Cooking Adventures is a series

where I (as a very inexperienced maker of food) try my hand in the kitchen and share my results with you.

PROLOGUE.

After making salty cookies for the SECOND TIME, I decided to stay away from baking for a while. But then I saw this video: The Science Behind the Perfect Brownie. And of course, I clicked on it and watched as Mr. Thomas Joseph made baking a delicious brownie look SO EASY. I couldn’t help it. I wanted to attempt it myself.

And so, the adventure begins.

CHAPTER ONE.
Ingredients

As I listened to the video, I jotted down the ingredients he mentioned for the fudgy brownie. Hopefully my ears didn’t let me down.

• 6 ounces bittersweet (I used semi-sweet) chocolate
• a stick of unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cups granulated/brown sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder (not necessary)
• a little bit of salt
• 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp. of all-purpose flour

Also, I doubled this recipe.

CHAPTER TWO.
The Process

Put a bowl on a pot (that has water in it) on the stove (that is on). Dump the chocolate and butter into the bowl, and let them melt together.

I started out with a plasticky bowl, but my dad said it would get ruined so switched for a metal one. The bowl was small enough that the bottom touched the water. He said that was the only way the chocolate would melt. I countered with the suggestion that maybe the heated air melted it. He gave me a very dubious look, and the discussion ended.

I put on an oven mitt and stirred the chocolate with a spatula. When water started splashing out, I turned the heat down (guess who told me to do that?), and after the water calmed down, I turned the heat back up.

Take the bowl off and wipe away any condensation. Pour and whisk in the sugar at the same time. 

Because the chocolate and butter are still hot, the sugar dissolves into it. After I added all my sugar in, the mixture was very granulated, and I got a little nervous. But don’t worry, the eggs in the next step turn the batter liquidy again.

Add in the eggs on at a time. 

Use a rubber spatula to fold in the flour. Make sure to scrape the sides.

This is where I had to change bowls because the smaller bowl was on the brink of overflowing.

Add in the cocoa powder and salt (and nuts and whatever extra stuff you want to.)

I want to comment that the batter was so thick and smooth. It was absolutely BEAUTIFUL.

Bake the brownies at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes.

The guy used this sort of deeper dish to bake his brownies and lined it with parchment paper, but I used a regular baking try and spread grapeseed oil on the bottom.

CHAPTER THREE.
Taste Test

I brought the brownies to the potluck we had at church that night and LOOK PEOPLE ATE THEM.  The texture was perfectly fudgy. The brownies tasted delicious. I am totally going to use this recipe again, but next time, I’m not going to use semi-sweet chocolate chips because the brownies weren’t chocolatey enough for me.

EPILOGUE

This adventure was a huge success. LET’S GO.

P.S.

Are you Team Fudgy Brownie or Team Cakey Brownie? Also EXCITING NEWS: my hold on My Heart and Other Black Holes arrived at the library yesterday! It’s Beyond the Surface Book Club’s (which you should totally join) pick for August. Super pumped about that. I’m three(?) pages in, and I have a GOOD FEELING ABOUT THIS BOOK.