Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Revisiting Brownies

I've posted about these brownies before. However, I posted about them at Christmas time when we are all inundated with sweets and goodies, and it's so easy for a brownie to be overlooked. I found this brownie recipe in this past year's Better Homes And Gardens special Christmas Cookie publication, and it has become my standard brownie recipe. It's a standard brownie, except that it has malted milk powder in it, and that makes all the difference in the world. See, I go back and forth between a cakey brownie and a fudgy brownie as the best version, and this one is the best of both worlds. The malt powder gives it a fantastic texture, and while you don't taste the malt overwhelmingly, it provides a fantastic background flavor that you can't quite identify.

Previously, I have frosted these brownies and sprinkled with crushed Whoppers, which was pretty good. I have also made a ganache to pour over the top, and to me that was the ultimate brownie experience. But this past weekend, we tried them straight up, with no topping at all, and they are still a decadent brownie. They are rich and satisfying and just the quintessential brownie. I have the original version of Malt-Fudge Brownies in the recipe trove, but I do make a few changes now. I leave out the crushed malted milk balls for one. I add chocolate chips to the batter instead (but nuts would be a good addition too), and if I do top the brownies, I find that a simple ganache is the perfect gilding. Malted milk powder has definitely become a pantry staple now for me, as a result of these brownies. I do have other ideas to top these brownies for more of a bar experience- one being a caramel-pecan truffle experience, but I have yet to go that far with them.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Those look fantastic! I love whoppers... I need to make something for a church event tonight. I think this will be it! Thanks for sharing the recipe.

Erika W. said...

Kristen, let me know if you make them. They're my new favorite, so I'd love to see what someone else thinks!

Anonymous said...

Well... I made them but when it came time to grab the malted milk balls out of my pantry, I found out my dh had been helping him self to the candy! There were 5 total malt balls left. So.... I improvised... added some chocolate malt powder in addition to the malt the recipe calls for. Erika - improvised or not, these were incredible brownies!!! I think they are my new favorite too. I can't wait to try them with the right ingredients!
I'm blogging about them today :)

Anonymous said...

Here's a link to my post about your brownies!

http://dineanddish.squarespace.com/dine-and-dish-blog/2007/3/16/off-limits.html

Erika W. said...

I left a comment. I'm so excited that you made them! I may have to try the additional malt powder sometime too.