The Town Tart

Brownie Pudding, yeah, that's what I said.

 

I love the Barefoot Contessa.  I know have declared my love for her before, and I am hardly alone in this... but how is it that every recipe she writes delivers both in ease and great taste.  She's like a magician.

In my continued exploration of how many different ways can I use my Black Onyx Cocoa Powder, I enlisted Ina's help and used a recipe for her new book, Back to Basics, called Brownie Pudding.  Seriously, who could pass up a recipe called Brownie Pudding?

This is so easy -- seven ingredients total.  And it's so good... it's got that crispy top layer and then underneath is like molten lava cake.  Okay, so maybe my black cocoa powder makes it a tad off-putting... Mother thought it was refried beans... sigh... 

Brownie Pudding
Adapted from Barefoot Contessa: Back To Basics by Ina Garten

1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, plus extra for buttering the dish
4 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
Seeds scraped from 1 vanilla bean
1 tablespoon framboise liqueur (optional -- I used Kahlua instead)
Vanilla ice cream, for serving

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Lightly butter a 2-quart (9 x 12 x 2-inch) oval baking dish. Melt the butter and set aside to cool.

Beat eggs and sugar with an electric mixer on medium-high speed for 5 to 10 minutes, until very thick and light yellow. Meanwhile, sift the cocoa powder and flour into a seperate bowl and set aside.

Once the eggs and sugar are ready, turn the mixer to low speed and then add the vanilla bean seeds, the liqueur, and the cocoa powder/flour mixture. Mix just until combined. With the mixer still on low, slowly pour in the cooled butter and mix again just until combined.

Pour the mixture into the prepared dish and place it in a larger baking pan. Add hot water to the larger pan to come halfway up the side of the baking dish and bake for 1 hour. The center will appear very under-baked; this dessert is between a brownie and a pudding. -- Mine actually didn't appear under-baked... I may have cooked to long or maybe my dish was a little to big... whatever... I don't think it hurt it any.

Allow to cool and serve with vanilla ice cream.  Uh... well, we didn't really allow it to cool and we didn't have any ice cream... we ate it hot and as-is... it couldn't be helped.

Chocolate Bouchons -- a semi-success

 

Above is my second try at these blasted little "bouchons." 

So, I'm at Williams-Sonoma and as usually happens I get all caught up in the atmosphere and start to swoon.  And then someone shoves a chocolate bouchon sample at me and the next thing I know, I am buying a $30 silicone mold.  Sheesh.  I have no self-control.  I won't go into the other purchases, but Mother had to break the news to The Mayor to help me confess...  okay, I spent $139 on a 5-piece set of pewter flatware... there, I said it.

So, you saw my first attempt which was a disaster.  Above, as I said, is my second attempt.

Here is what they are supposed to look like:

 

Ha!  Mine are a little... shall we say... flaccid.  But, I will say, they taste pretty damn good.  They are like a cross between a brownie and molten lava cake without the molten part.

I really like them but I wish I could get the presentation a little more, well, presentable.  I guess I can keep practicing as long as I have The Mayor and friends who are willing to keep eating!  Liana, Robyn -- are you game?

Chocolate Bouchons
Adapted from a Williams-Sonoma recipe

Butter and cocoa powder for molds
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, broken into pieces
1/3 cup flour
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Powdered sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter bouchon molds and dust with cocoa powder, tapping out excess cocoa. Set bouchon baking mold on a baking sheet.

In a heatproof bowl, melt butter and chocolate in a microwave oven, about 1 minute, stirring once. Remove bowl from oven and cool about 10 minutes.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt.

In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, egg and vanilla extract until well-combined. Add chocolate-butter mixture and whisk until incorporated. Whisk in flour mixture until just combined.

Scoop 1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon of batter into well of each mold, filling about two-thirds full. Transfer mold, still on baking sheet, to oven and bake until tops of chocolate bouchons are shiny and a toothpick inserted into center comes out with a few crumbs attached, 20 to 22 minutes.

Remove from oven and carefully transfer mold to a wire rack and let cool for 15 minutes. Carefully invert mold to remove chocolate corks and turn them right-side up on rack. Let cool on rack for at least 30 minutes before serving. Dust with powdered sugar and serve warm or at room temperature.

Alert! Kitchen Disaster! Chocolate Overboard!

 

This was not a success.

They were supposed to be lovely "cork" shaped things.

Uh... they didn't work.

But, they still tasted good! ;)

If it's February, it must be time for Chocolate!

Yes, it's Super Bowl Sunday -- but thankfully, I am not a Football Widow.  I am blessed to have married a man who doesn't give a damn about sports at all... .  So, instead of a facing a day full of 30 different chilis, french onion dips, bottled beer, and pretending to be interested in fumbles and touchdowns, my day today consists of getting my toes done in the morning with Mother and then meeting up with The Mayor for dinner anywhere we want because the restaurants are blissfully empty.  And of course, the day will have chocolate.

It's February 1st, and that means Chocolate Season has begun, even though in our house it's a year-round open season.  And I am still fascinated by the Black Onyx Cocoa Powder I bought a few weeks ago.  So, to commemorate the opening day, I made Chocolate Biscotti.  Granted, it's not the most chocolatey thing I could have made, but you know, I'm just pacing myself.  Besides, when you read the ingredient list, you'll see, this cookie is chock full of chocolate.

The Mayor is eating one now and wishes me to inform you that the macadamia nut is the perfect nut for these, because they are soft, rather than hard like an almond... I agree.  I also used ones that were lightly salted, and even though most recipes calls for unsalted, I think that little bit of salt contrasted with the sweet is really good... but that's a personal preference.

Chocolate Biscotti with White Chocolate and Macadamia Nuts

3/4 cups (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
6 ounces dark chocolate, chopped (I used Valrhona Caraibe 66%, but I am lucky lucky to have fancy gourmet stores like Surfas to shop at... use whatever you can find)
2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup Kahlua
2 teaspoons coffee or espresso
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 1/2 ounces white chocolate chips
1 cup coarsely chopped macadamia nuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line to baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Turn off the heat and dump in the dark chocolate. Let it sit for a minute or two and then stir until melted and well combined. Set aside to cool.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. In another small bowl, combine the Kahlua, the coffee, and the vanilla.

With an electric mixer, beat the eggs on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add the sugar in three 1/2 cup amounts, waiting 30 seconds between each addition. Beat for another minute or so. Reduce the speed to medium low and add the Kahlua mixture and the chocolate mixture, scraping down the sides of the mixing bowl as needed.

On low speed, add the dry ingredients in 2 additions, and mix until just combined. Fold in the white chocolate chips and the macadamia nuts using a rubber spatula. Let the batter stand 10 minutes.

Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees. Carefully move the logs, one a time, to a cutting board and using a serrated knife, carefully slice into 1-inch slices. Lay the slices on their sides and put back into the oven for 12 minutes. Turn the slices over and toast for 8 minutes longer. Allow to cool on pans and they will firm up as they cool.