SRC: Butterscotch Brownies

Welcome to July's Secret Recipe Club Group D Reveal day! I love the Secret Recipe Club and look forward to reveal day every month. The concept is simple - each blog is assigned another blog in secret and the idea is that you choose a recipe to make from your secret blog and reveal it on the same day. It's a great way to discover new blogs and exciting recipes. 

This month, my assignment is Bewitching Kitchen written by Sally. She was born and raised in Brazil but now resides in Manhattan working as a biochemist. Her approach to cooking reflects the timeless advice of Julia Child, using a famous quote by Harvey Steiman: “Everything in moderation, including moderation…”

She writes a beautiful blog full of lovely recipes and tales from her life. I strongly encourage you to visit her blog and to see for yourself. There's certainly never a dull moment in the Bewitching Kitchen!

As always, it was difficult to pick just one recipe to make but my eyes were immediately drawn to these Butterscotch Brownies. I love brownies and the simplicity of this recipe appealed to me. I've never made a brownie recipe with only 1 egg or less than a block of butter! As Sally mentions on her blog, the recipe only makes a very small batch so I ended up using my loaf tin instead of my square tin. The brownies were deliciously fudgey and gooey as a brownie should be. You can clearly taste the walnuts and chocolate especially since I put more than the suggested amount in! 

Other recipes that I've bookmarked to try are Chocolate Bread, Lemon Shortbread Bars, Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies, and Tuxedo Cake. 

 butterscotch base - melted butter and brown sugar 

 adding the nuts and chocolate chunks

 ready to go in the oven 

 packed full of walnuts and chocolate chunks! 

Recipe adapted slightly from Bewitching Kitchen

75g flour
1 tsp baking powder
65g unsalted butter
180g brown sugar
1 large egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
100g chopped walnuts (OR omit the walnuts, and double the choc chips amount)
100g chocolate chips

(I would recommend 50g walnuts + 50g chocolate chips)

• Preheat the oven to 175C.
• Grease and line a small loaf tin.
• Melt the butter and then stir in the brown sugar. 
• Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix well.
• Stir in the flour followed by the walnuts and chocolate chunks. 
• Pour the batter into the loaf tin and bake for about 20-25 minutes or until the top is set and the middle is still slightly wobbly.
• Allow to cool completely before slicing. 

An InLinkz Link-up

Flourless Chocolate and Raspberry Brownies

I was looking for something quick and simple to bake one evening with J. I had limited baking equipment and supplies so I decided on a brownie which does not require any fancy equipment. I used a BBC Good Food recipe as the title said 'Best ever chocolate raspberry brownies' They were indeed amazing and it was so good I felt I had to make it again. 

This month's We Should Cocoa challenge hosted by Michelle from Utterly Scrummy Food for Families has the theme gluten free. I adapted this recipe by replacing the flour with ground almonds, reducing the amount of butter and sugar and baked it in my individual brownie pan. The result was really good. I was told that these are the 'best brownies ever' and there wasn't a crumb left by the end of the day. The  brownies are really moist, gooey and chocolatey with a hint of tart raspberry. Personally I prefer the normal version as it's smoother and fudgier. The gluten free version tasted grainier and nuttier due to the ground almonds. However, they were both delicious and I'd happily eat a few of each version! 

As mentioned, this is for We Should Cocoa started by Choclette from Chocolate Log Blog and guest hosted this month by Michelle from Utterly Scrummy Food for Families. The theme is gluten free. 

I'm also sending it to Four Seasons Food guest hosted by Tina from the Spicy Pear this month. The challenge is usually run by Anneli from Delicieux and Louisa from Eat Your Veg. The theme this month is The Colour Red and these raspberries are bright red!

And to Family Foodies hosted by Louisa from Eat Your Veg and Vanesther from Bangers and Mash. The theme this month is Barbecues, Picnics and Outdoor Eating. You can easily make the brownies in advance and they are very easy to transport.

 adding the eggs 

 adding ground almonds and cocoa powder 

 adding raspberries 

 place 1 raspberry on top of each brownie square before baking 

 

 look at how gooey the centre is ... yuuumm!!

