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Every now and then, an idea will spark for me from even the smallest triggers in life. This in particular was the result of a discussion about surprises. Mine was to be about dessert. The person that this surprise was for is someone special, so one cannot simply buy something from the store. I wanted to know what would make the best of the best. A kind of channeling of Tyler Florence, if you will.
I gave it a thought and I knew exactly what to do. Since my brother does not like cake, and my nieces and nephews tend to be picky, and my sister will eat generally anything with a sweet tooth, the only thing that made sense for me to prepare were brownies.
A quick google search led me here, The Ultimate Brownie Recipe. And I thought I had all the ingredients listed.
The result is this:
What was I missing? 3 unsweetened cocoa squares. Over 25% of the ingredient I needed was already used from what I thought was a full box of unsweetened cocoa. What did I do? I dug up some semi-sweet chocolate chips and measured out on the scale 3 oz of the sweetened stuff. I also reduced the amount of sugar by 1/4th cup to compensate for the sweetness coming from the chocolate chips.
Another thing I did differently was the choice of flour. I didn’t know the immediate impact on brownies but I used bread flour instead of all-purpose flour. I am also not a fan of nuts in my brownies, so I omitted the walnuts.
The result is this adapted recipe:
Better Than Ultimate Brownies
Ingredients:
- 5 1-oz squares of unsweetened chocolate
- 3 oz of semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 cup butter
- 5 eggs
- 2 3/4 cups sugar
- 1 tbsp vanilla
- 1 1/2 cups bread flour
- 1 tsp salt
Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease 9 x 13 pan.
2. In a small saucepan over low heat, melt chocolate squares and chips, and butter; set aside.
3. Beat eggs, sugar and vanilla at high speed for 10 minutes. [I definitely recommend a stand mixer for this.] Add melted chocolate mixture, salt and bread flour and mix until just blended. Let the batter sit on the counter for 20 minutes before pouring into the greased pan. Let air bubbles escape by tapping the pan.
4.Bake for 30 minutes and test with a toothpick. If it comes out clean, take the brownies out to cool before serving.
I believe my substitutions made these brownies above and beyond that of the original Ultimate Brownies! Each square is dense and chocolate-y, and has a nice chewiness to it. It’s better than store-bought or just-put-in-the-oven brownies. If you happen to be lucky enough to have some left over after a few days, you’ll be fighting over the the last few bites of super-moist and ultimately soft and chewy brownies. A little sacrifice of instant gratification truly pays off for these. ;-)
Give them a try in your kitchen and let us know how they turn out!
Hah! Never trust store-bough brownies :) Anyway, they do look unbelievably good– well done Dan! :)
Manggys last blog post..Mango Mille Crepe
dan Reply:
May 18th, 2009 at 7:07 pm
Thanks! They taste better than they look too! :)
Bob Reply:
November 22nd, 2009 at 10:23 am
Thanks for the recipe. It worked great! Very moist brownies. Why do you use “bread flour”? Does this help with the moistness, or flavor?
Thank you.
Bob
These look exactly how I like my brownies too (don’t like nuts in them either)! Way to go on making it work with what you have!
Kristinas last blog post..Frittata with Prosciutto, Potatoes & Thyme
dan Reply:
May 18th, 2009 at 7:08 pm
I think I improvised these quite nicely :) Thanks!
I’m on the search for the perfect brownie recipe. I’ll put these on my list to give them a try!
Thanks for sharing them :)
Martas last blog post..Twin Birthday Cakes
dan Reply:
May 18th, 2009 at 7:09 pm
You’re Welcome! Let us know how they turn out!
These look so moist and fudgy. 5 eggs sounds just perfect! I rarely include nuts in my brownies either. Speaking of brownies, I haven’t cooked up a batch in a while. Thanks for the inspiration!
Lisas last blog post..Potato, Onion and Stilton Frittata
dan Reply:
May 18th, 2009 at 7:10 pm
I don’t mind nuts in my cookies, but I I really don’t like them in brownies! Are you going to try my version?
Lisa Reply:
May 19th, 2009 at 7:07 pm
Your brownies inspired this gluten-free brownie recipe.
