Ovaltine Brownies

Hi, hey, hello, hi there! Remember me? After a looooong vacation from the blog, I'm back. And with a super-duper delicious recipe. =9

Do you like brownies? Do you like Ovaltine? Oh great, than you are going to LOVE today's recipe.

Let's get to business!

~Ana.

Ovaltine Brownies

Slightly adapted from here .

125g dark chocolate, chopped

150g unsalted butter

130g brown sugar

2 eggs

125g all-purpose flour

1/8 teaspoon baking powder

2 1/2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

75g Ovaltine - the original recipe calls for Horlicks

1. Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350°F. Line a square 8in (20cm) baking pan with foil, leaving a 1in (2.5cm) overhang.

2. Melt butter and chocolate and let it cool a bit.

3. Add sugar and eggs, mixing well.

4. Sift flour, baking powder and cocoa powder over the chocolate mixture, add the Ovaltine and stir until smooth.

5. Pour over the prepared pan and bake for 30 minutes or until just set - be careful to not overbake.

6. Let it cool before cutting it - if you can resist that long. ;)

Serves 16.

Chocolate

XLIII

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.

I love thee to the depth and breadth and height

My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight

For the ends of Being and ideal Grace.

I love thee to the level of everyday's

Most quiet need, by sun and and candlelight.

I love thee freely, as men strive for Right;

I love thee purely, as they turn from Praise.

I love with a passion put to use

In my old griefs, and with my childhood's faith.

I love thee with a love I seemed to lose

With my lost saints, -I love thee with the breath,

Smiles, tears, of all my life!-and, if God choose,

I shall but love thee better after death.

-Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-1861)

Happy Valentine's Day!

-Ann

Brownie Hearts

From: www.marthastewart.com

1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, plus more for cake pan

2 1/2 cups packed light-brown sugar

6 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped

4 large eggs

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

Confectioners' sugar, granulated sugar, cocoa powder for coating bites

Direction

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter a 9-by-13 inch cake pan. Cut a piece of waxed paper to fit the bottom, and press it onto buttered surface. In a large microwave-safe bowl, combine butter, brown sugar, and chocolate. Microwave on high for 1 minute; stir. If the chocolate is not softened, continue to microwave at 10-second intervals, removing before completely melted.

2. Beat the eggs and vanilla into the melted chocolate with a wooden spoon. Beat in the flour and salt. Pour into prepared pan, and smooth the top. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out almost clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Let cool.

3. Run a knife around the edge of the pan. Turn the brownie cake out onto a baking sheet, and flip over onto a work surface. Cut out the brownies with a 2 1/2-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter. Dust with cocoa if you like. Form the scraps into 1-inch balls, and roll them in the coating of your choice.

~Makes 12 hearts

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Brigadeiro - or brazilian fudge balls - is the most popular and beloved brazilian treat. We love brigadeiro so much that we have shops dedicated only to brigadeiros! With ingredients such as condensed milk, butter and chocolate, is hard not to love these delicious, caramel-y-like treats.

The original recipe calls for chocolate powder - that one you put in the milk - but you can also use cocoa powder to make it less sweet, or you can do it like me and go for Nutella. Double yumminess!

PS.:You can wrap it up in a nice box together with Ann's scrumptious brownies and surprise your Valentine. =)

Happy Valentine's Day!

-Ana

Nutella Brigadeiro

1 can (395g) sweet condensed milk
2 tablespoons (40g) margarine
4 tablespoons Nutella
Chocolate sprinkles - about 1 cup, for decoration
Hazelnuts - about 50g, for decoration (Use 100-150g if you intend to roll them only in

1. Put the first three ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat and stir until it bubbles. Keep stiring until thickened - about 6 to 10 minutes.

2. Put in a butter-greased dish and let it stand until cool enough to handle.

3. While you wait for the brigadeiro to cool, roughly chop the hazelnuts, place them into a baking sheet and leave it for 5 min in a 190ºC oven, or until it gets some colour - keep a close eye on it because it can get burnt very fast. Let it cool completely.

4. Once the brigadeiro has cooled, grease the palm of your hands with margarine and roll a small amount of brigadeiro into a ball and coat it with the chocolate sprinkles or the chopped hazelnuts. I myself preffer the hazelnuts because it makes the Nutella flavour stand out more.

Tip: If you are too lazy or you absolutely can't wait for the brigadeiro to cool, you can put them into shot glasses and eat it with a spoon. Just cook for 2-3 minutes less in step 1 and pour into shot glasses. Be careful not to burn your mouth. ;)

Yields ~20 brigadeiros.

Okay, so two out of the last three posts we've done is a chocolate based recipe, and we wanted to change it up a bit, hence the raspberry swirl lemon cake last week. We were also planning to bake a non-chocolate recipe, but when Ana stumbled up David Lebovitz's Dulce de Leche brownie recipe we just had to make this.

