Fudge Brownies

I've been on the search for a homemade brownie recipe that's as good as the one you get from the box. You know the kind - chewy, chocolaty, the perfect dessert to top with a scoop of ice cream. Finally, success!

The secret ingredient in these brownies is espresso powder. Apparently this ingredient is hard to find and can be expensive. So rather than shell out the big bucks for it I just purchased some instant espresso in the international foods aisle at Wegmans. It worked fine and was about half the price.

These brownies were a hit with Dennis and my co-workers. They all agreed that the chocolate in the brownies really came through. I asked Dennis for any additional comments and he said the consistency was perfect and also requested that I add them to the regular baking rotation. Sounds like a winner to me.

Fudge Brownies (from King Arthur Flour)

* 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

* 2 1/4 cups sugar

* 4 large eggs

* 1 1/4 cups Double-Dutch Dark Cocoa or Dutch-process cocoa

* 1 teaspoon salt

* 1 teaspoon baking powder

* 1 teaspoon espresso powder

* 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

* 1 1/2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

* 2 cups chocolate chips

Directions

1) Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9" x 13" pan

2) In a medium-sized microwave-safe bowl, or in a saucepan set over low heat, melt the butter, then add the sugar and stir to combine. Return the mixture to the heat (or microwave) briefly, just until it's hot (about 110°F to 120°F), but not bubbling; it'll become shiny looking as you stir it. Heating this mixture a second time will dissolve more of the sugar, which will yield a shiny top crust on your brownies.

3) While the sugar heats a second time, crack the 4 eggs into a bowl, and beat them with the cocoa, salt, baking powder, espresso powder, and vanilla till smooth.

4) Add the hot butter/sugar mixture, stirring until smooth.

5) Add the flour and chips, again stirring until smooth. Note: If you want the chips to remain intact in the baked brownies, rather than melting in, let the batter cool in the bowl for about 20 minutes before stirring in the chips.

6) Spoon the batter into a lightly greased 9" x 13" pan.

7) Bake the brownies for about 30 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, or with just a few moist crumbs clinging to it. The brownies should feel set on the edges, and the center should look very moist, but not uncooked. Remove them from the oven and cool on a rack before cutting and serving.