Weather has been a drag lately - mostly the days go by in tones of monotonous gloomy grays and whites... and what makes it worse is the cold wind. Brrrr! When the wind blows, you can actually feel the cold seeping deep down into your bones (yes, that's how bad it gets sometimes). Added to the fact that most stores and indoor buildings are still using their central air-conditioning (why? beats the heck out of me....)... it just makes Melbourne one heck of a big freezer!
Back to the cold weather: I was walking about in the blistering cold last night and it didn't help that the grocery store had their a/c in full blast. I could feel my body yearning and begging for some warm comfort. So I gave in to my heart's whim and ended up baking.... BROWNIES!... hahaha
Hmmm! Brownies.... In my personal opinion, I always find that the best brownies are the ones homebaked according to traditional recipes, passed down from one generation to another. I will always remember the first time I sunk my teeth into these delectable squares: during the wee-ages of 16-17, at boarding school. I had a history teacher who would once in a while spoil us with her brownie treats that she would bake the day/night before and bring to school in a big tin box. Everytime after a hard day's lesson, she would delightfully surprise us by popping open the tin. It was the first and best brownie I had ever tasted... Sadly since then, none of the brownies I have tried has ever beaten that record... I can still remember the taste till now.
Ashamedly I admit that I have never baked brownies in my life before: yes, believe or not. Despite all the things I have attempted to bake, brownies were never on my "to bake list". In defence: I thought that it would be too complex of process to do and I wasn't quite sure how to make it. But yeah, given that there is always the internet as your recipe-database saviour... I guess mostly it was because I just couldn't be half-arsed to do it. So yeah... there I was, at home, amidst of keyboard clatterings and yip-yaps from my dear housemates, making brownies.
It didn't turn out quite as good as I expected because of a number of things: 1. I probably didn't mix the batter well as the sugar had sunk to the bottom of the pan during the baking process (as you can see from the light layer on the bottom of each brownie); 2. the brownies were too sweet for my liking and 3. Me thinks me went overboard with the vanilla essence. However despite that, there were some aspects of the brownies I liked:, namely 1. the soft, crumbly and flakey texture on the top; 2. the smooth, almost gooey fudge-cake-like texture of the brownies; 3. the seductive aroma of the baking brownies that overwhelmed the apartment and lastly 4. the nice crunchy bite you get from the sides or corners of the brownies - a pleasant add that compliments the fudgy centre of the brownie.
Overall it's not a bad recipe, I think I might give it a go some other time and obviously make some personal changes to it. Historically brownies have always been an all-time American favourite, that's where the recipe and idea originated. There are two types of brownies that you will find, namely the cakey-type of brownie and the fudgy-type of brownie. Either is correct however I personally prefer one that between the two types. Usually under baking desserts, brownies are categories as "bar cookies" rather than cakes.
Now I'm not going to mumble and jumble along with the history of brownies, should you like to know more you can always visit this awesome website called the Nibbles - (you'll be amazed with what you can find there!)
As for the brownie recipe, I'll be more than glad to share it with you. Feel free to change whichever ingredient you like (you may replace the unsweetened chocolate with cocoa+oil, etc).
Enjoy!!
:)
Back to the cold weather: I was walking about in the blistering cold last night and it didn't help that the grocery store had their a/c in full blast. I could feel my body yearning and begging for some warm comfort. So I gave in to my heart's whim and ended up baking.... BROWNIES!... hahaha
Hmmm! Brownies.... In my personal opinion, I always find that the best brownies are the ones homebaked according to traditional recipes, passed down from one generation to another. I will always remember the first time I sunk my teeth into these delectable squares: during the wee-ages of 16-17, at boarding school. I had a history teacher who would once in a while spoil us with her brownie treats that she would bake the day/night before and bring to school in a big tin box. Everytime after a hard day's lesson, she would delightfully surprise us by popping open the tin. It was the first and best brownie I had ever tasted... Sadly since then, none of the brownies I have tried has ever beaten that record... I can still remember the taste till now.
Ashamedly I admit that I have never baked brownies in my life before: yes, believe or not. Despite all the things I have attempted to bake, brownies were never on my "to bake list". In defence: I thought that it would be too complex of process to do and I wasn't quite sure how to make it. But yeah, given that there is always the internet as your recipe-database saviour... I guess mostly it was because I just couldn't be half-arsed to do it. So yeah... there I was, at home, amidst of keyboard clatterings and yip-yaps from my dear housemates, making brownies.
It didn't turn out quite as good as I expected because of a number of things: 1. I probably didn't mix the batter well as the sugar had sunk to the bottom of the pan during the baking process (as you can see from the light layer on the bottom of each brownie); 2. the brownies were too sweet for my liking and 3. Me thinks me went overboard with the vanilla essence. However despite that, there were some aspects of the brownies I liked:, namely 1. the soft, crumbly and flakey texture on the top; 2. the smooth, almost gooey fudge-cake-like texture of the brownies; 3. the seductive aroma of the baking brownies that overwhelmed the apartment and lastly 4. the nice crunchy bite you get from the sides or corners of the brownies - a pleasant add that compliments the fudgy centre of the brownie.
Overall it's not a bad recipe, I think I might give it a go some other time and obviously make some personal changes to it. Historically brownies have always been an all-time American favourite, that's where the recipe and idea originated. There are two types of brownies that you will find, namely the cakey-type of brownie and the fudgy-type of brownie. Either is correct however I personally prefer one that between the two types. Usually under baking desserts, brownies are categories as "bar cookies" rather than cakes.
Now I'm not going to mumble and jumble along with the history of brownies, should you like to know more you can always visit this awesome website called the Nibbles - (you'll be amazed with what you can find there!)
As for the brownie recipe, I'll be more than glad to share it with you. Feel free to change whichever ingredient you like (you may replace the unsweetened chocolate with cocoa+oil, etc).
Enjoy!!
:)
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