A Baking Article by Destiny Constantin

Every year ever since we became best friends in middle school, my friends and I would throw a dinner party after the Christmas holiday. Due to the virus, I was very nervous about being around my friends and family due to my health and low immune system. When my best friends told me they took the test, and the results were negative, I threw my hands up in the air in excitement. I haven’t seen my two best friends, who are like sisters to me, in a year. They came to visit me this past week, and I almost cried. As soon as I knew they were coming, I planned our traditional dinner party and knew I had to bake up something sweet in the kitchen. I am not sure who is the biggest chocolate lover out of the three of us, but my friends love when I make brownies.

This week, I would like to share my new brownie recipe with milk and dark chocolate. They are fudgy and crunchy around the edges and taste like a molten lava cake, so if you love chocolate, you will love this brownie recipe. The following recipe makes a 6×9 size pan of brownies.

Triple Chocolate  Brownies

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of Pillsbury Flour
• 1 package of Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Baking Bar
• 2/3 cup Hershey’s cocoa powder
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp of kosher salt
• 2 sticks of salted butter, softened, plus 3 tablespoons
• 2 cups of cane sugar
• 4 large eggs, at room temperature
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• ¼ Starbucks cold brew coffee

Instructions For Making The Brownie Batter

• Gather all of your ingredients and begin measuring out all of your dry ingredients.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powders, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whip together the butter, eggs, and cane sugar. Mix until well-combined. Then, add the vanilla extract. Mix until all the ingredients are together, and scrape the bowl’s sides if necessary to make sure everything has been incorporated.
• In a liquid measuring cup, stir together the coffee and heavy cream.
• Piece up the chocolate bar into a microwave-safe bowl along with the three tablespoons of butter. Melt the chocolate in increments of twenty seconds, stirring after each time. Once the chocolate is completely melted, add in the coffee and heavy cream from the liquid measuring cup.

• Add the dry ingredients, ½ cup at a time, then stir the batter thoroughly until the flour mixture is all gone. While the flour is being incorporated, pour in the chocolate mixture while the mixer is low.

• Pre-Heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Spray your pan with baking or cooking spray, then align with parchment paper.
• Using a spatula or spoon, pour your brownie batter into the baking dish. Spread batter evenly using an off-set spatula.
• Bake brownies for 30 to 45 minutes. (I over-filled my baking dish, so my brownies took forty-five minutes to bake.)
• Once brownies are cool, carefully cut out individual pieces or use a heart-shaped cookie cutter to make heart-shaped brownies.  
• To decorate brownies, you can use red and pink candy melts to drizzle chocolate over the brownies, then add sprinkles, or you can make a simple buttercream frosting.
• Let the decorations on the brownies dry for an hour or two before eating them.

I hope you enjoy making this recipe as much as I had fun making it. I love taking recipes from one of my favorite bloggers or food network stars and giving them my own magical twist. Get yourself ready for tv time with the family. Put on your cozy pajamas, grab a brownie or two, and a glass of milk. Sit in your favorite chair or place on the sofa and put on a romantic-comedy movie. Enjoy your sweet treat, and I hope you all have a wonderful holiday with your loved ones.

Happy Valentine’s Day, Everyone!

Featured Image by Dana Tentis from Pixabay.