Lisas last blog post..Chocolate Cocoa Brownies with Dried Cranberries and Chickpea Flour
It’s so exciting when substitutions yield something better than the original. The photo of the brownies totally has me wanting to bite into the screen!
Stefs last blog post..Maple Ice Cream Recipe
dan Reply:
May 18th, 2009 at 7:12 pm
I don’t think I’ve ever had quite a compliment like that! Thanks! Try making them and get the scent too!
Those look unbelievably rich and decadent! I’m with you on no nuts for my brownies, just pure chocolate!
dan Reply:
May 18th, 2009 at 7:16 pm
And they are amazing to the taste too! :) There’s no need for nuts in our desserts! they can be on top, but not inside!
If I close my eyes and think of a brownie, this is the one I can see in my mind. It’s absolutely perfect! Thick, rich, moist, chocolaty, and perfectly baked. It’s everything a brownie should be!! I can’t wait to try it myself.
(I just found your blog through Tastespotting and it’s wonderful!)
julias last blog post..Very Berry Trifle
dan Reply:
May 18th, 2009 at 7:17 pm
Please prepare them and let us know!
These look and sound delicious! I look forward to trying them
Sathyas last blog post..Rice pudding
Joy, these look freaking fabulous! And they make a big 9×13 pan, too. Niiiice!
Elles last blog post..Quinoa Polenta with Sautéed Lentils and Portobellos
joy Reply:
May 19th, 2009 at 12:12 am
Thanks, Elle! I know…with the ‘weight’ of these brownies, they’re enough to feed a village. Ha Ha.
My current favs are Baked brownies and Fannie Farmer…will try your recipe and see how it stacks up!
-kristin
LoveFeasts last blog post..A Little Mischief at Sei
dan Reply:
May 18th, 2009 at 7:18 pm
I will need to look that up and give that a try. Let me know how mine stack up!
Good LORD, these look rather ultimate. I’m diggin’ the idea of trying bread flour next time I’m experimenting w/ brownies.
Lori @ RecipeGirls last blog post..Roasted Eggplant w/ Chiles, Peanuts and Mint
dan Reply:
May 18th, 2009 at 7:21 pm
Please let me know how they turn out! :) Next time, I’m going to see what will happen if I prepare the batter and straight to pan because my recipe sat in the bowl for about 20 minutes en route to the oven :)
Awww, we love nuts in our brownies! :) These look really good.
The Duo Dishess last blog post..Reused and Recycled
dan Reply:
May 18th, 2009 at 7:22 pm
That’s okay. If you make them yourself, let me know!
this post is kind of hysterical with all of the improvising… the brownies look great though
justcooknycs last blog post..much pizza
dan Reply:
May 18th, 2009 at 7:27 pm
I think I did quite nicely with that and the results show. Thanks for the compliment!
DEEEELICIOUS! Nothing else to say.
dan Reply:
June 28th, 2009 at 9:22 pm
You’re welcome. I’m glad you enjoyed them!
Not a big fan of brownies. They are always too sweet for me. So I appreciate that you cut the sugar in your recipe.
Nates last blog post..Garlic Cheddar Polenta with Shrimp and Asparagus
dan Reply:
June 28th, 2009 at 9:28 pm
I think I could have cut out more from the recipe based on the swap. Let me know how they turn out if you try ‘em yourself!
These look yummy!
dan Reply:
June 28th, 2009 at 9:28 pm
Why Thank you! Will you try them yourself? If you do, I want a consensus of how they turned out for other people! :)
I made these brownies today and they are the best brownies my husband and I have EVER had! I used Ghirardelli chocolate and subbed all-purpose flour since I didn’t have any bread flour. Needless to say, I will be making these for all future family gatherings & potlucks. :-)
Did you use my version or the about.com version? I made them a few weekends ago and had them barely undercooked and they turned out phenomenal. I’m glad you liked them!
I made these last night and found the baking time was just a smidge too short – I ended up with gooey middle brownies and perfectly cooked edge brownies. No worries though as I’ll just refrigerate/freeze the undercooked ones and still enjoy them ;)
These are definitely amazing – but the calorie content is really high – I got 32 small brownies out of this recipe and apparently each brownie has 175 calories! yikes! I am used to recipes with about 100-120 calories a brownie. Oh well – they are still AMAZEBALLS :)