Brownies

I've been on the search for a recipe for the perfect brownies. And while I've made lots of good brownies (it would take some hard work to made a brownie taste bad), none of them have been *perfect* yet. What is my ideal brownie, you ask? The kind that Whole Foods Market makes. Not necessarily the ones in the tub of 2 bites, but the individually wrapped ones you get at the bakery counter...oh man those are the STUFF. My current runner up recipe is the triple chocolate brownies from Cooks Illustrated. But, they aren't perfect. The logical next step considering my perfect store bought brownie is from Whole Foods? Getting a recipe off of wholefoods.com.

Ingredients

Butter and flour for pan preparation
6 ounces 70% bittersweet chocolate, broken into small pieces
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup all-purpose unbleached flour

Frosting (optional)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons warm water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup confectioner's sugar, sifted

Method

Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter and flour a 9 x 9-inch baking pan. Set aside. In a double boiler, melt chocolate and butter, stirring until smooth. Stir in vanilla and let cool slightly. In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs and sugar on medium high speed until thick and creamy, and sugar is dissolved, about 10 minutes. Gently stir in melted chocolate. Stir salt into flour and fold gently into chocolate mixture. Do not over mix. Pour batter into prepared pan and spread to smooth. Bake 20 minutes, then cover with foil. Bake additional 8 to 12 minutes or until a toothpick inserted 1 inch from the center comes out clean.

While the brownies are baking, prepare the frosting. Melt butter and stir in cocoa powder. Mix until well blended. Add warm water and vanilla and whisk in confectioner's sugar, a little at a time, until frosting is smooth and spreadable, but not too thick.

Remove brownies from oven and let cool slightly in pan. Spread frosting over warm brownies for a hot fudge sauce effect or spread on cooled brownies and refrigerate until firm for brownies that will be served later or packed for travel. Cut into 12 pieces.

For those that are tempted to skip the obnoxious double boiler, don't. It really does prevent the chocolate from getting burned. Melting chocolate is a particular process. Here is my makeshift double boiler:

I was unsure of the frosting, but my brownies were stubborn and wouldn't cook, so I had to test it three times before the knife came out just a little gooey (if they knife comes out clean, they'll be too dry when they cool). Needless to say, the top didn't look pretty from the stab marks. Bright side there? Solved my frosting question. Here is it:

I frosted the brownies almost immediately after I took the brownies out of the oven, and put the whole thing in the fridge (no cover - if you cover something hot, there were be condensation, which will lead to soggy brownies). I propped them up on a few other things in the fridge so heat could escape out of the bottom too. An hour or so later - they were cool! Doug and I sampled immediately. The consensus? They were awesome, and I pretty sure this is the recipe Whole Foods bakery uses for their brownies (it would make sense, right?). Officially my new favorite brownie recipe, and homemade brownies are always the best. Here is something to get you salivating: