Brownies From Scratch For My Friend's Birthday

Brownies are a friend's favorite treat. Since I'm not a brownie fan, I've never made them until I wanted to surprise her with a thoughtful gesture on her birthday. I've always disliked brownies because they're usually too gooey and sweet. However, if I do say so myself, my brownies came out perfect, so, of course, I'm going to share the recipe here with you, my awesome readers, and if I ever make brownies again they'd be as delicious:

Dark Chocolate Brownies From Scratch

Ingredients:

5 tablespoons unsalted butter (room temperature)

1 1/4 cup of regular white sugar

3 eggs (work best at room temperature)

1 tablespoon vanilla

1 teaspoon of instant coffee

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil (or almost any vegetable oil you have)

3/4 cup of cacao powder (or substitute Hersey's dark cocoa powder)

3/4 cup all-purpose flour (I buy unbleached.)

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt [If you use salted butter leave the salt out.]

1/2 cup of semisweet chocolate chips (I used Trader Joe's brand.)

Directions:

1) With an electric mixer combine the butter and sugar. Add the eggs one at a time mixing them in. With this recipe be careful not to overbeat, just mix enough to combine the ingredients.

2) I added the ingredients in the order listed, so next toss in the vanilla and instant coffee. Instant coffee enhances the chocolate flavor of the brownies.

3) Mix the rest of the ingredients into the batter, except for the chocolate chips. Those fold in with a spatula.

4) I lined a 9" by 9" pan with aluminum foil and sprayed the foil with cooking spray. If you only have an 8" by 8" pan, it works too, but a bigger pan than 9" you'd need to double the recipe and possibly increase the baking time.

5) Pour the brownie batter into the prepared baking pan. Tap the pan on a table and use your specula to even out the batter.

6) Bake in a preheated oven at 325 degrees F for 30 minutes and then turn off the oven. You don't want to overbake the brownies.

7) While the oven was still hot I put a few squares from a huge Trader Joe's Belgium dark chocolate bar on top of the batch of brownies and let it melt, then spread it evenly over the top.

8) Let cool completely before you cut the brownies into squares. I didn't cut my brownies so I could pick up the aluminum foil and pack it into a box to surprise my friend. When we cut it to eat, the squares cut clean.

The brownies were just the right amount of sweet, reminding me of European confections. A lot of flavor, not overly sweet.

The brownies came out exactly as I had hoped, moist with a nice crumb, yet not gooey and very flavorful. My friend loved them. She used the word gourmet to describe them, and I like them also. Bullseye, a mission accomplished!🎯🤎

A Classic Dark Chocolate Cake

German Chocolate Sauerkraut Cake

Serendipity 3's Frrrozen Hot Chocolate

Chocolate Was Once A Beverage For the Rich

Happy 5th Birthday To THE SAVVY SHOPPER

It's a busy week. Yesterday ... the Academy Awards ... and today THE SAVVY SHOPPER turns five years old.

Over the past year the blog gained more page views, but lost a loyal reader, Ms. Loretta G, who passed away in late June. Time has a way of marching on, but I will always miss Loretta, who was lovely and generous with her support. I am grateful for her comments and emails.

Thanks to all of you for stopping by.

Here's to another year of new topics, practical tips and entertainment. Let's aim for good writing mixed with fun stuff for eyeballs to make your stay worthwhile.

I hope you continue to find some wisdom and humor here.

***** *****

Not only is today THE SAVVY SHOPPER's birthday, it's the time of the year when *spring* is around the corner. We will spring forward next Sunday, March 9th, gaining an hour of daylight.

Lent is fast approaching on the Christian calendar. It begins on Ash Wednesday, March 5th, the day after Mardi Gras. Although I am not a religious person, I have a thought. What if in lieu of giving up something, people add something during Lent? Something to make the world a little bit better ... like public service, volunteering for a worthy cause or simply helping a neighbor. 

You can think of it as giving up your time, but don't just give something up. Do something for someone else. Add kindness. Let's try to make a difference in another person's life. I'm not a scholar of theology (far from it, believe me), but isn't that what Jesus did? 

You may also enjoy: 
THE SAVVY SHOPPER Is Three Years Old
Happy 4th Birthday To THE SAVVY SHOPPER      
Spring Forward With These Easy Pieces     
Drugstore Beauty Buys To Beat The Winter Doldrums