Chocolate Brownies

Hello my lovelies, I have some friends coming to stay with me for a long weekend so I thought what could be more welcoming then the comforting smell of freshly baked chocolate brownies steaming throughout the house. This is a classic recipe in our household, it was one that my Mum discovered in a Mary Berry AGA cookbook that we have slightly adapted. In one of our old houses we had an AGA as a cooker and being new to this we brought quite a few recipe books designed especially for AGAs as we weren't sure how different food cooked/baked in these. Even though this is an AGA recipe it works just as well in a normal oven and these are now a family classic and known as a staple by my Mum as people often ask for our classic chocolate brownies. If we have friends or family visiting and if in doubt of what to bake them as a treat we will always turn to these. For me they are the perfect chocolate brownie as they are rich, chocolaty, and highly indulgent. They have a crisp top and are really gooey and chocolate inside. I always say that these are best eaten when warm and freshly baked. I don't think these will last long this weekend. These can simply be enjoyed on their own or you could serve these with vanilla ice-cream, raspberries and a warm chocolate sauce - heaven.

Ingredients 

Makes around 32 pieces but this will vary depending on how big a chocolate fix you need

275g margarine
375g caster sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon baking powder
75g cocoa powder
100g plain flour
200g milk chocolate - this could be any chocolate you fancy milk, white, dark or a combination. It could be simply chocolate baking chips or you could go fancy with some Cadburys or Galaxy. Let me know if you discover any amazing combinations. The recipe is originally only 100g of chocolate but you just can't beat that intense chocolaty flavour.

Method

1) Line a small roasting/tray bake baking tin with foil and grease. This will prevent the brownies sticking to the tray. You need to pre-heat your oven to 190  C/ 170  Fan/ Gas mark 5

2) This is a really easy recipe to make, all you have to do is add all of the ingredients into a large mixing bowl except for the chocolate pieces and simply whisk until all the mixture is smooth and fully combined

3) Finally stir in the chocolate

4) Pur the brownie mixture into the tin making sure it's level and bake for 40 - 45 minutes.

As all ovens are different I would start checking it from after half an hour onwards as these will vary depending on the size of the tray you use. If you feel that the brownies are burning on top yet not fully cooked all the way through simply turn the oven down to a lower temperature. You know the brownies are finished once a skewer comes out clean once inserted into the centre of the brownies.

Once baked, allow the brownies to cool in the tin and then remove the brownies from the tin and cut into squares to serve.

Thank you for reading this blog post my lovelies and I hope you enjoy the brownie recipe. Let me know in the comments if you attempt making these and feel free to send a picture of the finished result. These are a crowd pleaser and definitely worth the wait of that slow bake which feels like three thousand hours.