Shiny, Shatter-Top, Double Chocolate Brownies

Brownies that are gooey on the inside yet have a shatter-top texture are no longer a figment of your food imagination. My friends, they are here and they are glorious, and just in time for swimsuit season! Ha! The best part is that they are a cinch to put together and even easier to eat! With everything going on in the world today, I feel the phrase “Keep Calm & Carry On” just took on greater meaning. But perhaps we should update it a bit to, “Keep Calm, Carry Hand Sanitizer, & Eat Chocolate”? Pretty sure that is going to be my new personal mission statement. So if you find yourself needing a new brownie recipe to try after putting up all of your stockpiled toilet paper, try this one! You will not regret it. Plus chocolate is known to cause a calming effect on the brain by increasing the neurotransmitter serotonin and it also causes an increase in your dopamine levels. Double chocolate and double neurotransmitter benefit? Talk about the definition of win-win!

Ingredients:

• 10 oz of chocolate morsels, dark or semi-sweet

• 2 sticks of butter, softened

• 1 1/2 cups of sugar

• 2 eggs

• 1/2 cup of cocoa powder, Dutch-pressed if you have it

• 1 cup all purpose flour

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1/2 cup of brewed coffee, room temperature

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a double boiler, melt chocolate morsels. Once melted set to the side, cool slightly.

3. In a bowl, combine flour, salt, and cocoa powder. Set to the side.

4. In a large bowl, cream sugar and butter together until fluffy.

5. Add in eggs, one at a time, and blending together until incorporated.

6. Add in a small amount of melted chocolate to temper the eggs, once incorporated, stir in the rest of the melted chocolate.

7. Add in brewed coffee and stir to combine.

8. Stir in dry ingredients into wet ingredients, and mix until well combined.

9. Pour into a greased pan, I used a 9x13, and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean from the center.

10. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Spiced Brownies

Fact: I am holding a brownie in one hand and attempting to type with the other hand as I write this. Could this one finger, one letter at a time, typing be sped up? Yes, but that would require me to put down my brownie and that is not something that I am willing to do. Another fact: my all-time favorite favor combination is coffee and chocolate, but in truth, pumpkin and chocolate is becoming a very close second. There is something about the warmth and savory nature of the pumpkin brings out and compliments the darker notes of the chocolate to give it a more savory quality as well. Either way, I took a big bowl of these to a gathering last night and came home with crumbs! Always a good sign!

Everyone has their own ideals of what makes a perfect brownie. Some prefer a glossy, crunchy top, others a fudgier consistency. And while you can’t make everyone happy, I am thrilled to report that everyone who has tried these brownies smiles after their first bite! A slightly crisp top, with a fudgey yet fluffy and light texture, with the slightest hint of savory spice—they might be the perfect bite.

For Brownies:

• 10oz of dark chocolate

• 2 sticks of butter, softened

• 1 1/2 cups of sugar

• 2 large eggs

• 1/2 cup of pumpkin

• 1 1/2 cups of all purpose flour

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

• 1 tbsp of pumpkin pie spice

• 1/4 tsp of espresso powder

Method:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

2. Using a double boiler, melt 10oz of dark chocolate. Set melted chocolate to the side.

3. In a bowl add butter and sugar and mix until fluffy. Add eggs in one and time and combine, then add pumpkin and melted chocolate. Combine and set to the side.

4. In other bowl, combine flour, salt, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, and espresso powder.

5. Mix dry ingredients into wet and stir together and pour into a prepared, greased and parchment-lined pan. I used 9x13 and bake for 35-40 minutes.

6. Dust with a little powdered sugar and cinnamon and enjoy!