How many times have we had a sudden craving for gooey yummy chocolate brownies, but then realized to our agony that there is no way we could possibly satisfy our craving? Well, I don’t know about you, but I, for one, have definitely encountered this situation a number of times. In fact it was one of these miserable occasions which prompted me to learn the art of baking my favourite dessert, i.e. the gooey chocolate brownie. Today, I am going to share that knowledge with all of you, so that you can satisfy your cravings ‘whenever’ you want.
So here’s what you’ll need:
1. 75 gms of butter
2. 75-100 gms of dark chocolate (chopped into small piece)
3. 1 and a half cups of castor sugar
4. Four eggs
5. 1 and a half cups of flour
6. 1/2 to 3/4 cups of cocoa powder
7. 1 tsp of baking powder
8. 2 tsp of vanilla essence/extract
And here’s how you bake it:
1. First, set the oven temperature to 180 degrees Celsius, and run it empty for 30 minutes. This process is known as preheating.
2. Then, place the butter and chocolate in a microwave safe bowl, and melt it at a low temperature, preferably 600 degrees. Be careful, since chocolate is known to burn in a jiffy, so run it for 30 seconds, get it out, stir it and then run it again for 30 seconds till it has all melted, then stir it and mix well.
3. Pour all of the sugar into the butter chocolate mixture and stir it well using the folding technique (if you don’t know what folding is try searching on YouTube- it's vital for baking).
4. Then add the eggs one at a time, and stir well after adding each egg. Here again, using the folding technique and DO NOT use a whisk.
5. Next, sieve in 1 cup flour and mix it well.
6. Then mix the remaining flour and cocoa powder together and sieve it into the mixture, stir well till there are no lumps.
7. Next add the vanilla essence and mix well.
8. Lastly, add the baking powder and mix.
9. Then, pour the batter into a rectangular baking tray, and bake it in the preheated oven for exactly 28 minutes. Once done, piece the centre of the brownie with a fork. Ideally, the fork should be damp and should have a few crumbs on it.
10. Then cut it into rows and columns and abra kadabra, your brownie is ready!
Oh, and here are a few tips:
1. If, even after adding the baking powder and vanilla essence the batter is too dry, add very little quantities of milk till the texture is right.
2. The ideal texture is that of toothpaste (this might seem like a weird example but it’s the perfect one!).
3. If the batter is too liquidly, add some cocoa powder and powdered sugar to balance it.
4. If you’re a walnut lover, chop some walnuts and add them before adding the vanilla essence.
5. And my last piece of advice to you is TASTE the batter before baking, and use your instincts.
-SUBIN MITRA
1. 75 gms of butter
2. 75-100 gms of dark chocolate (chopped into small piece)
3. 1 and a half cups of castor sugar
4. Four eggs
5. 1 and a half cups of flour
6. 1/2 to 3/4 cups of cocoa powder
7. 1 tsp of baking powder
8. 2 tsp of vanilla essence/extract
And here’s how you bake it:
1. First, set the oven temperature to 180 degrees Celsius, and run it empty for 30 minutes. This process is known as preheating.
2. Then, place the butter and chocolate in a microwave safe bowl, and melt it at a low temperature, preferably 600 degrees. Be careful, since chocolate is known to burn in a jiffy, so run it for 30 seconds, get it out, stir it and then run it again for 30 seconds till it has all melted, then stir it and mix well.
3. Pour all of the sugar into the butter chocolate mixture and stir it well using the folding technique (if you don’t know what folding is try searching on YouTube- it's vital for baking).
4. Then add the eggs one at a time, and stir well after adding each egg. Here again, using the folding technique and DO NOT use a whisk.
5. Next, sieve in 1 cup flour and mix it well.
6. Then mix the remaining flour and cocoa powder together and sieve it into the mixture, stir well till there are no lumps.
7. Next add the vanilla essence and mix well.
8. Lastly, add the baking powder and mix.
9. Then, pour the batter into a rectangular baking tray, and bake it in the preheated oven for exactly 28 minutes. Once done, piece the centre of the brownie with a fork. Ideally, the fork should be damp and should have a few crumbs on it.
10. Then cut it into rows and columns and abra kadabra, your brownie is ready!
Oh, and here are a few tips:
1. If, even after adding the baking powder and vanilla essence the batter is too dry, add very little quantities of milk till the texture is right.
2. The ideal texture is that of toothpaste (this might seem like a weird example but it’s the perfect one!).
3. If the batter is too liquidly, add some cocoa powder and powdered sugar to balance it.
4. If you’re a walnut lover, chop some walnuts and add them before adding the vanilla essence.
5. And my last piece of advice to you is TASTE the batter before baking, and use your instincts.
-SUBIN MITRA