Yummy Brownies

Photo Courtesy: Dr. Debarshi Chatterji

A few weeks back I started watching a series called ‘The 70s Show’ and in it they always show Mrs. Forman baking Brownies. She is one of the main characters in the show and is portrayed as a very loving, caring and joyful mother who loves to take care of her family and friends and she loves to bake! She bakes for fun, she bakes when she is stressed and she bakes to make everyone happy and one of her most frequent bakes is Brownies. They have been showing it so frequently that I started craving to bake and eat some delicious Brownies. So, I looked up a recipe and gave it a try. Result? Delicious mouth watering chocolate rich brownies. The best part about this recipe is, you wont even need a stand mixer or a hand beater. Just a bowl and spatula with the ingredients and you are ready. Measure, mix, bake and above all enjoy! I followed the example of my favorite character and shared this with everyone I know and believe me it made me as happy as Mrs. Forman!

Happy Baking!

Ingredients:

For the Brownie - 

• Unsalted Butter – ½ cup (or 1 stick) + more for greasing the pan
• White Sugar - 1 cup (or ½ cup Truvia)
• Eggs - 2 
• Vanilla Extract - 1 teaspoon 
• Unsweetened Cocoa Powder - 1/3 cup 
• All-Purpose Flour – ½ cup + a handful for flouring the pan
• Salt – ¼ teaspoon 
• Baking Powder – ¼ teaspoon 

For the Frosting - 

• Unsalted Butter - 2 tablespoons, softened 
• Unsweetened Cocoa Powder - 1 tablespoon
• Honey - 1 tablespoon 
• Vanilla Extract - ½ teaspoon 
• Confectioners' Sugar - 1 cup 

Tip: 

• Keep the Butter outside at room temperature so that it softens. Do not melt it in the microwave as it will make the frosting very runny.

Directions:

• Grease and flour an 8-inch square pan. I used cold butter for this step, I rubbed it all over the pan using my fingers for a smooth even spread, specially around the edges. 
• To flour the pan, add a handful of flour on the pan and move it around so that it sticks on the butter. Then tilt the pan upside down over the sink so that the extra flour falls off.

• Place the Butter in a large microwave safe bowl and microwave for a minute so that it melts. You can also do this step in a saucepan over your stove top.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Now remove from butter from heat (or take out the bowl from the microwave), and in the same bowl, stir in the White Sugar, Eggs and Vanilla Extract. 
• Sift in the Unsweetened Cocoa Powder, All-Purpose Flour, Salt and Baking Powder and beat them together. 

• Spread the batter into the prepared pan. Smooth with a spatula.

• Bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes (Do not overcook).

Tip: Prepare the frosting while the Brownie is in the oven. See directions below.

• Once baked, take it out of the oven and transfer to a cooling rack. Don’t take the brownie out of the tray yet. Switch off the oven.

Let’s make the Frosting: 

• While the Brownie is baking, let’s prepare the frosting. Now you can very well skip this step, however, if you are planning to apply the frosting, make sure to utilize the baking time so that the frosting spreads evenly over the warm brownies.
• Combine the Unsalted Butter, Unsweetened Cocoa Powder, Honey, Vanilla Extract and Confectioners' Sugar in a small bowl.
• Stir until smooth. 

• Frost brownies while they are still warm. 
• Let the frosting set, allow the brownies cool down a bit then cut them into big pieces and serve.

Tips:

• If you have any leftover plain icing, use it for this.
• If your icing is in the freezer, make sure to keep it outside for 2-3 hours, prior starting the baking. This will give it ample time to soften up. Do not microwave!

Recommended Reading:

• Prepare the Buttercream Frosting
• Blueberry Orange Muffin
• Chocolaty Chocolate Chip Muffins
• Cranberry Orange Muffin
• Simple Chocolate Cake
• Easy Pineapple Upside Down Cake
• Pecan Cake with Rum Frosting
• Fabulous Lemon Muffins with Lemon Syrup
• Delicious Chocolate Orange Muffins
• Chocolate and Vanilla Half and Half Muffins