Perfect Brownies

“I just don’t get it.  I should have known something was wrong with those brownies the second I added 4 cups of flour.  It was too heavy and just not right,” I whined to Daniel Schumacher, editor of Louisiana Cookin’ Magazine, over drinks and greasy appetizers at The Chimes last Friday night.  I had spent the earlier part of the day baking brownies from a “trusted” published recipe, only to produce a brick-like concoction that no one would possibly want to eat.

Within seconds, Dan was pulling out his smart phone and e-mailing me the recipe for a classic American brownie.  He knew just the thing that might reanimate my baking spirits, and I couldn’t have been more excited.  God bless a man who knows something about baking.

I’ve titled this post “Perfect Brownies” to instill this recipe with the kind of essential-ness and perfection it evokes.  Made with only 5 ingredients, the mixture is simple and terribly easy.  As Dan pointed out, this simplicity really does make all the difference.

For a classic brownie with minimal ingredients and the right quantity of melted dark chocolate, eggs, and flour, try this recipe courtesy of Donna Hay.  The batch can be prepared in a matter of minutes and makes for a soft and delicious brownie that never hardens and tastes even better the next day.

Perfect Brownies

This recipe was e-mailed to me by Daniel Schumacher at Louisiana Cookin’ Magazine, but is courtesy of Donna Hay.  Simple, easy, and chocolate-y delicious, these brownies have convinced me never to look anywhere else for another recipe.

Ingredients:

*280 grams butter (a little less than 2 1/2 sticks)

*400 grams (about 1 3/4 cup) dark chocolate, chopped

*2 cups brown sugar

*6 eggs

*1 cup all-purpose flour

1.) Preheat oven to 350F and line a 9×13 baking dish with parchment paper.

2.) Place  butter and half of the chocolate in a nonstick skillet over low heat, stirring until chocolate is completely melted. Remove from heat, cool slightly, and transfer chocolate mixture to mixing bowl.  Add sugar and eggs to chocolate and mix to combine.  Slowly incorporate flour stirring well after each addition.  Stir in remaining chocolate pieces.

3.) Bake brownies for 30 to 35 minutes or until a knife comes out clean.  Remove from oven, cool completely, and cut into squares.

Makes 24 brownies.

–Helana Brigman

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