JEN’S Marble Fudge Brownies

by Jen Ramirez

photo by Kit Langit

When I found out that the theme for the first pastry exchange was heavenly bars and brownies, my priority was to find the easiest recipe I could. Then, seeing the other participants’ yummy sounding, multi-syllabic variants, I began to think a ‘basic-fudge-brownie’ might be anticlimactic (and cowardly). So, what’s the next easiest recipe to that? Marble-ize it!

As a fan of cheesecake myself, I was happy to learn that what gave a brownie its marble was a simple cream cheese mixture on top. The online recipe seemed easy enough, so I gave it a try. What came out looked surprisingly nice, and upon tasting, my family declared it as, “…YOU made this!?” - - which translates as “very good”!

photo by Michelle Yulo

Personally, I found the brownies quite sweet and too rich for my taste. For the kids though, this kind of almost-solid-fudge bar was a delicious treat! Thank goodness for the cream-cheese on top. It mingled (or should I say marbled) well and gave a mildly salty contrast to the brownie, preventing death by chocolate overload.

At the pastry exchange, I needed help to get my brownies out of the pan and to cut them neatly into bars. I guess that’s equivalent to having a big “Newbie!” sign stuck to my forehead. Yumi, Michelle and Emily were eager to help. Despite the shortening I used for greasing, my bars were just too moist to survive being inverted onto a chopping board (at home we sort of ate them from the pan…). Yumi was able to save them though, and she also taught me to use non-stick baking paper next time, as a liner for easy transfer.

Another thing I learned (this time from Michelle) was that the amount of eggs in a recipe affects how fudgy-moist vs. ‘cakey’ it will be. American recipes that call for two large eggs may require three of our local-sized eggs to generate the same consistency.

photo by Camille Bautista

As an epilogue of sorts, I want to share that I tried making the marble-fudge brownies with the adjustments I learned from the exchange. Actually, some friends invited us over for lunch and when I asked what we could bring, they requested for the brownies they'd read about on this blog. Haha, pressure! Fortunately, I'd learned a few things by then. I lined my pan with non-stick baking paper, but greased it first to prevent the liner from slipping. I also added one more egg to the recipe, to diffuse the fudge level slightly and give it more rise. Lastly, after it cooled down, I chilled the entire pan in the refrigerator overnight before cutting into neater bars the next morning. I found that with the liner and the firm chilled brownies, I had a much easier time. The kids still loved it, our friends took seconds and I thought they were really yummy too. It was a proud moment!

In case you’d like a copy of this recipe, please email: bakedinthecity@gmail.com

Yumi’s Dark Chocolate Brownie with Grand Marnier

By Yumi Castrillo

photo by Camille Bautista

The first time I attempted to bake I was ten years old. I was alone in the kitchen and I had all the ingredients set out before me. I looked at the recipe, it was a chocolate cake recipe at the back of the flour box, and began measuring the ingredients: 1 cup butter, 2 cups all purpose flour, ½ cup cocoa, 3 eggs….. and so on. As I measured each ingredient, I immediately dumped it into the bowl. It was only after I went through all the ingredients, that I noticed the instructions portion of the recipe: cream the butter and sugar together… then I glance down at my mixing bowl, all ingredients were already in!

Whooops!

It was no surprise that my first cake came out a disaster. It was gummy, pasty and clumpy. The batter didn’t rise at all. It had the consistency of a squished pancake. It was enough to put me off baking for another three years. From then on, I would only bake straight from a cake mix box. I found such refuge from turning out perfect cakes and brownies with the ready-made mixes that I wasn’t ashamed to tell friends it came from a box. In fact, I enjoyed it so much that I started following the variations I could do with the cake mix, like churning out lemon cheesecake bars from a yellow cake mix. It was then that I learned how the ingredients work together, how to balance the dry ingredients from the wet ones, and most importantly, how to alter the flavor and texture. Before I knew it, I was making my own variations with the mix and almost always, I’d get the outcome that I wanted.

photos by Kit Langit

Altering recipes has then become second nature. With new-found confidence, I strayed away from the cake mix and began altering the best basic recipes I could find. The key is to always begin with a very very good basic recipe. Fortunately, I found a brownie recipe that boasts to be “the ultimate.” True to my nature, I altered it, lessening the sugar, changing the procedure and adding some ingredients that I felt would heighten the pleasure of the taste buds. Please note, it is essential to use high-quality dark chocolate. You need not purchase the Valrhona brand, although that’s the chocolate I used here. The Meiji dark chocolate with at least 56% cocoa content would work as well. The grand marnier may be omitted, but the orange zest and orange essence are important, since those will give the bars that citrus oomph.

This brownie gives off the same texture and taste as a chocolate flourless cake, very fudgy, soft and moist with slight crunch at the top. The recipe may seem to have a lot of sugar, but it balances perfectly with the unsweetened dark chocolate. If you like your brownie rich but not too sweet, and with the subtle hint of oranges, this is for you!

