Sinful Chocolate Espresso Brownies

The recipe for this brownie is one of the most famous recipes online. And I must say these brownies are one  of the richest chocolate brownies I have tasted.  It is absolutely sinful. This was part of the baked goodies that I made for my niece and nephew. The photograph has been taken in a hurry as it was around 2 at night and I had an early morning flight to catch. I was too tired to do any lighting or plating and I just clicked them as I didn't want to miss putting the recipe of this delicious,brownie on the blog. This recipe is a keeper and I am surely going to make them again.

One of the mistakes I did while making these was not using the correct size pan. I had initially thought to bake them in 2 batches as I have only one square pan which is smaller than the 9*13 inch pan mentioned in the original recipe . To save time, I discarded the idea of doing 2 batches and poured the entire batter in my smaller pan. I didn't mind having them twice the original size. But what I didn't anticipate was that the baking time would almost be the same if  I had done them in 2 batches. And even after the increased baking time , some portion at the centre was still goey. I finally had to give up trying to get the centre ones baked as I was afraid I wouldn't get up on time if I spent more time on baking, There was hardly 3 hours left for sleeping.
Anyways, as long as it ends well, all the agony that one goes through to reach it, is forgotten. Everyone absolutely loved these brownies. And I learned a new lesson in baking that "Size does matter" :-D


Here is the recipe from Brown Eyed Baker.

Ingredients
[24 brownies]

1 & 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp dark unsweetened cocoa powder
1& 1/3 cup (11 ounces) dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 cup (8 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 tsp instant espresso powder
1& 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
5 eggs, at room temperature
2 tsp vanilla extract


Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 350F/176C . Butter the sides and bottom of a 9×13-inch glass or light-colored baking pan and line with parchment paper.Let the parchment paper overhang so that it is easy to pull the brownies when baked.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, salt, and cocoa powder together.Keep aside
3. Put the chocolate, butter and instant espresso powder in a large bowl and set it over a saucepan of simmering water, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate and butter are completely melted and smooth. Turn off the heat, but keep the bowl over the water and add the sugars. Whisk until completely combined, then remove the bowl from the pan.
4. When the chocolate mixture comes to room temperature, Add 3 eggs to it and whisk until combined. Add the remaining 2 eggs and whisk until combined. Add and mix the vanilla . Do not overbeat the batter at this stage or your brownies will be cake-like.
5. Add the flour mixture over the chocolate mixture. Using a rubber spatula (not a whisk), fold the flour mixture into the chocolate until just a bit of the flour mixture is visible.
6. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 30 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center of the brownies comes out with a few moist crumbs sticking to it. Increase the baking time if center is not done
7. Let the brownies cool completely, then lift them out of the pan using the parchment paper. Cut into squares and serve.

Peanut Butter Nutella Cookies

I always crib that since I do most of my cooking/baking at night, after my office hours, I can't click their photographs in natural light. That's why I love baking cookies. We don't have to click them as soon as they are made. And I can pester my husband to click some photos before he leaves for the office next morning.   Photography is something I don't enjoy yet. I hope ,I start it soon, because it is so necessary for a food blog.

These cookies  and the Crunchy Sesame Seeds cookies were made for my nephew and niece who are visiting my mom in Delhi for their summer vacation. They and the family loved it so much that in two days all the cookie jars are empty. This one was yet again a crumbly cookie. I didn't like them as much as my family did. Seems, I have to take a break from crumbly cookies to enjoy them again.

Here is the recipe from Sweetest Kitchen
Ingredients
30 Cookies
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup Crunchy peanut butter
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup Nutella

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350 F/ 175C
2. Combine butter, peanut butter, sugars, egg, and vanilla. Mix them together very well.
3. Add flour, baking soda and salt. Drizzle Nutella on top of the dough then swirl it through the dough with a knife. 
4. Chill the dough for 15 minutes. 
5. Roll into balls by hand. Place them on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. 
6. Press down the balls with a fork to create a crisscross pattern.
7. Bake until edges are very lightly browned about 10 -12 minutes.

Linking It to Priya's and Aipi's Bookmarked event.

Crunchy Sesame Seeds Cookies

These cookies are super awesome. If you love sesame seeds, then this is a must try.  I have had enough of making chewy and crumbly cookie. This time I specifically searched for crunchy cookies recipes and among many recipes I was immediately attracted to these. Sesame seeds sweets in various forms is very common in India. So,I knew I was going to like this anyway. I was so happy that it turned out so good. This recipe is definitely a keeper, something you can make and send to your friends and family.  

Here is the recipe from SimplyRecipes

 Ingredients

1 cup sesame seeds, toasted

1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar

4 tbsp. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/4 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. fresh-squeezed lemon juice

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Preparation

1.     Preheat oven to 325 F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

2.    Toast the sesame seeds in a heavy skillet over medium heat until they are almost golden brown. Don’t over brown them because that would give it a bitter taste.  I kept tasting them as soon as they started browning to check for bitterness.

3.    Beat the brown sugar and butter together in a bowl for several minutes until fluffy. Beat in the egg.

4.    Whisk together the flour, salt, and baking powder, then add these dry ingredients to the butter, sugar, egg mixture, mix well. Stir in the toasted sesame seeds, vanilla extract, and lemon juice.

5.    (Optional): Chill the dough for 30 minutes in the refrigerator. This makes it easier to drop the cookies on the sheets. I did both with and without chilling. Felt it spread more without chilling.

6.    Drop half tablespoon of dough onto prepared cookie sheets. Leave 2 inches space between each drop as these cookies spread a lot.

7.    Bake for approximately 15 minutes, or until the edges are slightly brown. Let it cool on the cookie sheet for 2 minutes and then transfer to a rack to continue cooling.

8.    Makes around 30 cookies.