Brownies

So the name isn't very exciting.  I have to start somewhere.  These are a fabulous basic brownie recipe that I intend to use a base for delicious and gooey brownie concoctions yet to come.  I usually make brownies from a box, so this was a test to find a brownie recipe that was relatively easy, but still had the texture and flavor of your typical brownie.  I read through probably a half dozen options before deciding to go with this one.  The result was a fudgy brownie with a moist but not cakey texture and a nice edge that didn't get too crunchy.

This recipe comes from a Penzey's Spices catalog, submitted as Best Brownies Ever by Michael Zionts.  I chose this one because I liked how Michael explained the bake time and thought the chocolate chips in the batter would add to the fudginess without making the brownies cakey.

Brownies

Ingredients
2 sticks butter, softened
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1 short cup flour (1 cup minus 1 Tablespoon)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Cream together butter and sugar.  Add the vanilla and mix until smooth.  Add the eggs and mix well, scraping sides of bowl if necessary.

In a separate bowl, sift together cocoa powder, flour, baking powder and salt.

Gradually add to the wet ingredients, mixing well after each addition.  Fold in the chocolate chips.

Liberally grease a 9 x 13 inch pan (I used a heavy dose of cooking spray).  Pour batter into pan and smooth evenly.

Bake at 350 degrees F on the middle rack for about 25 minutes.  Remove from oven and jiggle the pan; if the middle jiggles sloppily, put it back in the oven and bake for 2-4 minutes.  Keep doing this until cracks just start to appear and the middle JUST stops jiggling.  (I baked for 34 minutes, but Michael said 40 minutes was the magic number for him).

Remove brownies from oven and let cool completely.

Since I made these as a Valentine's treat for Dave, I wanted to decorate them a bit.  So I used some prepared frosting and holiday sprinkles.

Spread a layer of frosting on top of the brownies, as thin or thick as you like.  I used just about half the can of frosting.

Instead of just going wild with the sprinkles, I took heart shaped cookie cutters and placed them gently on top of the frosted brownies.

Then I used a spoon to carefully tap sprinkles inside the cookie cutters, resulting in heart shaped piles of sprinkles across the pan.  Or you could just go willy-nilly with the sprinkles.

Makes 24 brownies.

Happy Baking,
The Cookie Princess

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