Mother's Recipes

Lovey’s Fudge Brownies

Ingredients
  

  • ½ cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces, plus more for greasing the pan (1 stick)
  • 4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 2 large eggs
  • ½ cup all-purpose flour
  • ½ cup chopped, partially toasted pecans or walnuts In the food biz, I learn something new every day.  One thing I learned late in my career was that sometimes it’s a good idea to roast nuts before using in a recipe, especially when baking something that’s going to bake just a short time or when they’re being added to a wet batter (like New Orleans Bread pudding). The roasting not only brings out their natural oils and flavors, but it also helps keep them crispy. To pre-roast nuts: Preheat oven to 350 °F.  Place nuts on a baking sheet and roast in the preheated oven for 5 to 10 minutes or until roasted slightly.  Remove from oven and let cool. Generally, the longer the item will bake, the less time you should toast the nuts to keep them from burning in the finished product. I would toast nuts for 10 minutes in a baked good that will cook for 15 minutes or less, but only 5 minutes in a baked good that will be in the oven for 15 to 30 minutes. Any longer than that and I wouldn’t toast the nuts first at all.

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter an 8-inch square baking pan and line the bottom with parchment paper, allowing the paper to hang over the edge of the pan by 2-inches (this will help you get the brownies out of the pan). Butter the bottom of the paper.
  • Fill a medium saucepan with a few inches of water. Set over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low so the water is barely simmering.
  • Place the ½ cup butter and chopped chocolate in a double boiler or small metal bowl that fits over the saucepan. Set over the barely simmering water and heat,stirring occasionally, just until melted. Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly.
  • Place the sugar, salt, vanilla and eggs in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat at medium-high speed until combined, about 30 seconds. (Alternatively, you can whisk them together by hand until well combined.)
  • Turn the mixer off and add the melted chocolate mixture (or add it while whisking by hand); and continue mixing until well combined. Add the flour and mix just until incorporated.
  • Stir in the nuts (if using) and pour the batter into the prepared baking pan,spreading evenly with a spatula. Bake for about 25 to 30 minutes, or until the edges are puffed, the top is crackled and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean (with a few wet crumbs clinging to it but no streaks of batter). If it’s not done, continue to bake, checking the brownies every five minutes for doneness.
  • Remove pan from the oven and set on a wire rack. Let brownies cool completely in the pan. Grasp the ends of the parchment paper and lift the brownies out. Cut into thirds lengthwise and crosswise to make 9 roughly 3-inch squares. Serve alone or with ice cream.

Notes

Variation: Cream cheese brownies

Swirl sweetened cream cheese into the brownies for an extra decadent treat.
  • 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 large egg
 
  1. In an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk together cream cheese and sugar until fluffy, about 2 minutes.
  2. Add vanilla and egg and whisk together until very smooth.
 
Pour half the brownie batter into the prepared pan, spreading evenly with a spatula.  Drop half the cream cheese mixture over the batter in large dollops. Pour over the remaining brownie batter, spreading evenly, and then drop the remaining cream cheese mixture on top. Run a knife back and forth across the pan to swirl the mixtures together. Bake and cool according to the directions above.