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Brownies: A Really Good Brownie

Source of Recipe

Elinor K.


Recipe Introduction

"This brownie has been our family fudge brownie since Doris Kovner shared her recipe with me over twenty years ago. That's a pretty long track record for a family of brownie lovers. The secret of their success is twofold. Unsweetened chocolate gives the brownies an almost black color and rich chocolate taste that isn't too sweet, and a combination of butter and vegetable shortening create an especially dense, fudge texture."

List of Ingredients



1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
1/2 cup (8 tablespoons) vegetable shortening. cut into 4 pieces
5 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1/4 tsp. salt
2 cups sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour





Recipe

Position a rack in the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 325 F. Lightly grease a 9 X 9 X 2-inch pan with vegetable shortening.

Put the butter, vegetable shortening, and chocolate in a heatproof container and place it over, but not touching, a saucepan of barely simmering water. Stir the mixture over the hot water until it is melted and smooth. Remove the container from over the water and cool 5 minutes.

Put the eggs and salt in the large bowl of an electric mixer and mix at medium speed for about 30 seconds, until the eggs just begin to look fluffy. Add the sugar and beat for 1 minute until the mixture thickens and the color lightens. Decrease the speed to low and mix in the melted chocolate mixture and vanilla until it is combined thoroughly. Add the flour, mixing just until the flour is incorporated.

Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan. Bake for about 50 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with moist crumbs clinging to it. Cool the brownies in the pan on a wire rack, about 1½ hours. Cut into 12 to 16 pieces.

TO FREEZE - Wrap individual brownies tightly in plastic wrap. Place in a metal or plastic freezer container and cover tightly. Or, put the wrapped brownies in a plastic freezer bag and seal. Label with date and contents. Freeze up to 3 months.

TO SERVE - Remove only as many brownies from the freezer as you need. Defrost the wrapped brownies at room temperature for about 3 hours. Leftover brownies can be covered with plastic wrap and stored at room temperature up to 3 days.

GOOD ADVICE - Using some vegetable shortening in these brownies gives them their particular texture. I use Crisco and buy it in the easy to measure sticks. Read the label carefully and buy shortening that is not butter flavored.

YIELD: 12-16 Brownies