Chocolate brownies

If you would like to treat your dad or husband this fathers day to some decadent home-made chocolate brownies, then this would be the recipe to make. Served with a healthy dollop of cream or heavy-handed scoop of vanilla ice cream. Yum

Ingredients:

B-well baking spray 185g unsalted butter, cut into cubes 185g 70% dark chocolate, cut into chunks 100g normal milk chocolate, cut into chunks 85g plain flour 40g cocoa powder 3 large eggs 250g fine caster sugar

Method:

1. Add the butter, dark chocolate and milk chocolate into a small bowl.

2. Fill a small saucepan about a quarter full with hot water, then place the bowl with the butter and chocolate mixture on top so it rests on the rim of the pan, not touching the water. Keep the heat on low and stir everything together until the butter and chocolate have melted and fused together.

3. Remove the bowl from the pan and leave the melted mixture to cool down to room temperature.

4. While you wait for the chocolate to cool, position a shelf in the middle of your oven and turn the oven to 160C. (most ovens take 10-15 minutes to heat up).

5. Using a shallow 20cm square tin, spray some B-well baking spray over the base.

6. Break eggs into a large bowl and tip in the caster sugar. With an electric mixer on maximum speed, whisk the eggs and sugar until it looks thick and creamy. Make sure that it's set and no runny egg is hiding at the bottom. (This can take 5-8 minutes)

7. Pour the cooled chocolate mixture over the eggy mousse, then gently fold together with a rubber spatula. Keep folding everything together until the two mixtures are completely fused together. The idea is to marry them without knocking out the air, so be gentle and remember not to mix but to fold everything together.

8. Now tip the plain flour and cocoa powder into a sieve held over the bowl containing the ingredients you just folded together, shaking the sieve from side to side, to cover the top evenly. Keep adding the plain flour and cocoa powder and folding it in with the other ingredients until it starts looking fudgy and sticky.

9. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin, scraping every bit out of the bowl with the spatula. Gently ease the mixture into the corners of the tin and paddle the spatula from side to side across the top to level it. Put in the oven and set your timer for 25 minutes. When the buzzer goes, open the oven, pull the shelf out a bit and gently shake the tin. If the brownie wobbles in the middle, it’s not quite done, so slide it back in and bake for another 5 minutes until the top has a shiny, papery crust and the sides are just beginning to come away from the tin. Take out of the oven.

10. Leave the whole thing in the tin until completely cold, then cut into squares and serve with cream or ice cream.

#chocolate #brownies