recipe: bill granger's brownies

my holiday wish to my friends and family is if i can't get skinny, i'm gonna make you fat!!! bwaaaahaaaahaaaaa....

this holiday, people are actually getting baked goods from me; normally i can't do the deco thing and the baking thing, it's too much for my head to handle. it's christmas overload. my decorating concession is that i will um, dust. yeah, that's the ticket. a dust-free christmas. huzzah!

in the goodie bag this year are brownies i found in "bill's food" by yes, bill-who-fills-my-belly-with-jelly granger. you know i'm home if i've cracked open a granger cookbook. these are meant to be served warm, but eh, that's what microwaves are for.

chocolate brownies (from "bill's food' by bill granger, page 180)

370g (1 1/2 cups) caster (superfine) sugar
80g (2/3 cup) cocoa powder
60g (1/2 cup) plain (all-purpose) flour
1 tsp baking powder
4 eggs, beaten
250g (9oz) unsalted butter, melted
2 tsp vanilla extract
200g (7oz) chocolate buttons (i used semi-sweet chocolate chips)

preheat oven to 160˚C (315˚F/gas 2-3). stir the sugar, cocoa powder, flour and baking powder together in a bowl. add the eggs, melted butter and vanilla and mix until combined. mix in the chocolate buttons. pour into a lined 9 inch (22cm) square tin and bake for 40 to 45 minutes.

soooo easy. at this point, mr. g says that while the brownies are still warm, cut into eight pieces. EIGHT. that makes a slab of chocolate excess roughly the size of a bread plate. i love my family more than my luggage but there are waaaay too many of them, so they are getting bite-sized nuggets. my brownie pointer of the day is that after the brownies have cooled, put the whole pan into the --freezer overnight, and slice 'em up when they are frozen--so much easier to cut. there's less crumbs, less gooey-ness on the knife, prettier product, and definitely less clean up.