Cakewalk - 6/4

Dominique Haller

Recipe for Kate Moses' Chewy Fudge Brownies:

1½ cups walnut halves
1½ cups unsalted butter
9 ounces unsweetened chocolate
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon salt
2¾ cups granulated sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
1½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour

• Preheat the oven to 350º. Butter a 13-by-9-inch baking pan. Toast the walnuts on a baking sheet for 8 to 10 minutes, watching carefully and removing from the oven once they start to smell nutty and are lightly browned. Let cool.
• Meanwhile melt the butter over a low heat in a medium-sized saucepan, then remove from heat. Add the chocolate, broken into pieces, and cover the pan for 5 to 10 minutes, until the chocolate is melted. In a mixing bowl, whisk the eggs, salt, sugar and vanilla until beginning to get a little thick, creamy and lightened in color. Whisk the butter and chocolate until smooth, then add to the sugar-egg mixture, mixing just until well combined. Add the flour and fold in with a spatula, using as few strokes as possible just until the flour disappears. Fold in the walnuts and turn into the prepared pan.
• Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, checking after 22 or 23 minutes: You do not want to overbake these brownies! The brownies will be ready to take out of the oven when the tip of a knife inserted in the center has moist crumbs attached (not liquid, but moist). When done, remove from the oven and let cool undisturbed in the pan for several hours or overnight before cutting into squares.
• Makes 24 generous-sized brownies.
  

Enjoy! And let us know how they tasted by leaving comments below.