Recipe adapted from BBC Good Food

Makes 18 individual brownie square as shown 

200g butter

350g soft brown sugar

200g dark chocolate

100g milk chocolate

4 eggs

50g cocoa powder

160g ground almonds

150g fresh raspberries

• Preheat the oven to 180C.
• Place the butter, sugar and chocolate in a medium sized saucepan and melt over a medium heat. 
• Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly
• Add in the eggs and mix well.
• Stir in the ground almonds and cocoa powder.
• Finally stir in the raspberries reserving 18 for decoration. 
• Divide the batter evenly into an individual brownie pan. Place 1 raspberry on top of each square before baking. 
• Alternatively you can use a square baking tray. 
• Bake for about 18 -20 minutes or until the edges are cooked. If you want a firmer brownie then cook for a further 5 minutes.
• Allow to cool in the tin for a few minutes before turning out to a wire rack to cool completely. 

Salty & Sweet Fudgy Brownies

These are seriously good brownies and I mean really, really good! I have been wanting to make these for a while now and I'm glad I finally got round to making them. I used my favourite fudgy brownie recipe and added in this M&Ms salty&sweet snack mix that I bought from America. It contains roasted peanuts, crunchy pretzels, chocolate chip cookies and M&M's. 

The brownies were gooey and fudgy and you can clearly taste the different components of the snack mix. It had the right balance of sweet and salty and definitely satisfied my chocolate craving! Everyone thoroughly enjoyed it and I'm sure there will be repeat requests for this one! 

 adding the salty & sweet snack mix 

 ready to go in the oven 

 I love the flecks of colour from the m&m's 

200g butter, chopped into smallish cubes
375g sugar
170g chocolate, roughly chopped
165g flour
80g cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 eggs
1 pack of M&M's salty & sweet snack mix (226g)

• Preheat the oven to 180C.
• In a medium sized pan, melt the butter and chocolate.
• Then whisk in the sugar, salt and vanilla extract. 
• Continue mixing until you get a smooth mixture then remove from heat and set aside for a few minutes.
• Whisk in the eggs one at a time and then the flour and cocoa powder until you get a fudgy mixture as shown. 
• Stir in the M&M's salty & sweet snack mix 
• Pour the mixture into a square baking pan. 
• Bake for approximately 30-35 minutes until the top is crisp and the edges are cooked. 
• Allow to cool in the pan. 
• Slice and enjoy!

Candy Corn Oreo Brownies

This is the first of my planned Halloween bakes this month. I love Halloween and try and bake something different each year. On my recent trip to America, I came across these limited edition candy corn oreos and decided to incorporate them into a brownie. I used my favourite fudgy brownie recipe and it worked a treat. The brownies have a crisp edge with a fudgy, gooey centre and the candy corn oreos add colour and crunch. These were given away as a gift and were very well received.

I'm entering this to several challenges this month. Firstly to AlphaBakes which I am hosting this month and co-host with Caroline from Caroline Makes. The letter is C for Candy Corn Oreo.

I'm also sending this to Treat Petite hosted by Stuart from Cakeyboi and Kat from The Baking Explorer. The theme this month is Halloween.

And to Calendar Cakes hosted by Rachel from Dolly Bakes and Laura from Laura Loves Cakes. The theme this month is also Halloween.

And to another new challenge this month called Flavors of USA hosted by Emma from Souperior and Nayna of Simply Food. These candy corn oreos came from America so I think this is quite fitting.

Addendum 31/10/13
I'm also sending this to Let's Celebrate Halloween on Just Not the Cakes which is hosted by Shey who asks us to link up any Halloween related recipe.

Addendum 22/11/13 - I've been awarded the best recipe award for the event "Let's Celebrate Halloween" - thank you!

 candy corn oreos 

 stir in sugar to melted chocolate and butter 

 whisk in the eggs 

 adding the candy corn oreos 

 ready to go in the oven

 freshly baked 

 yum! 

