THE BROWNIE.

I'm not kidding. I've had my fair share of brownie trial and errors. THESE ARE IT. I had a recipe before this one- that was good...but since I kept looking for more recipes, it wasn't the one. This one knocks the old 'the brownie' out of the park. I almost didn't send these to my husband. I almost didn't share here (in fear that all the cocoa powder would be bought up!) They were that good. Okay, that and if I kept them in the house- I wouldn't fit into the dresses I just bought. Oh I'd eat the whole darn pan...


Here they are. A great by King Arthur Flour.
*It's worth it to buy the double dutch. You'll be stunned! And while you're there get the espresso powder...I can't believe how much a difference it made! YUM!

THE BROWNIE by: King Arthur Flour

* 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
* 2 1/4 cups sugar
* 4 large eggs
* 1 1/4 cups Double-Dutch Dark Cocoa or Dutch-process cocoa (the double dutch!)
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1 teaspoon espresso powder
* 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
* 1 1/2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
* 2 cups chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Parchment paper a 9x13 pan.

2. In a medium-sized microwave-safe bowl, or in a saucepan set over low heat, melt the butter, then add the sugar and stir to combine. Return the mixture to the heat (or microwave) briefly, just until it's hot (about 110°F to 120°F), but not bubbling; it'll become shiny looking as you stir it. Heating this mixture a second time will dissolve more of the sugar, which will yield a shiny top crust on your brownies.

3. While the sugar heats a second time, crack the 4 eggs into a bowl, and beat them with the cocoa, salt, baking powder, espresso powder, and vanilla till smooth.

4. Add the hot butter/sugar mixture, stirring until smooth.

5. Add the flour and chips, again stirring until smooth. Note: If you want the chips to remain intact in the baked brownies, rather than melting in, let the batter cool in the bowl for about 20 minutes before stirring in the chips. ( let it cool- it makes presentation even better! )

6. Spoon the batter into a parchment lined (sides and bottom!) 9" x 13" pan.

7. Bake the brownies for about 30 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, or with just a few moist crumbs clinging to it. The brownies should feel set on the edges, and the center should look very moist, but not uncooked. Remove them from the oven and cool on a rack before cutting and serving.

Don't give these away. Hoard them.