A step-by-step guide to preparing brownies accurately
One of the most popular desserts in the world, brownies, was invented in 1893 in the kitchen of the legendary Palmer House Hotel in Chicago. Following the original recipe, they still bake this cake, covering it with apricot glaze. However, brownies develop such a fantastic sugary crust in the homemade version that glazing would be a crime. Traditional chocolate brownies have a vanilla aroma, a crispy crust, and a moist center. The cake also includes walnuts or pistachios and sometimes cranberries.
Ingredients:
- Dark chocolate: 100 g
- Butter: 180 g
- Brown sugar: 200 g
- Eggs: 4
- Wheat flour: 100 g
- Walnuts: 100 g
Instructions:
- Melt Chocolate and Butter: Break the chocolate into pieces and melt it with butter in a double boiler, stirring constantly with a spatula or wooden spoon. Remove the resulting thick chocolate sauce from the double boiler and let it cool.
- Beat Eggs and Sugar: Meanwhile, mix the eggs with 100 grams of brown sugar: crack them into a separate bowl and beat them, gradually adding sugar. You can beat them with a mixer or hand for at least 2.5–3 minutes.
- Chop Walnuts: Chop the walnuts with a sharp knife on a cutting board. Optionally, you can toast them in a dry frying pan until aromatic, but this is not required.
- Mix Ingredients: Add the remaining sugar, flour, and chopped walnuts to the cooled melted chocolate and butter mixture. Mix everything well with a whisk.
- Add Egg Mixture: Pour the egg-sugar mixture into the chocolate mass and mix thoroughly. The batter should be uniform in color without streaks.
- Preheat Oven and Bake: Preheat the oven to 200°C. Line the bottom of a minor, deep, heat-resistant baking dish with parchment or tracing paper. Pour the batter into the form. Place in the oven and bake for 25–30 minutes until a sugary crust forms. Note that baking time may vary depending on your oven, so watch the brownies after 25 minutes.
- Cool and Cut: Remove the finished cake from the oven, let it cool, and cut it into squares with a sharp knife or a pizza cutter for especially even pieces.
- Serve: Now, it’s time to get creative with your serving. These brownies can be enjoyed as is, with a light dusting of powdered sugar for a classic touch, or you can arrange them on plates, each portion adorned with a scoop of creamy vanilla ice cream. The choice is yours, and the possibilities are endless.
