Short and sweet
I had a whole post up here, finished and ready to be posted. It was a good one too, one I think alot of you would have found interesting. Sadly, when I tried to save it, stupid WordPress logged me out of my account. And when I came back, my post was gone. Talk about frustrating.
I don’t have the energy to retype everything so sorry for this short post. I made the famed Baked Brownie over the weekend and they were damn delicious. Alice Medrich’s New Bittersweet Brownie is my favorite brownie recipe but this one comes to a close second. I prefer a rich, bittersweet chocolate when baking but this recipe used dark chocolate, which is another love of mine. What I loved the most about this brownie was its texture. Soft but not moist, firm but not dry. They are even better the next day, although I doubt you will be able to resist them fresh out of the oven.
Warning: your house will smell like a chocolate heaven while baking them. It might render you senseless. And it seems that I am not the only one who has fallen victim to the Baked Brownie. Deb over at Smitten Kitchen has featured their recipe and so has Sassy Radish. Even Martha Stewart and Oprah have jumped on the Baked bandwagon! Congrats Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito! If you want more good stuff from the Baked bakery, try their Peanut Butter Pie I made a couple of months ago. And stay tuned because I’m going to get cracking on more of their recipes.
The Baked Brownie
Printable Recipe
Origin: Baked: New Frontiers in Baking
Yield: 24 to 30 brownies
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Inactive Prep Time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
● 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
● 1 tsp. salt
● 2 tbsp. dark unsweetened cocoa powder
● 11 oz. dark chocolate (60 to 72% cacao), coarsely chopped
● 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces
● 1 tsp. instant espresso powder
● 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
● 1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
● 5 large eggs, at room temperature
● 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the sides and bottom of a 9 x 13 glass or light-colored metal baking pan.
In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, salt, and cocoa powder.
Put the chocolate, butter, and instant espresso powder in a large bowl and set it over a saucepan of simmering water, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate and butter are completely melted and smooth. Turn off the heat, but keep the bowl over the water and add the sugars. Whisk until completely combined, then remove the bowl from the pan. The mixture should be at room temperature.
Add 3 eggs to the chocolate mixture and whisk until combined. Add the remaining eggs and whisk until combined. Add the vanilla and stir until combined. Do not overbeat the batter at this stage or your brownies will be cakey.
Sprinkle the flour mixture over the chocolate mixture. Using a spatula (not a whisk), fold the flour mixture into the chocolate until just a bit of the flour mixture is visible.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake in the center of the oven for 30 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking time, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the brownies comes out with a few moist crumbs sticking to it.
Let the brownies cool completely on a wire rack, then cut them into squares and serve. Tightly covered with plastic wrap, the brownies keep at room temperature for up to 3 days.
I love that purple napkin (?). Looks beautiful next to those lovely brownies :)
yum! i’ve been wanting to buy Baked, and this post just pushed me over the edge. I love watching the guy do segments on martha. He’s so sweet.
off to look at this peanut butter pie of yours…
I hate when I lose a really great post to internet failure of some kind. Most of the time it’s completely my fault too.
I think the brownies look wonderful!
These look so good! I can always use a new brownie recipe.
People could state that “no brownie is created equal” but as long as you have chocolate & love in there, you can’t go wrong.
I’m pretty sure my love for brownies knows no bounds. And seriously, your photos are straight up brownie porn. Absolutely gorgeous. Also, I just wrote about brownies (weird freakish internet vibes going around?) and it’s also an addicting recipe. Ss soon as chocolate and coffee are mentioned, I’m so there. Anyway, if you’re interested in expanding your brownie repertoire, you can check it out here – http://thepetitfour.com/?p=621
Keep up the awesome work!
I’ve professed my love for those Baked boys more times than what is probably considered healthy on my blog. And I haven’t even tried the iconic brownies yet! Great photos!
now….that looks like my type of brownie! simply gorgeous, and i’m sure utterly delicious!
Your brownies look delicious! and your pictures are awesome! What kind of camera do you use? Im looking to buy one soon and would love to know!
Your photos are amazing! I love how you captured that gorgeous chocolate square in such a perfect way. Sorry that WordPress ate your entry but you still did a great job.
Oh good gracious. We just made our way through a batch of chocolate chip cookies and now I do believe I need to make brownies this weekend. Who am I kidding. I’m making these tonight.
Yes, Tara do it! And let me know how many you polish off. Let me warn you, they are terribly addicting and last forever :)