DARK CHOCOLATE MACADAMIA BROWNIES TOPPED WITH CHOCOLATE AND RASPBERRIES
With summer rolling around I was looking for an outdoor friendly dessert that wouldn't melt into pools of butter in the Sydney heat. Brownies came to mind and voila, this happened.
We went for the first BBQ of the season today and it was a glorious day of sun out in the park. Not only did these stay perfectly safe from the heat, they also helped me make a whole lot of new friends too. I trust you don't need any more convincing, so read on for a quick chocolate fix that won't disappoint!
I CONFESS
This brownie recipe was rumoured to be one of the best by many people at work. So I asked the beautiful maker too divulge her secret, and the recipe turned out to be one from the BBC. I have simply adapted the embellishments and simplified the instructions from the original for an easier read :).
Ingredients
Chocolate Brownies
185 g unsalted butter (chopped into small cubes)
185 g dark chocolate (chopped into small pieces)
85 g plain flour
40 g cocoa powder
3 Large eggs
275 g golden caster sugar (this raw caster sugar can be subbed with white caster sugar)
100g of your favourite combination of nuts or chocolate, chopped. (I used Macadamia nuts, recipe called for 50g each of white and dark chocolate).
Optional: Fresh or freeze dried Raspberries and melted chocolate for decorating.
Method
Chocolate Brownie
MELT CHOCOLATE AND BUTTER Tip your chopped butter and chocolate into a medium bowl. Fill a small saucepan about quarter full with hot water and place on the stove over low heat. Place the bowl of chocolate and butter on top. Ideally, you don't want the bowl to touch the water, leave enough of a gap for steam from your saucepan to rise up and gently heat the bowl. Keep the chocolate and butter over low heat until melted, stirring occasionally. Set aside to cool to room temperature. Alternatively, cover the bowl loosely with cling film and put in the microwave for 2 minutes on High.
SIEVE FLOUR AND COCOA Sieve plain flour and cocoa powder and set aside. Preheat oven fan 160C/conventional 180C/gas 4. Line a shallow 20cm square tin, with non-stick baking paper.
BEAT THE EGGS AND SUGAR Break the eggs into a large bowl. Add in the caster sugar. With an electric mixer on maximum speed, whisk the eggs and sugar till thick and creamy, like a milk shake. This can take 3-8 minutes. You’ll know it’s ready when the mixture becomes really pale and about double its original volume. Alternatively, check if the mixture that runs off the beaters leaves a trail on the surface of the mixture for a second or two when moved side to side, this will tell you it's ready.
COMBINE DRY AND WET INGREDIENTS Pour the cooled chocolate mix over the egg mix, then gently fold with a rubber spatula going under and over in a figure of eight, moving the bowl round after each fold, until the two mixtures are one colour. The idea is to marry them without knocking out the air, so be gentle! Resift the cocoa and flour over the wet mix, covering the top evenly. Gently fold in the dry ingredients using the same figure of eight action as before. The mixture will look dry, dusty and lumpy at first, but keep going very gently till it looks fudgy. Stop just before you feel you should, as you don’t want to overdo this mixing.
BAKE AND SERVE Finally, stir in the nuts or chocolate chunks until they’re dotted throughout. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin. Gently ease the mixture into the corners of the tin and level the top with your spatula. Put in the oven and bake for 30 mins. Check the mixture by gently shaking the tin. If the brownie wobbles in the middle, it’s not quite done. Slide it back in and bake until the top has a shiny, papery crust and the sides are just beginning to come away from the tin. Take out of the oven. (Note: the baking time varies depending on oven, keep a close eye after the first 30 minutes).
DECORATE Leave the brownie in the tin until completely cold before cutting. To decorate - melt some chocolate buttons in the microwave and drizzle it over. Top it off with Raspberries. In the unlikely event this isn't all eaten in one sitting, they'll keep in an airtight container for a good two weeks and in the freezer for up to a month :).
Hero Products
Fresh As NZ - Freeze Dried Raspberries