me (yeah, I know, so awesome) and it is super cute. I have always loved Jelly Belly’s (especially the flavour that most people hate: buttered popcorn) ever since my trip to America when I was about 10.

So no new baking for now, I spent a few hours on Sunday making a huge brownie platter for an event we went too, 2 batches of regular brownies, 1 batch of caramel brownies, whipped cream and a rich chocolate sauce.

There was less than 10 people at the event and about 2/3rds of the brownies got eaten so definately a success, pretty much my backup plan when I need to bring something sweet and I don’t have much time or energy.

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Best Chocolate Fudge Cocoa Brownies

140g (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (use some good stuff)
1/4 teaspoon salt (skip if using salted butter)
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cold large eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Preheat the oven to 160°C (325°F). Line the bottom and sides of an 8-inch square baking pan.

Combine the butter, sugar, cocoa, and salt in a saucepan over very low heat. Stir until the butter is melted and the mixture is smooth and hot so that the sugar has started to dissolve a bit but the butter is not burning. Remove from the heat and set aside until the mixture is just slightly warm.

Stir in the vanilla, then add the eggs one at a time, stirring hard after each one. Add the flour and mix thoroughly for about 1 minute with a wooden spoon or a rubber spatula. Spread evenly in the lined pan (the batter will be very thick).

Bake until a toothpick emerges with some moist crumbs sticking to it (but not wet with batter), 20 to 25 minutes. Cool completely on a rack.

Studying for exams puts me in 2 moods. Grumpy being the main one, I severely dislike my after-work free time being taken up by reading code and cramming in properties/method names I will possibly never use. Hungry a close contender – a problem easily resolved by a spot of stress-reducing baking.

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