Photo by Kit Langit

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Yumi’s Dark Chocolate Brownie with Grand Marnier

Ingredients:

8 oz good-quality dark chocolate, unsweetened, chopped to small pieces
1 cup butter
5 eggs
500 grams granulated sugar
1 tablespoon orange essence
180 grams All Purpose Flour
1 teaspoon salt
the zest of one orange
1 tablespoon Grand Marnier

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a 9 x 13 pan with greaseless paper.

Melt the chopped chocolate and butter over low heat; set aside.

In a mixer, beat eggs, sugar, orange essence, and grand marnier until smooth.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour and salt. Add in the zest.

Blend in the chocolate mixture, then the flour mixture, until just mixed. Pour into prepared pan.

Bake for 35-40 minutes.

I find that my nose can be the best timer for baked goods. When the room starts to smell chocolatey, I bring out the toothpick and begin testing after every 5 minutes. I make sure that I bake the brownie just until small clumps still cling to the toothpick. The heat emanating from the brownie will continue to cook itself inside, and by the time it’s cooled down, the brownies will be perfect.

Lilet's Cappuccino Bars

By Jen Ramirez

photo by Camille Bautista

I have to say, I’m longing for one of Lilet’s Cappuccino Bars right now. I can just imagine biting into one of those thick chocolate-cake bars that turn into chewy goo in the mouth, broken only by the snapping of slivered almonds (one of the few nuts that I like).

Looking back to the Pastry Exchange two weeks ago, Lilet’s Cappuccino Bar was one of the treats that I finished an entire serving piece of, despite the sugar overload of indulging in multiple sample-sized pastries all at once. In spite of its imposing appearance -- dark chunky slices with walnut pieces peeking through from the base and generously topped with slivers of almond -- it had a mild cocoa flavor with a hint of coffee in it. The glaze topping gave sheen to the base of the almonds and provided just the right kick of sweetness to each bite.

I enjoyed the bars as they were. They had the consistency of a heavy but not overly moist cake; which I consider to be the perfect accompaniment to coffee or tea. Once chilled however (as I found out the next day from my loot-box), the Cappuccino Bars take on an entirely different character. Refrigerated overnight, the coffee flavor seemed to have condensed in the bars, making itself even more palpable than it was before. As with most brownies, chilling also brought about an increased ‘fudgy-ness’ to the pastry -- turning it into more of a decadent dessert, than a beverage partner.

photo by Kit Langit

This recipe (which Lilet found in a Mrs. Field’s Cookbook under the name ‘Brownies Espresso’) is a delightful discovery because apparently you can enjoy it two ways. Store it dry in an air-tight container and you’ll have a delectable complement to your coffee or tea. Chill it in the refrigerator and you’ll have a luscious coffee-flavored dessert bar (or anytime-of-the-day treat). The almonds accentuate the texture perfectly and I still wish I had a bar right now. Luckily, Lilet is sharing the recipe with us here:

photo by Camille Bautista

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Lilet’s Cappuccino Bars

Ingredients:

Brownies
2 ½ cups all purpose flour
½ tsp. baking soda
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
½ cup white sugar
1 cup salted butter, softened
2 oz. unsweetened baking chocolate
1 Tbsp. instant espresso or instant coffee granules
1 Tbsp. boiling water
2 large eggs
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 tsp. pure almond extract
1 cup (6 oz.) semisweet chocolate chips

Glaze
3 oz. semisweet chocolate
1/3 cup salted butter, softened
½ cup sliced almonds


Procedure:

Preheat oven to 325° F. Grease an 8x8 inch baking pan

In a medium bowl, combine flour and soda. Mix well with a wire whisk and set aside.

In a large bowl blend sugars with an electric mixer at medium speed. Add butter and mix to form a grainy paste.

Melt baking chocolate in a double boiler. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, dissolve espresso or coffee granules in boiling water.

Add chocolate and coffee to sugar and butter; beat at medium speed until smooth. Add eggs, vanilla and extracts; beat until smooth.

Scrape down sides of bowl. Add the flour mixture and chocolate chips, and blend at low speed just until combined. Do not overmix. (From Jen: I think this is where Lilet also added some chopped walnuts to the batter; optional)

Pour batter into greased baking pan. Bake 35-40 minutes or until toothpick placed in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 15 minutes. Invert on rack.

To make glaze: Melt together the chocolate and butter in a double boiler, stirring until smooth.

Spread glaze over brownies and sprinkle with almonds. Cool completely before cutting into bars.

Yield: 12-16 servings

photo by Camille Bautista

By the way, while the brownies are a new try for Lilet, she is well-known for her Apple Pies! Lilet tried baking as a hobby just a few years ago, to relax in between managing her tutorial center and working on academic consultancy matters. Besides discovering how much fun baking was, she also found out she was pretty good at it. Friends and relatives order her apple pies and cookies to proudly give away as gifts. Lilet’s treats are super yummy and I suspect that more often than not, clients order her treats as ‘gifts’ to themselves too!

If you’d like to contact Lilet for these bars, her scrumptious Apple Pies or yummy cookies (Choco Chip, Marshmallow Cloud, Snickedoodles), you can reach her at limlilet@yahoo.com. She also accepts orders for Carrot Cake, Banana Bread and Cocoroons.