Chocolate Brownies
This is my favourite Brownie recipe based on one of Mary Berry’s. I hope you enjoy it. Please let me know in the comments. 🙂
Chocolate Brownies
Ingredients. (This recipe can be halved which I often do and as the photo above shows)
- 350g plain chocolate broken into pieces
- 225g butter (I like to use salted butter)
- 2 teasp instant coffee dissolved in 2 tbsp hot water
- 3 extra large eggs (When halving the recipe I use two large eggs)
- 225g sugar (I like to use soft brown or a mix of soft brown with golden caster)
- 1 teasp vanilla essence or paste
- 75g self-raising flower
- 225g plain chocolate drops (I usually leave the choc drops out as the cake is overloaded with calories already!!)
- 175g chopped walnuts (We don’t like walnuts so I use toasted slivered almonds. I don’t always add any nuts, again to cut calories!)
How to do it
- Pre-heat the oven to 190C/375F/Gas5
- Grease and line a 30cms x 23cms tin. For the half mixture, I use a 20cms square tin
- Melt the chocolate slowly in a bowl with the butter carefully in the microwave or over a pan of hot water. Allow to cool.
- In another bowl, mix together the coffee, eggs, sugar and vanilla.) I use a hand whisk at this point.)
- Gradually beat in the chocolate/butter melty mixture.
- Fold in the flour and, if using , the chocolate chips and your chosen nuts)
- Pour into the prepared tin.
- Bake in the pre-heated oven for 40-45 minutes (only 20-25 for the half mixture) until a dull crust has formed and it is just firm to the touch. N.B. I usually check after 35mins (20 mins for the half mixture) as the joy of a good Brownie is its gooiness and over-cooking will will take that away.
- Leave to cool in the tin.
- When the cake is completely cool. cut into squares.
- Enjoy it as it is or for a special occasion, pile the pieces into a Brownie Mountain and drizzle over some melted white chocolate and some edible gold dust and stick sparklers or candles or other decorations all over the place.
If you have the self restraint, the Brownie freezes well and defrosts very quickly when needed.
I’m sorry there are no process photos as in my other recipes but I hadn’t planned on posting this one until asked by Dear Readers. I hope it is clear in the instructions.
