September 29, 2009 - 10:05pm
Black Forest Brownies (Best Ever)
BY SHANDA SHOOTER
I wanted to wait until I could make these and wow you with a picture myself, but there's urgent demands for the recipe and I must oblige. I kind of adapted this from a Paula Deen mint brownie recipe, it explains the massive amounts of butter.
Tools you will need:
* Double Boiler (you can also use a pot with a glass bowl on top, you don't want it to sink into the pot, but doesn't need to be huge)
* Spoons
* Whisk
* Mixing bowl
* 13x9 pan
* Measuring cups and spoons
Ingredients:
Brownies:
* 4 ounces unsweetened baking chocolate
* 1 cup butter
* 4 large eggs
* 2 cups granulated sugar
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon almond extract
* Small jar of Maraschino cherries, halved and without the juice
* 1 cup flour
Icing:
* 6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
* 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Coat the pan with vegetable oil or spray oil or butter. Whatever will keep it from sticking
3. Put water in the bottom part of the double boiler (or pot) and place the top half (or bowl) on top, you don't want the water to be touching the bowl .
4. In the top bowl, place the cup of butter and unsweetened chocolate and heat until they are melted together. (This is the perfect way to melt chocolate without burning it if you're unfamiliar. If you have trouble with this, leave a comment and we'll try to help!)
5. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the 4 eggs and 2 cups of sugar until they're fluffy.
6. After the chocolate has cooled enough so it won't cook the eggs, add it to the sugar/egg mixture along with the salt, almond extract and cherries. Stir until combined
7. Add the flour last and stir until it's all thoroughly mixed. You don't have to beat it to death, just until it's all combined.
8. Pour the batter into the cake pan and bake for about 25 minutes. If you insert a toothpick in the center and it comes out with actual batter on it, it needs more time.
9. For the icing, use the same method for melting the semi-sweet chocolate chips and butter in the double boiler. Once the chocolate is melted, pour it on top of the brownies and refrigerate.
10. After the whole thing has fully cooled you can the brownies into actual squares. They keep shape better when they're cold and are easier to cut as well, however they're delicious to eat at any temperature. Enjoy!
(Note: Since I didn't have time to make these on my own, I nabbed the picture from a google image search. They look eerily similar to the brownies I make, however I imagine they don't taste as good.)
