01.08.2012 Ad Hoc Brownies and a Valentine's Day Idea

I love brownies. They are one of the few desserts I genuinely feel compelled to eat after the usual taste test when in my house. I hate them for that. But like I said, I love them. Brownies and I have a love/hate relationship. In my opinion, these are the perfect brownie. They are dense and fudgy, not a chewy brownie. If I'm gonna gave and eat a sweet, I want to go all out and enjoy every rich bite possible. These brownies are the perfect treat if you have a sweet tooth like mine.

Also, you are probably going to find that many of my posts from now until Valentine's Day are going to have a Valentine's Day, romantic, richness sort of vibe. 

Ad Hoc Brownies

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup unsweetened alkalized cocoa powder

1 tsp kosher salt

3 sticks unsalted butter, cut into 1 tbsp chunks

3 large eggs

1 3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla paste or extract

6 oz. 61-64% chocolate, chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)

powdered sugar for dusting

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a 9″ square pan.
2. Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, and salt.
3. In a large bowl, place half the amount of cubed butter. In a saucepan, melt the remaining half of the butter over medium heat, stirring. Pour the melted butter over the cubed butter, and stir to combine. The butter should look creamy, with bits of unmelted butter still present.
4. In a mixing bowl, beat the eggs and sugar on medium speed for three minutes, until light and doubled in volume. Add the vanilla. On low speed, alternate adding the flour and the butter in several additions. Stir in the chopped chcocolate.
5. Pour the batter into pan, and bake for 40-45 minutes. (Note: My brownies were around the 25 minute mark.)
6. Use  heart shaped cookie cutter, if going for the Valentine's Day theme like I did. 
7. Cool and dust with powdered sugar before serving.

I will admit, the heart cut outs are a bit of a waste of brownie and sort of a pain in the ass. I love the idea, but unless you have a future trifle planned or plan to use the crumbs in ice cream, a good amount of brownie isn't going to look so pretty. I took the lazy route and put it in a bowl, added some hot fudge, and a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Simple and too the point. Sooo good. Plus, no waste for me!

Let me know what you think! I'd really appreciate any feedback.