Her Baking Saturday

Today is a "chill" day for me. Sean is out playing in a disc golf tournament so I have the house to myself. Yay! After a long first week of school I was looking forward to sleeping in, watching some shows on my DVR, and relaxing. My hope is that this head cold I can feel coming on will go away after a day of R&R. 

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All day yesterday, I had a feeling that I wanted to bake. I have not baked in a while - since before Australia. After going back and forth between cookies and brownies, I decided I wanted brownies. 

I am a brownie-a-holic. It is my go-to, favorite dessert. I love a good brownie! It doesn't matter whether they are plain, with chocolate chips, with nuts, with caramel topping ...brownies are amazing! I have quite a few brownie recipes already that I like but I have yet to find a homemade brownie that I love! I checked Pioneer Woman and a few other sites before heading over to Brown Eyed Baker's blog. I have made many of her items and they are always great.

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She posted about a Baked Brownie back in 2010 and within the first few sentences I knew I had found the recipe I wanted to try. This is what she said, 

 The famed Baked brownie. Oprah says it’s one of her favorite things. America’s Test Kitchens says its their favorite brownie. I don’t put much stock in Oprah, but America’s Test Kitchens are pretty much like the bible when it comes to all things kitchen. I check their reviews before any other recipes, and before I buy any kitchen equipment or new ingredients. So, if it’s their favorite brownie, I need to take a serious look.

She also claims that the brownies are rich, dense, and fudge-y. She is speaking my language with those words.

I gathered up the ingredients this morning and set about making the brownies. They are not super simple - meaning it is not a dump everything in, stir, and go. BUT...they are not difficult either. I like the baking process so something with a few extra steps does not bother me at all. My only problem with the recipe was the baking time. The recipe calls for a 30 minute bake and mine took almost 60. I read through the comments on the blog and found others who had similar problems. I was worried about the brownies tasting burnt or overcooked but I couldn't pull them out of the oven when they were raw in the middle. I posted a comment asking Brown Eyed Baker what her thoughts were so I am hoping she can shed some light on the problem. 

My brownies weren't nearly as pretty as Brown Eyed Baker's, but taste is way more important anyway! :)

My overall impression of the brownies: HOLY COW!! Amazing!!! Terrific!!! Delicious!!! Insanely good!! Basically - I have found the brownie recipe I have been looking for. I found the brownie recipe I love! I am already planning the next time I will make them. I'm thinking a school potluck or a community group meeting at church would be perfect.
 Actually, I think I will take a brownie or two to my Principal on Monday. After all, she did pull the first fire drill of the year during the time I was on planning and the 8th graders were in their elective classes. No kids during the first, and most crazy, fire drill?? I think that deserves a brownie. :) :)

Now I am off to enjoy some more chill time, maybe a small amount of laundry, my Project Runway and Top Chef: Masters episodes from this week, and at least one (or three) more brownies. 

Enjoy your Saturday,