DOUBLE-FROSTED BROWNIES

Very rich brownies with double frosting

This recipe is for people who like intense chocolate flavor. The result is a brownie with a fondant frosting, covered with unsweetened chocolate. They are vey rich, with an intersting combination of textures. This recipe is not for beginners.

Ingredients

(1 dozen)

Batter

60 g unsweetened chocolate (2 squares)
120 g butter
2 eggs (large)
200 g sugar
5 ml vanilla extract
50 g flour
1 ml salt
60 g chopped nuts (walnuts are traditional)

First

frosting

300 g sugar
80 g butter
12 cl half-and-half (also called light cream)
5 ml vanilla extract

Second

frosting

90 g unsweetened chocolate (3 squares)

Procedure

Pre-heat oven to 175C
Melt 60 g of chocolate and the butter in a heavy saucepan, then let it cool. Be careful not to let the chocolate burn.
Beat the eggs in a large bowl until they are blended. Add 200 g of sugar and mix well.
Stir in chocolate-and-butter mixture. Mix until the chocolate is fully incorporated, with no streakyness. Add the vanilla, flour, salt, and nuts. Stir just until the flour is incorporated; overstirring will make a tough brownie.
Spread the mixture in a greased 30\(17 cm pan that is 4 cm deep. Bake in pre-heated oven for 20 to 25 minutes.
Cool in the pan on a rack. While it is cooling, follow these instructions to make the first frosting:
Mix 300 g sugar, 80 g butter, and 12 cl of half-and-half in a heavy, medium-size saucepan.
Bring to a boil, then cook over moderate heat

without stirring until a small amount of the mixture forms a soft ball when dropped in ice water, or it reaches 113C on a candy thermometer.

Remove from heat immediately and cool in a pan of ice-water until the candy is lukewarm. DANGER: melted sugar cools very slowly. You can burn yourself badly by testing it with your finger.

Add 5 ml vanilla extract to the candy. Beat it until it is creamy and of a spreading consistency. This is most easily done with an electric mixer, although you can use a heavy wire whip.

Spread the frosting over the brownies.

Melt the remaining 90 g chocolate, and spread over the frosting just put on the brownies. Cover as evenly as possible.

Cool for several hours in a refrigerator, then bring to room temperature and cut into pieces to serve.

Notes

Be very careful when melting chocolate. It burns easily. A double boiler is probably the best way thing to use.

It is critical to cook the first frosting to just the right point. If cooked too little, it will be too thin to beat to a creamy consistency. If cooked too much, it will be too brittle. So keep a close eye on it; sugar tends to cook slowly to the soft-ball stage, then it cooks quickly.

Rating

Difficulty: difficult.
Time: a few hours preparation, several hours chilling and then warming
Precision: measure ingredients carefully.

Contributor

 
Jeff Lichtman 
Relational Technology, Inc., Alameda, California, USA 
{amdahl,sun}!rtech!jeff {ucbvax,decvax}!mtxinu!rtech!jeff

Recipe last modified: 6 Feb 87

Original header

Path: decwrl!recipes
From: jeff@rtech.uucp (Jeff Lichtman)
Newsgroups: mod.recipes
Subject: RECIPE: Double-frosted brownies
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Date: 20 Mar 87 05:28:52 GMT
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Organization: Relational Technology, Alameda, California, USA
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