Monday, December 19, 2016

PEPPERMINT GANACHE CHOCOLATE BROWNIES

If you are still looking for edible gifts for your loved ones, look no more. These are the easiest and fudgiest brownies you can make, and they have a deep chocolate flavour, with just a hint of peppermint from the Crème de menthe, just to make everything more festive. The ganache gives a smoother and richer flavour, and I love using it in brownies, as well as decorating with it.
When it comes to decoration, I recommend gifting them plain or with a peppermint sugar glaze that hardens, because ganache can get a tad messy. If you decide to use ganache, you can add a tablespoon of Crème de menthe to it, to pair it with the peppermint flavour of the brownies. In whatever way you decide to decorate and package them, they are certainly a lovely and delicious homemade gift.


Ingredients
120 grams unsalted butter
100 grams granulated sugar
6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 small eggs
6 tablespoons plain flour
50 grams dark chocolate
50 ml double cream
1 tablespoon Crème de menthe

Preparation
Dice the butter and add it to a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Place the pan over medium heat, add in the sugar, and the sifted cocoa powder, then mix and melt until combined and smooth. It will seem dry at one point, but that is fine, as soon as the butter starts melting, it will blend very well. Once melted, remove it from the heat and set it aside. Chop up the chocolate, add it to a small saucepan, pour over the double cream, and melt them together on medium heat until smooth. When that melts, set it aside to cool down slightly. Crack the eggs in separate bowls, then add them to the melted butter, sugar, and cocoa powder, one at a time, whisking well after each. This will prevent scorching the eggs.
Once they are mixed in, pour in the ganache, and the Crème de menthe, and blend well. Finally, sift in the flour and gently fold it through only until you can no longer see patches of flour. You do not want to overmix the batter. Take a 20x20 cm baking pan (8x8"), lightly grease it, then line it with baking paper. Pour in the batter, smooth it as much as possible, then bake them in a preheated oven, at 170°C (340°F), for about 20-25 minutes. Since every oven is slightly different, check them with a toothpick even around the 15-minute mark, to make sure they do not overbake. They need to stay fudgy and moist. When they are baked, remove them from the oven, let them cool completely on a wire rack, slice them up and serve, or package them. Yields 16 servings.

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