Jun
2012
From the Book: Baked, New Frontiers in Baking Brownie
You might have heard of them, Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito — the genius guys behind the book Baked, New Frontiers in Baking and the bakers, as well as owners of Baked in New York City.
I love the book simply because it’s simple to follow and the guys wrote it themselves, based it on their own experiences PLUS it offers a lot of practical baking ideas. I love it, period.
One recipe there caught my attention: The Baked Brownie. — It got a thumbs up from Oprah and America’s Test Kitchens so there must be something special about it. I know that there’s no way I’d get my hands on them so I have to bake it myself.
I came up with these: not too thin or too thick brownies, dense and not too sweet. Perhaps this is the best brownie for me.
The Baked Brownie
Yield: 24 brownies
Prep Time: 30 minutes | Bake Time : 30 minutes
1¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons dark unsweetened cocoa powder
11 ounces dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 cup (8 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
1½ cups granulated sugar
½ cup packed light brown sugar
5 eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the sides and bottom of a 9×13-inch glass or light-colored baking pan. Line the pan with parchment paper.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, salt, and cocoa powder together.
3. Put the chocolate, butter and instant espresso powder in a large bowl and set it over a saucepan of simmering water, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate and butter are completely melted and smooth. Turn off the heat, but keep the bowl over the water and add the sugars. Whisk until completely combined, then remove the bowl from the pan. The mixture should be room temperature.
4. Add 3 eggs to the chocolate mixture and whisk until combined. Add the remaining eggs and whisk until combined. Add the vanilla and stir until combined. Do not overbeat the batter at this stage or your brownies will be cakey.
5. Sprinkle the flour mixture over the chocolate mixture. Using a rubber spatula (not a whisk), fold the flour mixture into the chocolate until just a bit of the flour mixture is visible.
6. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake in the center of the oven for 30 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking time, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the brownies comes out with a few moist crumbs sticking to it. Let the brownies cool completely, then lift them out of the pan using the parchment paper. Cut into squares and serve.
7. Store at room temperature in an airtight container or wrap with plastic wrap for up to 3 days.
(Recipe adapted from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking)
It’s not cakey, it’s dense, very perfect with your cup of milk.
And since I mentioned about their easy-to-follow recipes, I will try to bake them and post more about them here.
Kain tayo!
