Brownies

My friends and I had a little shindig at the Bishop Museum tonight to view the lunar eclipse. In honor of this special event, I made my favorite brownies, by none other than the queen herself, Alice Medrich. To match the theme, I cut my brownies into little full moons! =P A friend of mine suggested that I should use powdered sugar to show what the eclipse would look like, I will have to try that next time. These brownies are by far my favorite brownies. They're so easy to make and it takes no time at all. They have a nice crisp top and a sturdy bottom, but the middle is wonderfully gooey!! mmmmmm..delish!!!

Brownies
from Cookies and Brownies by Alice Medrich

8 tbsp unsalted butter (1/2 cup)
4 oz unsweetened chocolate
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup all purpose flour
2/3 cup walnuts or pecans (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 400F and line and 8-inch square metal baking pan with foil.

2. Melt the butter and the chocolate together, on top of a double boiler or in the microwave, stirring often until smooth. Stir in sugar, vanilla and salt. Add eggs one at a time, followed by flour. Stir until very smooth, about 1 minute. Add nuts, if using.

3. Scrape batter into prepared pan and bake at 400F for 20 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, prepare a water bath. Fill a large roasting pan with water and ice about 1 inch deep.

5. When the brownies are done - and they will look a bit dry on top - take them immediately from the oven and place in the water bath. Add more ice to the water if necessary. Allow to cool completely in the bath before removing the pan and cutting the brownies.

Note:

• I didn't have any unsweetened chocolate, so I used semisweet chocolate and reduced the sugar to 1 cup.