We all have those special recipes. The recipes that remind us of a person, or a place, or a time in our lives. We keep them like a locket or another piece of passed-down jewelry. They are precious, and we share their importance only with those we know who will understand. These classic brownies are one of those recipes.
My grandmother, Lucy, makes these brownies whenever I come into town. Growing up, I'd eagerly anticipate a visit to Grammi and Papou's house where I'd be treated to clown tricks and plates of brownies. Noelle and I would admire my Papou's trumpet, we'd run up and down the stairs, and we'd laugh whenwe saw pictures of our mom and aunt as little girls, looking not too different than us.
Last week, I went to Houston for Thanksgiving. Although I was born in Texas, I spent my adolescence and college years in Colorado, so I haven't had a warm Thanksgiving in quite some time. And although I'm 25, my Grammi still bakes a batch of brownies whenever I come into town. This Thanksgiving, she came to my aunt's house with bags and boxes full of casseroles, pies....and brownies, two dozen chocolate brownies, much to my delight.
So as we prodded our turkey and boiled cranberries for sauce, as we drank mimosas and welcomed Colin home from college, we took one brownie into our mouth after another.
After a few, I realized that if I kept going, there would be no room for dessert. And God knows that if Grammi can bake a mean batch of brownies, her pies are out of this world.
What I appreciate about these brownies are their moist and chocolatey interior coupled with their sweet and crunchy top. Each bite is full of such intense flavor that you eat Grammi's brownies slowly (if you're wise, of course), savoring the perfect combination of chocolate, sugar and fat.
But what I love about these brownies are the memories. The times in my life where I've needed sweetness, and my Grammi's baking and words have helped heal a hurting heart.
1 1/4 cups (5 ounces) cake flour1/2 teaspoon sea salt
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
6 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped fine
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into six 1-inch pieces
2 1/4 cups (15 3/4 ounces) sugar
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
A handful of chocolate chips (why not?)
1. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Create a foil sling, by fitting two pieces of foil into a 13 by 9-inch baking dish, pushing them into corners and up sides of pan; allow excess to overhand pan edges. Spray foil-lined pan with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Whisk to combine flour, salt, and baking powder in medium bowl; set aside. Melt chocolate and butter in large heatproof bowl set over saucepan of almost-simmering water, stirring occasionally, until smooth. (Alternatively, in microwave, heat butter and chocolate in large microwave-safe bowl on high for 45 seconds, then stir and heat for 30 seconds more).
3. When chocolate mixture is completely smooth, remove bowl from saucepan and gradually whisk in sugar. Add eggs on at a time, whisking after each addition until thoroughly combined. Whisk in vanilla. Add flour mixture in three additions, folding with rubber spatula until batter is completely smooth and homogeneous. Fold in chocolate chips.
4. Transfer batter to prepared pan; using spatula, spread batter into corners of pan and smooth surface. Bake until toothpick or wooden skewer inserted into center of brownies comes out with few moist crumbs attached, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool on wire rack to room temperature, about 2 hours, then remove brownies from pan by lifting foil overhang. Cut brownies into 2-inch squares and serve.