200g butter, chopped into smallish cubes
375g sugar
170g chocolate, roughly chopped
165g flour
80g cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 eggs
approximately 17 Candy Corn oreo cookies (plus extra to munch on whilst baking), roughly chopped.

• Preheat the oven to 180C.
• In a medium sized pan, melt the butter and chocolate.
• Then whisk in the sugar, salt and vanilla extract. 
• Continue mixing until you get a smooth mixture then remove from heat and set aside for a few minutes.
• Whisk in the eggs one at a time and then the flour and cocoa powder until you get a fudgy mixture as shown. 
• Stir in 12 of the chopped candy corn oreos, reserving the rest to sprinkle on top.
• Pour the mixture into a square baking pan and sprinkle the remaining 5 chopped candy corn oreos on top. 
• Bake for approximately 30-35 minutes until the top is crisp and the edges are cooked. 
• Allow to cool in the pan. 
• Slice and enjoy!

Chocolate Mint Pattie Brownie

This month has really flown past and I only got round to making my We Should Cocoa entry late last night. I do apologise for the lack of decent photos as it was well past midnight by the time I finished baking and brought it with me to work today so I didn't have time to get a good picture of the brownies. 

We Should Cocoa is hosted by Victoria from A Kick At The Pantry Door. This challenge was created by Choclette from Chocolate Log Blog and Chele from Chocolate Teapot.  She chose the special ingredient of mint this month. I love mint and chocolate combinations and had lots of ideas but unfortunately ran out of time. As I'd been promising my colleagues brownies for ages, I decided to make a mint chocolate brownie and I'm so glad I did as they were delicious!  

I used my fail safe fudgy brownie recipe and incorporated some mint patties that I bought from America. I wasn't sure if it would work as the patties are sweet and sticky. In the process of baking, it melted and caramelised at the edges but the brownies were still moist and the mint flavour was present but not overpowering. Personally, I prefer this with mint oreos but I'll have to wait to get a new supply. 

 mint patties from America

 adding it to the brownie mix 

 ready to go in the oven 

 The 'burnt' edges is the caramelised mint pattie which melted and oozed out during baking 

 some of them remained intact! 

200g butter, chopped into smallish cubes
345g sugar
170g chocolate, roughly chopped
165g flour
80g cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 eggs
30 mint patties, quartered

• Preheat the oven to 180C.
• In a medium sized pan, melt the butter and chocolate.
• Then whisk in the sugar, salt and vanilla extract. 
• Continue mixing until you get a smooth mixture then remove from heat and set aside for a few minutes.
• Whisk in the eggs one at a time and then the flour and cocoa powder until you get a fudgy mixture 
• Stir in the chopped mint patties and mix. 
• Pour the mixture into a square baking pan and bake for approximately 30-35 minutes until the top is crisp and the edges are cooked. 
• Allow to cool in the pan. 
• Slice and enjoy!

Easter Mini Egg Brownies

I can't believe it's almost Easter - it's really early this year and seems to have snuck up on me. Last year I made Easter eggs with a twist - cake baked in real eggshells. This year, I made brownies and cupcakes. Guess I'd better start planning for next year! :)

I got this recipe from Jo's Blue Aga. Jo is the winner of 2011 Great British Bake Off and has really great recipes on her site. I remember seeing this last year and bookmarked it to try so here it is. It's a brownies recipe with mini eggs inside and on top. I put the mini eggs in the freezer  as suggested but mine still cracked after baking :( My new oven is very hot so next time I might try baking at a lower temperature. The brownies were crisp and chocolatey and I loved the addition of the mini eggs.

I'm entering this to Calendar Cakes hosted by Laura from Laura loves Cakes and co-hosted by Rachel from Dolly Bakes. The theme this month is Easter Extravaganza.

I'm also entering this to bookmarked recipes hosted by Jacqueline from Tinned Tomatoes.

 I finally get to use my jar of vanilla sugar which has been in storage for months and smells heavenly. 

 ready to go in the oven

 add mini eggs on top after baking for 25 minutes

 you can see the mini egg inside

Recipe from Jo's blue Aga