Although Dulce de Leche is very common in South America, afterall it was invented in Argentina, in my (Ann's) humble opinion this sweet, caramel spread is just gaining popularity in Canada. Currently only one brand carries the spread in major grocery stores in Toronto, but for those of you who can't buy Dulce de Leche, it's totally easy to make. All you really need is a pressure cooker and a can of sweet condensed milk. Fill the pot with water and place the can of milk inside. Cover the pot and cook for 45-50 minutes. Take out the can from the pan and let it cool completely. Don't open the can while it's hot! Once its cooled down, open it and you've got yourself a can of sweet, sticky, gooey Dulce de Leche ready to spread on pancakes, maria biscuits, or to use in this delectable recipe below.

Don't have a pressure cooker or are absolutely terrified of using one? Not a problem! Remove label from sweetened condensed milk, put in a pan and cover with water. It's important that the can is throughly covered with water - 2 or 3 inches above the can. Add more water during the cooking if the level goes down. Cook for 2 and a half hours. Drain the water and let it cool completely. You can also go here and learn how to make Dulce de Leche in the oven.

Dulce de Leche Brownies

*Any changes we've made to the recipe are in italics.
8 tablespoons (115g) salted or unsalted butter, cut into pieces
6 ounces (170g) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped (Milk chocolate works just as well too)
1/4 cup (25g) unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder (We just used regular cocoa powder)
3 large eggs
1 cup (200g) sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup (140g) flour
1 cup Dulce de Leche


Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees (175 C).
Line a 8-inch (20 cm) square pan with a long sheet of aluminium foil that covers the bottom and reaches up the sides. Grease the bottom and sides of the foil with a bit of butter or non-stick spray.

Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the chocolate pieces and stir constantly over very low heat until the chocolate is melted. Remove from heat and whisk in the cocoa powder until smooth. Add in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the sugar, vanilla, and then the flour.

Scrape half of the batter into the prepared pan. Drop one-third of the Dulce de Leche, evenly over the brownie batter, then drag a knife through to swirl it slightly. Spread the remaining brownie batter over, then drip spoonfuls of the remaining Dulce de Leche in dollops over the top of the brownie batter. Use a knife to swirl the Dulce de Leche slightly.

Bake for 35 to 45 minutes. The brownies are done when the center feels just-slightly firm. Remove from the oven and cool completely. Ours took less then 35 min. Keep an eye on them after 20 minutes.

Storage: These brownies actually become better the second day, and will keep for up to 3 days.

Ann's Thoughts

I just want to declare that these are the best brownies ever. Lemme repeat that, these are the best brownies that I have ever had. You know when it comes to food there are certain combinations that work so well, that it's unimaginable how things somone can eat one item without the other, like milk and cookies, spaghetti and meatballs, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, just to name a few. This is especially true for Dulce de Leche and brownies. Lebovitz is a total genius in combining the two ingredients, these brownies are absolutely amazing.

When Ana was taking shots of the brownies, it was so hard to resist eating it, especially when the Dulce de Leche was slowly oozing out of the brownies. It's funny how in all recipes, one of the last instructions is to wait until whatever has been baked or cooked should be cooled before eating, but seriously, who waits? Ana and I are always scorching our tongues because we just have to have that piece of cake or cookie right out of the oven. So we've suffered from first or second degree burns but who cares?! Eating these baked goods are totally worth it!

Ana's Thoughts

This brownies totally represent our blog. They are so sinfully delicious. Really, they are so good that it's a sin........not to eat them. Despite the sweetness of the Dulce de Leche and the milk chocolate, this brownies weren't too sweet, and eating them right out of the oven with the Dulce de Leche still oozing and gooey is one of the best things in the world! I have one complaint, though: I thought the brownies were a little overbaked. The edges were too cake-y like for me. I prefer them more fudgy. Next time (oh yeah, you bet there will be a next time) I'll keep them a little less in the oven.

I have one piece of advice for you: Don't make them when you're alone. Make them when you have friends around (more than two, if possible), so you can share the calories with them, and you won't be tempted to eat the whole pan by yourself. Trust me, it will be hard to resist eating just one piece. ;)

See you next week!

Receita em Português:


8 colheres (sopa) de manteiga (115g)

170g de chocolate meio amargo (usamos ao leite)
1/4 xíc. de cacau em pó (25g)
3 ovos
1 xíc. açúcar (200g)
1 colher (chá) de baunilha
1 xíc. de farinha de trigo (140g)
1 xíc. de doce de leite

Modo de Preparo

Pré-aqueça o forno a 175ºC.
Forre uma forma pequena (20x20 cm) com papel alumínio e unte com manteiga.
Derreta a manteiga em uma panelinha em fogo baixo. Acrescente o chocolate e misture até derreter. Retire do fogo e acrescente o cacau em pó, misturando até ficar homogêneo. Adicione os ovos, um por vez, misturando bem após cada adição. Acresecente o açúcar, a baunilha e a farinha. Misture até incorporar tudo.

Despeje metade da massa na forma e espalhe 1/3 do doce de leite. Com a ajuda de uma faca faça movimentos de vai-e-vem para mesclar. Repita o processo com o restante da massa e doce de leite.
Leve ao forno por 35-40 minutos. Os brownies estão prontos quando o centro estiver firme, mas que, quando um palito for inserido no centro, este saia com algumas migalhas de bolo. O nosso assou em 35 minutos, então fique de olho no seu após 20 minutos. Cuidado para não assar demais.