“Again I linger over the names. Crème de cassis. Three nut clusters. I select a dark nugget from a tray marked Eastern Journey. Crystallized ginger in a hard sugar shell, releasing a mouthful of liqueur-like concentration of spices, a breath of aromatic air where sandalwood and cinnamon, and lime vie for attention with cedar and allspice... I take another, from a tray marked Pêche au miel millefleurs. A slice of peach steeped in honey and eau-de-vie, a crystallized peach sliver on the chocolate lid.”
― Joanne Harris, Chocolat
Having laid the claim … here ya go
I have a secret recipe book, chic, small, and sweet. Each recipe in there is years’ culmination of endless trials and errors, adding this, tweaking that, sometimes for weeks on end …. Chasing what I liked to call “The ultimate” in its category.
This brownie recipe is one such. The ultimate pudding (ish) brownies, sludgy and fudgy, I know you will always remember me in your prayers.
Now i know it looks simple, but then the devil is in the details and it’s the ratios, the exact methods, and the type of stuff used. Just one thing, DON’T CHEAT, don’t substitute, and don’t try to give it a healthy makeover. No, you can’t use carob – I love carob to death – instead of cacao, you cannot sneak cauliflower in there – the paleo folks jeez – just don’t
Measure everything to a tee but most of all use the BEST goddamn ingredients you could get. Don’t use generic white sugar, or dark sugar for that matter. Use the best-tasting eggs, at room temperature.
Why to complicate things you say, it's not rocket science you say? well, it kinda is!
See warm eggs whip up much faster than cold eggs, plus they don’t separate when they come into contact with dairy products like butter or when fat is a factor in a recipe, cold eggs could re-harden the fat, resulting in curdled batter that might affect the final texture…. See told ya, that’s science folks.
For chocolate, I used Lindt dark 90%, and for the milk and white chocolate I used Jacques Torres [1] (can you even claim to be a chocoholic if you don’t know this dude). I used Kerry gold butter, raw cacao, not cocoa.
Best-ever brownies
• 185g unsalted butter (remove from fridge 1 hour prior)
• 185g best dark chocolate
• 85g plain flour
• 40g cocoa powder
• 50g white chocolate (chips or anything similar)
• 50g milk chocolate (chips or anything similar)
• 3 large eggs
• 200g golden caster sugar
METHOD
Preheat your oven to 180°, 160°c fan, 350F, Gas Mark 4.
Melt the dark chocolate water bath/ double boiler (some do in the microwave, but that’s on you) in a saucepan. When you are done, cut up the butter so it easily melts and while the chocolate is still hot, add in the butter and stir it in until it fully melts.
Cool it a bit
Sift flour and cocoa together in a medium size bowl
Beat eggs and sugar in your electric stand mixer or by hand until thick and mousse-like
Fold your flour mixture into your egg mix… again “Fold” not mix into oblivion (one thing we don’t wanna develop the gluten, which gives bread its rubberiness, good on bread, not brownies)
Once cooled, your melted chocolate mix can be added to the batter. Fold in until fully combined.
Mix the chocolate milk/ white chocolate chips with a tiny bit of flour (so they don't sink into the bottom of the pan) gently fold in half, then scatter the rest on top once in the pan
Line the baking tin and grease the sides with a little butter to prevent sticking (I do this whether I’m using a non-stick tin or not. The only time you can be really confident of not needing to grease or line is if you’re using a silicone pan)
Pour the batter into your 9-inch tin and level out.
Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a testing skewer comes out semi-clean. It is important to note that brownies are not baked dry like cake, a bit al dente if you will, it will keep cooking as it cools down, but you want a gooey sticky brownie, not biscotti.
Allow to rest for 5 minutes before running a knife around the rim, slicing the brownies into whatever size bites you prefer, and releasing them from the tin one by one.
AN UBER important note: brownies taste better the next day, and the next (if they survive). Brownies can be kept fresh if stored correctly in the fridge for up to a week.
- Make sure they are at room temperature first
- Seal them as soon as they cool down
- Double seal (plastic and foil ... tightly) to keep air out, brownies need to retain their moistness and never dry out, storing in the fridge results in fudgier brownies, and extra attention should be given to sealing here, to keep food odor out.
To finish:
Serve either hot from the oven or once cold, alongside a pot of cream or a good helping of vanilla icecream. Best eaten by hand!
[1] I used to watch one of his TV shows, and pine for the chocolate