[TGIF] Double Chocolate Brownies

Friday Morning, March 19, 2010.
Friday morning routine passed by just like the other morning. My husband left the house just about 10 minutes after 6am, and around 7.15 am my children were sitting in the car, while I was getting ready to send them to school. I saw them from our terrace, they wore their seatbelt on while waiting for me locking the house door.

And... it happened very quick; when I was in hurry stepping down from our terrace to the carport, I almost fell down on the staircase (that connects the terrace & the carport), because some of the stone tiles were broken. Luckly, I didn't fall down completely! Unfortunately, my left left ankle was twisted. It was very, very painful. I just sat down on the staircase trying myself to calm down. My children jumped out from the car, trying to help & comfort their mom. Nothing we could do to fix it...

Now, one and a half week after the accident, my ankle is getting better, but I have to be careful everytime moving and can't move too fast (I mean 'normal fast'). Hopefully, next week I can return back to my regular swimming activity. I was swimming last Wednesday covering only a short distance (1500m). I did it... but after that my ankle got worst.

The moral story is: fix or repair the thing that is broken immediately, do not wait until an accident happens. *Finally, we fixed our staircase two days after the accident.

So that Friday, after picking up my children from school, we went straight home. We decided to bake our favorite brownies, using our very favorite brownies recipe from Martha Stewart Living magazine. A simple recipe with the ingredients that are always available in our kitchen.

The result is always delicious. The inside part of the brownies is fudge. Don't be surprised if someone tries it and he/she will keep coming to grab square by square.

There's no special tip for baking brownies. Simply follow the recipe.
Just to let you know, while preparing this brownies;
* I always melt the chocolate+butter using a microwave oven instead of melting it in double pan. I use the 'defrost' programme.
* I'm not using expensive or fancy brand of chocolate, I choose 'colata' dark chocolate brand (an Indonesian local brand), and it works. This recipe is very 'friendly' and 'kindful'; even it recommends a good quality chocolate, but using an 'average' quality chocolate, it still can produce very good brownies.
* I use 22cm square pan, instead of 8 inch square pan, and I get 25 square brownies.
* Brownies Recipes always require to let the 'fresh from the oven' brownies cool completely, before cutting into square. Unfortunately, this requirement doesn't work in our home. The very tempting chocolate smell that blows to all corners of our home make my children keep asking to try the brownies. So normally, I just let it cool for 10 minutes before cutting. Trust me, the warm brownies always good to be enjoyed.

Those of you who love your brownies fudgy then this is the recipe of your dream. And because brownies are so simple to bake, you don't need to reserve them for a special occasion (but the treats will make any days feel like one).

Double Chocolate Brownies
Source : Martha Stewart Living Magazine, February 2004 - (15 years of delicious desserts).
Makes 9 large or 16 small squares.

Ingredients
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for pan ~ 90 gr
6 ounces coarsely chopped good-quality semisweet chocolate ~ 170 gr
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch-process)
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Directions
1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a buttered 8-inch square baking pan with foil or parchment paper, allowing 2 inches to hang over sides. Butter lining (excluding overhang); set pan aside.
2.Put butter, chocolate, and cocoa in a heatproof medium bowl set over a pan of simmering water; stir until butter and chocolate are melted. Let cool slightly.
3.Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl; set aside.
4.Put sugar, eggs, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, and beat on medium speed until pale, about 4 minutes. Add chocolate mixture; beat until combined. Add flour mixture; beat, scraping down sides of bowl, until well incorporated.
5.Pour batter into prepared pan; smooth top with a rubber spatula. Bake until a cake tester inserted into brownies (avoid center and edges) comes out with a few crumbs but is not wet, about 35 minutes. Let cool slightly in pan, about 15 minutes. Lift out brownies; let cool completely on a wire rack before cutting into squares.
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Actually, this brownies always remind me to all of our nice friends in St. Thomas Cathedral, Mumbai. Some of our friends called me 'brownies lady', since many times I brought brownies for refreshment or for 'bake sale' in church. I always bake the brownies using this recipe.

I post some pictures in the Church to remember the beautiful friendship. Hope to see them again, oneday.