FOOD FOR THOUGHT - OREO BROWNIES

I thought that I would spend my Friday evening by baking brownies, since baking is one of my favorite pastimes. I confess that this is not actually my brownie recipe - a week or two ago I was watching some cookery shows on television and found this recipe by Lorraine Pascale. Nevertheless, this remains one of my favourite recipes for brownies because of the gooey-ness of the finished product (although depending on how long they're baked for depends on how gooey they are to suit anyone's brownie preferences).

INGREDIENTS:
165g (5 and a half oz.) of butter
200g (7 oz.) of dark chocolate
3 eggs
2 egg yolks
165g (5 and a half oz.) of soft light brown sugar
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
2 tablespoons of plain flour
1 tablespoon of cocoa powder
A pinch of salt
1 packet of Oreo (or cookies and cream) biscuits

METHOD:
- Make sure that everything is ready before you begin making the mixture - preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius (350 degrees fahrenheit) gas mark six - make sure the middle tray of the oven is ready. Grease a baking tin (20cm squared is a good size) so that the brownies come easily out when cooked.

- Put the butter into a saucepan and heat gently so that it melts. When it has finished melting, take the pan off of the heat and add in all of the chocolate mixture - the heat of the butter will melt the chocolate.

- Whisk the eggs, egg yolks, and vanilla extract together in a large bowl. The mixture should become aerated and fluffy. Add in the sugar in two additions, making sure to pour it in around the side of the bowl so as not to knock the air out of the egg mixture. Keep whisking until the mixture becomes stiffer.

- Pour the chocolate and butter mix into the egg and sugar mixture. Again, pour the it in around the side of the bowl.

- Add in the cocoa, flour, and salt and whisk the mixture one final time. Break up the biscuits and then add between one third and a half (I personally prefer adding half) of the biscuits into the mixture. Stir until everything is fully combined.

- Pour the mixture into the prepared tin. Use the rest of the biscuits to add on top of the mixture, making sure to push some of them down so that they stick to the top of the brownies properly.

- Bake in the oven for 25 - 30 minutes, depending on how gooey you want the brownies to be - the longer you cook them, the gooier they will be. When they have cooked, leave them to cool before cutting them into brownie-sized pieces.


I cannot recommend this brownie recipe enough - it has become a firm family favorite, and for good reason. The brownies are lovely and gooey, and the crunchiness of the biscuits creates a nice contrast - but be warned! They won't last long if other people try them...

- Kate Shortt -