Delicious Brownies
Instructions:
So easy children can make them. In fact, my kids taught
me two things about making brownies. One, they’re better
without nuts (obviously a matter of taste). Two, if you
line the baking pan with lightly greased aluminum foil,
you reduce cleanup time by 50 percent—not bad. These
are chewy and dense, dominated by chocolate.
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus a little
softened butter for the pan
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, roughly chopped
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
Pinch salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
MAKES: About 1 dozen
TIME: 30 to 40 minutes
- Heat the oven to 350 F. Grease an 8- or 9-inch square baking pan with butter or line it with aluminum foil and grease the foil.
- Combine the butter and chocolate in a small saucepan over very low heat, stirring occasionally. When the chocolate is just about melted, remove from the heat and continue to stir until the mixture is smooth. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and stir in the sugar.
- Then beat in the eggs, one at a time. Gently stir in the flour, salt, and vanilla. Pour and scrape into the prepared pan and bake until just barely set in the middle, 20 to 25 minutes. It’s better to underbake brownies than to overbake them. Cool on a rack before cutting. Store, covered, at room temperature, for no more than a day. Hazelnut Brownies.
- Almonds or walnuts work equally well: Substitute 1/4 cup finely ground hazelnuts for half the flour and add 1 cup lightly toasted, roughly chopped hazelnuts. Cream Cheese Brownies.
- Beat together 4 ounces softened cream cheese and 1/2 cup sugar until fluffy; beat in an egg. In Step 3, put half the brownie batter into the pan and top with the cream cheese mixture; then finish with the remaining batter. Use a knife to swirl the cream cheese into the brownies if you like. Increase the baking time by 10 minutes or so.