Holiday Baking : Brownies for Grown-Ups

There’s nothing like the aroma of dessert baking in the kitchen and having homemade treats to offer friends and family. Even when there’s no time for “serious” baking, there’s always something easy to bake.

My favorite type of easy dessert is brownies. Whenever I want to show off an authentic American sweet to friends who are visiting from other countries, brownies are my choice. They seem to have been designed with the busy person in mind. Because they require a relatively short baking time, they remain moist inside. And mixing the batter is simple--there’s no separating eggs or delicate folding of ingredients. Brownies are the quintessential homey dessert.

This doesn’t mean brownies can’t be elegant. Glaze small brownies with a shiny, easy-to-make chocolate ganache frosting and they can hold a place of honor on any petits fours tray. And they are guaranteed to disappear before the other sweets.

Not much needs to be done to update a classic that is already so good. Personally, I prefer brownies that are intensely chocolaty and not too sweet. I do like to make them with a variety of nuts. Besides the traditional walnuts or pecans, I occasionally stir in Brazil nuts, hazelnuts or macadamia nuts. I’ve found that all nuts taste good in brownies, as long as they are fresh.

Brownies are wonderfully portable, so you can easily bring some when you’re invited over to a friend’s house. What about all your friends who are worried about calories? Consider them when cutting the brownies. There is no need to make enormous ones like those often sold at bakeries. If the brownies are small, most people can enjoy them without feeling guilty afterward.

If you feel like splurging, you can accompany brownies with whipped cream. You also can cut them into very thin layers and use them to make ice cream sandwiches or ice cream cakes. A pastry chef friend of mine even puts small brownies in her cheesecakes. Another friend serves her brownies topped with vanilla ice cream and strawberry sauce. I’ve never seen anyone refuse this delightful dessert.

The best of two worlds--American brownies with the finest French chocolate frosting: ganache.

GANACHE-FROSTED BITTERSWEET BROWNIES

6 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces

3/4 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 eggs

1 cup sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

3/4 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

Ganache Glaze

Position rack in center of oven. Line base and sides of 9- to 9 1/2-inch-square baking pan with piece of wax paper or foil. Butter wax paper.

Place chocolate and butter in top of double boiler or medium bowl set over hot water over low heat. Stir until smooth. Remove double boiler from pan of water and cool 5 minutes.

Sift flour, baking powder and salt into small bowl. Beat eggs lightly in separate bowl. Add sugar and beat at high speed about 5 minutes or until thick. Beat in vanilla. At low speed, blend in chocolate mixture in 3 batches. Stir in flour mixture, then walnuts.

Transfer batter to prepared pan and spread in even layer. Bake at 350 degrees about 35 minutes or until wood pick inserted 1/2 inch from center comes out nearly clean. Cool in pan on rack to room temperature. Turn out onto tray and remove wax paper. Turn back over onto another tray.

Spread Ganache over top of brownies. Refrigerate about 1 hour or until set. Cut carefully into 16 to 20 squares, using sharp knife. (Brownies can be kept, covered, 3 days in refrigerator.) Makes 16 to 20 brownies.

Ganache Glaze

6 1/2 ounces semisweet chocolate, very finely chopped

1/2 cup whipping cream

Place chocolate in small bowl. Bring cream to full boil in small heavy saucepan. Pour all at once over chocolate, then stir with whisk until smooth. Refrigerate 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until glaze is cold (but not set) and thick enough to spread.

Each serving contains about:

211 calories; 72 mg sodium; 6 grams cholesterol; 12 grams fat; 26 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams protein; .2 grams fiber; 50% calories from fat.

A hint of orange flavors these rich, super-chocolaty brownies.

FUDGY BRAZIL-NUT BROWNIES

3 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped

3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces

3/4 cup flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 eggs

1 1/4 cups sugar

1 tablespoon grated orange zest

3/4 cup Brazil nuts, chopped

Position rack in center of oven. Line base and sides of 7 1/2- to 8-inch-square baking pan with piece of wax paper or foil. Butter wax paper or foil.

Melt both types chocolate with butter in top of double boiler or medium bowl set over hot water over low heat. Stir until smooth. Remove double boiler from pan of water and cool to room temperature.

Sift flour and salt into medium bowl. Beat eggs lightly at medium speed of mixer. Add sugar and beat just until blended. Beat in orange zest. Blend in chocolate mixture in 3 batches. Stir in flour mixture, then nuts.

Transfer batter to prepared pan and spread in even layer. Bake at 350 degrees about 30 minutes or until wood pick inserted 1/2 inch from center comes out nearly clean. Cool in pan on rack to room temperature. Turn out onto board and remove wax paper. Cut carefully into 16 squares, using sharp knife. (Brownies can be kept 3 days in airtight container at room temperature, or they can be frozen.) Makes 16 brownies.

Each serving contains about:

211 calories; 72 mg sodium; 6 grams cholesterol; 12 grams fat; 25 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams protein; .2 grams fiber; 50% calories from fat.