Quintuple Chocolate Brownies - made May 11, 2010 from Fearless Baking by Elinor Klivans
These brownies are so-named because it’s supposed to use 5 different kinds of chocolate. However, I was missing the heavy cream to put in the white chocolate layer on top so I improvised by skipping the white chocolate layer altogether and adding chopped up Toblerone bars in the last 5 minutes of baking to soften them slightly over the top of the brownie. I knew from reading the recipe that this would yield a dark chocolate brownie and I was right, especially since I use a dark cocoa (Pernigotti) in the brownies. The texture on these was good and fudgy but these are probably a little “too dark chocolate” for me as a milk chocolate lover. But dark chocolate lovers should like this one.
Funny thing about brownie taste and fudginess – my first preference is milk chocolate but not when it comes to brownies since milk chocolate as a brownie base (as opposed to as an add in) is actually too sweet. But if it’s too dark of a chocolate, I don’t like it either. I guess you can safely say my brownie preferences lean towards semisweet or bittersweet and if you have to lean towards more of a dark chocolate base, I like to do milk chocolate add-ins, such as with the Toblerone bars to offset the dark chocolate.
If I had stayed true to the original recipe and used the white chocolate layer on top, I have a feeling that would’ve worked really well since white chocolate is pretty sweet and would’ve offered a nice contrast to the dark chocolate brownie base.
Funny thing about brownie taste and fudginess – my first preference is milk chocolate but not when it comes to brownies since milk chocolate as a brownie base (as opposed to as an add in) is actually too sweet. But if it’s too dark of a chocolate, I don’t like it either. I guess you can safely say my brownie preferences lean towards semisweet or bittersweet and if you have to lean towards more of a dark chocolate base, I like to do milk chocolate add-ins, such as with the Toblerone bars to offset the dark chocolate.
If I had stayed true to the original recipe and used the white chocolate layer on top, I have a feeling that would’ve worked really well since white chocolate is pretty sweet and would’ve offered a nice contrast to the dark chocolate brownie base.
Brownies
½ cup all-purpose flour
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons strong coffee
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
6 ounces premium-quality milk chocolate, chopped into chips or 1 cup store-bought milk chocolate chips
1 cup chopped nuts
Glaze
6 ounces premium-quality white chocolate, finely chopped, or 1 cup store-bought white chocolate chips
1/3 cup heavy cream
1. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 325˚F. Line a 9-inch square baking pan with foil, butter the foil and place the pan on a baking sheet.
2. Sift together the flour, cocoa, and salt.
3. Set a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and add, in the following order, the butter, two chocolates and the coffee. Keeping the pan over low heat, warm just until the butter and chocolates are melted – you don’t want the ingredients to get so hot they separate, so keep an eye on the bowl. Stir gently, and when the mixture is smooth, set it aside for 5 minutes.
4. Using a whisk or a rubber spatula, beat the sugar into the chocolate mixture. Don’t beat too vigorously – you don’t want to add air to the batter – and don’t be concerned about any graininess. Next, stir in the eggs one at a time, followed by the vanilla. You should have a smooth, glossy batter. If you’re not already using a rubber spatula, switch to one now and gently stir in the dry ingredients, mixing only until they are incorporated. Finally, stir in the milk chocolate chips and the nuts. Scrape the batter into the pan.
5. Bake for about 35 minutes, or until a thin knife inserted into the center comes out streaked but not thickly coated. Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and let the brownies rest undisturbed for at least 30 minutes. (You can wait longer, if you’d like.)
6. Turn the brownies out onto a rack, peel away the foil and place it under another rack – it will be the drip catcher for the glaze. Invert the brownies onto the rack and let cool completely.
7. To make the glaze: Put the white chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Bring the heavy cream to a boil and pour it over the chocolate. Wait 30 seconds, then, using a rubber spatula, gently stir until the chocolate is melted and the glaze is smooth.
8. Hold a long metal icing spatula in one hand and the bowl of glaze in the other. Pour the glaze onto the center of the brownies and use the spatula to nudge it evenly over the surface. Don’t worry if it dribbles over the edges, you can trim the sides later (or not). Refrigerate the brownies for about 20 minutes to dry the glaze.
9. Cut into 16 squares, each roughly 2 ¼” on a side.
½ cup all-purpose flour
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons strong coffee
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
6 ounces premium-quality milk chocolate, chopped into chips or 1 cup store-bought milk chocolate chips
1 cup chopped nuts
Glaze
6 ounces premium-quality white chocolate, finely chopped, or 1 cup store-bought white chocolate chips
1/3 cup heavy cream
1. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 325˚F. Line a 9-inch square baking pan with foil, butter the foil and place the pan on a baking sheet.
2. Sift together the flour, cocoa, and salt.
3. Set a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and add, in the following order, the butter, two chocolates and the coffee. Keeping the pan over low heat, warm just until the butter and chocolates are melted – you don’t want the ingredients to get so hot they separate, so keep an eye on the bowl. Stir gently, and when the mixture is smooth, set it aside for 5 minutes.
4. Using a whisk or a rubber spatula, beat the sugar into the chocolate mixture. Don’t beat too vigorously – you don’t want to add air to the batter – and don’t be concerned about any graininess. Next, stir in the eggs one at a time, followed by the vanilla. You should have a smooth, glossy batter. If you’re not already using a rubber spatula, switch to one now and gently stir in the dry ingredients, mixing only until they are incorporated. Finally, stir in the milk chocolate chips and the nuts. Scrape the batter into the pan.
5. Bake for about 35 minutes, or until a thin knife inserted into the center comes out streaked but not thickly coated. Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and let the brownies rest undisturbed for at least 30 minutes. (You can wait longer, if you’d like.)
6. Turn the brownies out onto a rack, peel away the foil and place it under another rack – it will be the drip catcher for the glaze. Invert the brownies onto the rack and let cool completely.
7. To make the glaze: Put the white chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Bring the heavy cream to a boil and pour it over the chocolate. Wait 30 seconds, then, using a rubber spatula, gently stir until the chocolate is melted and the glaze is smooth.
8. Hold a long metal icing spatula in one hand and the bowl of glaze in the other. Pour the glaze onto the center of the brownies and use the spatula to nudge it evenly over the surface. Don’t worry if it dribbles over the edges, you can trim the sides later (or not). Refrigerate the brownies for about 20 minutes to dry the glaze.
9. Cut into 16 squares, each roughly 2 ¼” on a side.
No comments:
Post a Comment