S'mores Brownies

There is something so wonderful and nostalgic about s'mores.  And how can you resist brownies?  I have been thinking about making s'mores brownies forever and ever.  I kept thinking through recipes and coming up with different brownie alternatives - using marshmallow fluff instead of mini marshmallows, graham cracker crust versus no graham cracker crust...  And then every time it came down to it I ended up going with something else.  But this past weekend we were supposed to bring dessert to a friend's apartment and I FINALLY made my s'mores brownies.  I ended up going with the recipe from Brown Eyed Baker even though I second and third guessed her brownie recipe.  The idea of adding boiling water to cocoa powder and then throwing in chunks of bittersweet chocolate at the very end was seemed totally bizarre to me.  But I did it anyway because in the end, why not?  I was going to make the Chewy, Fudgy Triple Chocolate Brownies from Baking Illustrated, but I didn't feel like modifying the recipe for a 9x13x2 pan.  And once I realized that the base recipe from Brown Eyed Baker was from Cook's Illustrated I decided to go with it.

These brownies might be my new favorite brownie recipe.  And they are probably the best thing I have ever baked and brought into work.  A few of my coworkers and I are obsessed with the combination of salty and sweet flavors.  I was a little worried that the brownies would be too sweet, but they had an ideal level of saltiness and sweetness.  Once these brownies had sat around for a day the balance of flavors with the saltiness and the sweetness got even better.  And the day after that the balance of flavors evolved even more.  Of course I made sure to taste them every day to ensure that they aged well.  Bad for the waistline, but so very delicious. 

Recipe after the jump!

Mexican Brownies

I served these brownies as dessert during a recent dinner party with a Mexican theme.  I had a bunch of different dessert ideas but Alex requested that I make the "easiest" dessert option as we were already trying out 3 other new dishes.  So I went with brownies because I figured brownies were easier than either a Mexican Chocolate Tart with Cinnamon-Spiced Pecans or Mexican Wedding Cookies.  I took a really basic brownie recipe (one that is fairly similar to the Cocoa Brownies with Browned Butter and Walnuts recipe I made awhile back) and added cinnamon, cayenne and chocolate chips to give it a little extra something.  I spent a few minutes deliberating about the use of cayenne versus ancho chili powder or another type of chili powder, but Alex and I decided that we wanted a hint of heat more than we wanted the smoky flavor of chili powder.  I also used Dutch-processed cocoa powder because I thought it would be smoother (and less bitter) than regular unsweetened cocoa powder.  I briefly debated that decision too until I realized that all we had was Dutch-processed cocoa powder.  I wanted to use bittersweet chocolate chips instead of semisweet, but Alex was busy and I couldn't reach the bittersweet chocolate chips so I just went with semisweet.  I also thought about adding pecans, but Alex is not a fan of nuts in baked goods so I decided to leave them out.

I thought that the brownies had a really nice smooth chocolate flavor and creamy texture with just a hint of cinnamon and cayenne.  I would say that the brownies were fudgy, rather than cakey (although they weren't super fudgy).  I liked the addition of the chocolate chips for a little texture and richness, although I wish that I had added the pecans for a little more texture.  We served the brownies with some nice vanilla ice cream and I thought they were a very nice ending to a successful meal (more on the rest of the meal later).

Recipe after the jump!

Cocoa Brownies with Browned Butter and Walnuts

Ever since I came across my first reference to using browned butter in a brownie I have been curious.  Not quite intrigued, but definitely curious.  Then I received the new issue of Bon Appetit and saw that the cover recipe was for Cocoa Brownies with Browned Butter and Walnuts.  And after I looked inside and saw just how easy they were to make, I decided to go ahead and pull the trigger on a batch of browned butter brownies.  Actually, in the spirit of full disclosure, my receptionists at work have been requesting brownies for some time now and once I saw the recipe it almost seemed serendipitous (except that I had to wait a few weeks to have the time to bake them).

According to some of the reviews that I have read, these brownies are better the second day.  I will have to try them out tomorrow and report back to you on that one, but I can tell you that on day one they are  fudgey and super rich.  You can definitely taste the nuttiness of the browned butter (which was a very interesting variation on a traditional cocoa brownie) and it is a great complement to the walnuts.  I generally prefer cakey brownies to fudgey brownies, but these brownies definitely deserve a shot, even if only for the ease of baking them.  I wish that I had added a pinch of espresso powder to the batter, but by the time I thought of it I was too lazy to hunt down the espresso powder in our cabinets.  If I'm not mistaken it is on the very top shelf and I either needed to 1) stand on the counter (which was impossible since the counter was covered in brownie-making supplies), or 2) go get a chair to stand on (which I was loathe to do since I had already done that to get the vanilla extract down).  So I decided to forgo the espresso powder just this once.  Next time I will definitely add it because I find that it gives brownies great depth of flavor and makes them taste even more chocolatey.

Brownies Galore!

I recently promised some friends that I would make them brownies.  All of the brownie recipes I had bookmarked to make here were a little fussy and what I really wanted to make for them was a richer, more traditional brownie than the Mexican chocolate brownies I plan on making for myself later.  So I started looking around for some decadent (but still traditional) brownie recipes and I kept stumbling across blogs that referenced two different brownie recipes - these Chewy, Fudgy Triple Chocolate Brownies from Baking Illustrated and the brownies from the Baked: New Frontiers in Baking cookbook.  I had never heard of Baking Illustrated before, but once I realized it was published by the editors of Cook's Illustrated, which is a phenomenal publication, I knew I had to try the recipe out.  But at the same time I have been reading and hearing about the Baked cafe in Brooklyn and how great their brownies are, so I really wanted to try them too.  And then I decided to just go ahead and make both.  

I wanted to jazz at least one batch of the brownies up a little so I added some dark chocolate and mint chips that I recently unearthed in our kitchen cabinet to the Baking Illustrated recipe.  The baking supplies are up on the highest shelf (and our highest shelf is a good 6 plus feet up there) and unless I climb on the counter so I am eye level with the cabinet, things tend to get lost in there.  I bought the dark chocolate and mint chips after Christmas to make some brownies and then promptly forgot about them.  Oops.  The Baked brownies already had a touch of espresso powder in them so I decided to leave them as my "plain" brownies. Since I modified the Baking Illustrated brownies by adding mint extract and mint chips, I'm not exactly sure how the basic recipes would fare in a side-by-side comparison.  The Baked brownies are fudgier and very buttery.  I think the addition of brown sugar also makes them taste a little richer.  The Baking Illustrated brownies were a little thicker and more cakey in texture.  I actually preferred the Baking Illustrated brownies, both texturally and flavorwise, to the Baked brownies, but that's probably partially due to the fact that I have always found plain brownies to be a little boring.  I love it when brownies have a little something extra to take them to the next level.  However, I do admit that the Baked brownies make a dynamite brownie sundae when paired with the Jeni's Salty Caramel ice cream I picked up at Dean & Delucas yesterday. Sooooo good.

Recipes after the jump!