Fudgy Brownies

Most of the time, when our family has a craving for fudgy brownies, we resort to the packaged mix brands. They always turn out yummy, with minimal work. So, why bother making them from scratch? Well, sometimes taking the extra time to make them from scratch is worth it! And, when I do take the extra time, this is the recipe I use. It is from the Taste of Summer cookbook, by Diane Rossen Worthington. She calls for the butter and chocolate to be melted over a double boiler. I take the easy way out and use the microwave, and semi-sweet chocolate chips instead of unsweetened chocolate. The brownies turn out just as fudgy and delish either way. Hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

Ingredients:

1 ½ sticks of butter, unsalted
4 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips (or 4 oz. unsweetened chocolate)
4 large eggs
2 cups sugar
1 tsp. vanilla (or ¼ cup orange liqueur)
1 ¼ cup all purpose flour
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt

Optional – 1 cup chopped almonds, walnuts or hazelnuts
Powdered sugar for garnish

Directions:

Grease 9 x 13 baking pan. Preheat the oven to 350.
Place the butter and chocolate into a microwavable bowl or measuring cup. Microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring each time, until melted. Set aside and allow to cool. (Or you can use a double boiler to melt the chocolate and butter.)
Place the eggs in a medium mixing bowl and beat in the sugar until the mixture is thick and a pale lemon color.

Stir in the vanilla (or orange liqueur if you prefer) and the cooled chocolate and butter mixture. Mix until color is uniform.

Carefully mix the flour, baking powder, and salt into the chocolate mixture. Add the nuts if desired.
Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick tester comes out slightly fudgy, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven. Cool and slice into brownies. Sprinkle powdered sugar on the brownies if you like.