Did Someone Mention Chocolate?

Page 199!  You will not be disappointed!

I am not a fan of TV celebrity chefs.  At all.  I enjoy watching their programmes, yes, but I have had maybe a 90% success rate when it comes to actually cooking something of theirs from the accompanying cook book.

Wanna know why?

Not all of the recipes are tested.  You are taking the life of your bag of flour and other expensive ingredients into your own hands.

There are one or two of these that prove otherwise, however.  I have one such book that, when I place it on the counter it practically opens itself on the recipe I want:  the absolutely divine chocolate brownie recipe.

The clue to the chef’s identity is in the title.

Rachel Allen introduced me to this recipe several years ago.  It is taken from her first book, 

Favourite Food for Friends and in my humble, shite cook opinion, probably her best.  I am not a great cook but I’m not bad at baking so I feel qualified to make this claim. 

I have fond and gluttonous memories of making this and eating most of it myself.  Bear in mind I would have been awake since 4am and breastfeeding a ravenous leech of a child so I had lots of energy to replace.  It was my choice to replace the sugar part first!

Please, please if you bake one thing and one thing only over the next week, bake this.  You will be swamped and inundated with praise, given by those with eyeballs rolling so hard around their heads in pure ecstasy, don’t be surprised if one or two fall out!

I posted a picture on my Facebook page recently and it got so many comments, I thought I would share the recipe with you.  I am sure Rachel won’t mind as I have already stated it is hers.

Like so far?

Chocolate Brownies as taken from Rachel’s Favourite Food by the author of the same name

6oz butter

6oz *good dark chocolate

3 eggs

9oz caster sugar

4oz plain flour

*This bit is important.  Lidl do excellent bars with 70% cocoa content.  The high percentage is needed to cut through the sweetness. 

Method

Preheat oven to 180 degrees.   Line a Swiss roll tin.  Melt butter and chocolate in a bowl over hot water.  Whisk eggs and sugar until nice and creamy.  Allow chocolate mix to cool before adding spoonful by spoonful.  Then add in flour.  Pour mix into lined tin and bake for (depending on oven) 25 to 30 minutes. 

The top will be nice and cracky and the inside a sublime, fudgy, dense holy mother of GOD, creation. 

Leave for 5 minutes before cutting into squares.

A few squares for everyone in the audience!

Try it and see but be nice and share.  A bit of vanilla ice-cream makes it a bit more eye rolling.

Get ready to have your eyes rolled!

Disclaimer:  I am heretofore absolved from any responsibility or blame over possible happenings bloody, fatal or otherwise that may or may not take place over the last remaining slice.