There are plenty of these recipes out there alright, but... none will render brownies as incredible, soft, sticky and perfect like this one, guaranteed!
Ingredients:
120g Plain Flour
40g dark cocoa powder
200g Butter (room temperature)
200g Chocolate (at least 75% cocoa - I use one 75% and one 85%)
200g Icing sugar
4 Eggs (large)
100g chopped walnuts or pistachio or hazelnuts OR 80gr chocolate chips (white or dark, or a mixture of both)
a little less than 1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
Method:
Roughly chop the chocolate, then put it into a small pot with the butter and place it on a low heat until it melts - stir it quite often and remove from the heat as soon as it's done
Using an electric whisk, beat up the eggs and the sugar really well - I mean, take at least 8 minutes! It should double in volume, become very pale and it should form a continuous ribbon when lifted from the mixture
Assuming that at this point the butter and chocolate have reached room temperature, fold it gently in small stages into the eggs mixuture using a spatula and ensuring to insert the spatula along the edges of the bowl, sliding it down into the buttom and up from the middle of the mixture, continuing with this movement until the first addition is absorbed
Continue like this until you finish adding the butter and chocolate
At this point, pre-heat the oven at 200 degrees C
Mix the flour, the cocoa powder and the baking powder together, then add a Tbsp at a time of the powders to the mixture through a sieve
Use the same technique with the spatula and fold each Tbsp quite gently, ensuring that each addition is well absorbed before you add the next one
If using anything else (like crushed nuts or chocolate chips) add them at this stage, using the same spatula technique
Line a baking tin with baking paper (I use those tins that have a removable bottom) then pour the completed mixture in it
Level the mixture with the back of a wet spoon
Reduce the oven temperature to 170 degrees C (fan) and bake for 30 mins
Remove from the oven and let it cool down completely in its tin
TIP: This does NOT need the skewer test: any skewer would still show bits attached to it, and that is fine.
It would seem to you that it's not cooked - this is not true. These brownie will become firm when reaching room temperature. If it's summer time, or anywhere above 15 degrees in the kitchen, once the tin reaches room temperature place it in the fridge for an hour or so
TIP: Cut the brownies using a serrated knife only when properly cold and firm
TIP: It would be better (to obtain regular pieces) to use a rectangular or a square baking tin - I use a round one as the other ones I have don't have a removable bottom