Sunday Bread - Perfect Brownies

by: Something The Dog Said

Sun Oct 09, 2011 at 06:43:24 AM PDT

Happy Sunday Bread Heads!

This week we are going to make the prefect brownie. Now I know that just about everyone makes brownies and they pretty much all think that they make them prefect, but it is just not true.

Brownies are supposed to be chewy and moist, but far too often bakers (even some professional bakers) will mistake under-cooked for moist and gooey for chewy. Under-cooked dough is never a good treat, no matter how much chocolate is in them.

So in an effort to save this venerable treat from gaining a reputation for inedibility, I will walk you through the factors that make for a prefect brownie.

One of the elements that is most often overlooked is the baking pan. Nearly every home in America has a 9" x 13" Pyrex baking pan. It is a very nice dish and has a lot of uses, but fully baking brownies is not one of them. While glass can be a reasonable conductor of heat, it is not the same as an aluminum pan.

Glass just does not do the same job of heat transference and as a result the brownies baked in glassware are almost always undercooked in the middle. Blech! If you don't want to buy a new baking pan, you can do what I do, bake them on a sheet pan, that has a raised edge and is 12" x 18" (you do get a thinner brownie and have to reduce the baking time to 15 minutes).

Or you can go to a local restaurant supply store and pick up an aluminum pan for about $10, if you really must have the thicker brownies. In any case you must have a metal baking pan for this to work right.

The next thing that people do that ruins brownies is to rush. Brownies, if you look at the recipe, are basically a soufflé. They have a lot of sugar and eggs, but not a lot of flour. This means that you must get the lift for the pastry out of the structure of the eggs and the means a lot of beating, 10 minutes worth to be precise.

By betting the eggs and sugar together for this amount of time will give you a very nice fluffy base for your brownies. They will cook through but still be tender, chewy and moist.

Another step that seems to be lost on most recipes is the buttering and flouring of the baking pan. This is really important as it allows the cooled brownies to release from the pan.

Finally, the mistake that nearly everyone makes; cutting them too soon! Brownies need at least, at the very least, 2 full hours to cool and settle. By waiting this time you will have a much easier time cutting them and they will hold together when lifted from the pan much better.

Okay, now that we have that out of the way, let's bake some brownies!  

Ingredients:

6oz unsweetened chocolate
¾ cup (1 ½ sticks) butter
4 eggs, at room temperature
2 tablespoons vanilla (yes tablespoons, you will need it to perk up the flavor of the chocolate)
½ teaspoon salt
2 ¾ cups sugar
2 cups all purpose flour
1 ½ cups chopped walnuts (Don't skip the walnuts! Or if you don't like them, use some other nut, but you need the volume)

Baking Pan - 1 metal 9" x 13" baking pan or 1 12" x 18" aluminum sheet pan

Method:

Set a rack in the middle of your oven and preheat it to 375 degrees.

Cover the entire surface of your pan with a light layer of butter. Then sprinkle on about 1/8 cup of flour. Move the pan around so all the butter is covered in a light dusting of flour. Turn the pan upside down over a garbage pail or sink to remove any unused flour.

In a small sauce pan melt the butter and the chocolate over medium low heat, stirring occasionally. When the chocolate and the butter have melted (about 8 minutes) remove the pan from the heat and set aside to cool somewhat.

In your large mixing bowl or the work bowl of your stand mixer combine the eggs, sugar, vanilla and salt.  Using the beaters of an electric beater or the wire whisk attachment of the stand mixer beat the mixture at low speed for one minute. Then move up to high speed and beat for 10 more minutes.

You will have a light and fluffy yellow mixture that is between double and triple the volume of the original when you are done.

Now it is time to switch to a wooden spoon. You will stir the rest of this by hand (I am not kidding! Don't use your beaters or mixer, they are too rough and tend to collapse your frothy eggs!). Stir in the chocolate mixture.

Add the flour and stir until just combined. Stir in the nuts as well. Pour the entire mixture into your baking pan and use a spatula to spread it to the corners of the pan.

Slide the baking pan into the hot oven and bake. If you are using a sheet pan, bake them for 15 minutes, if you are using a 9" x 13" bake for 25 minutes.

Remove the pan from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Then walk away for a few hours! I mean it!

Cut the brownies into 2" x 2" squares or 3" x 3" if you like them big and store them in an airtight plastic container for up to 3 days.

Now, I know there are going to be people who are tempted to cut and eat them early, but you are really robbing yourself. The reason that people like warm breads and such is that they tend to be softer when they are warm. Well made brownies don't need to be warm to be soft and tender. So stay away from them when they are still cooling!

Now if you follow these instructions, you will be able to make the perfect brownie time after time. Just be sure to bake them in metal, to beat the eggs and sugar enough, flour the pan and let them stand for at least 2 hours after baking. If you do all of that, you will get a reputation for being the Wizard of Brownies. And that, as they say, ain't hay!

The flour is yours!