Aggie Mackenzie says… “My friend Fiona gave me this recipe about 20 years ago, when our children were babies. This is the first time I’ve seen this recipe in grams. Everyone loves a brownie, which is why I always make double and freeze half. Thawing takes hardly any time. Just bring them out of the freezer about half an hour before you want to eat them.”
Preparation: 10 minutes, Cooking time: 20 minutes, Makes around 32 very rich squares
INGREDIENTS
125g/4½oz/1 generous stick butter, plus extra for greasing
125g/4½oz good dark Fairtrade chocolate
3 large eggs
300g/10½oz/1½ cups soft light brown Fairtrade sugar
2 tsp Fairtrade vanilla extract
150g/5½oz/1 generous cup self-raising flour
25g/1oz Fairtrade cocoa powder
125g/4oz pecans or Fairtrade walnuts, toasted and roughly chopped
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/350ºF/gas mark 4.
Step 2
Put the butter and chocolate in a heatproof bowl and melt on low in a microwave, checking it every couple of minutes. (Alternatively, put it over a pan of simmering water, making sure the base doesn’t touch the water, and allow it to melt slowly.)
Step 3
Stir the two ingredients together, then set aside to cool a little.
Step 4
Grease and line a 16 x 26cm/6¼ x 10½in baking tin with baking parchment.
Step 5
Whisk the eggs, sugar and vanilla extract in a bowl until thick and moussey. When you lift the whisk out of the bowl, it should leave a ribbon-like trail.
Step 6
Sift the flour and cocoa over the mousse mixture, then pour the chocolate mixture carefully around it. Add the nuts.
Step 7
Use a large metal spoon to fold everything together. You can be gentle at first, so as not to knock out too much air, but towards the end use firm, fast strokes.
Step 8
Pour into the prepared tin and bake for 20 minutes.
Step 9
Cool in the tin. Lift out and cut into squares. Clever cooking
Step 10
It’s crucial not to overbake these – the gooeyness is the whole point. You need to have the confidence to remove them from the oven almost before you think they’re ready.
To freeze
To freeze, keep the brownie in any baking parchment that you’ve cooked it in. Wrap the whole thing in clingfilm (plastic wrap)and freeze for up to one month. To thaw, take the packet out of the freezer and unwrap half an hour before you want to eat them.
This recipe has been created by Aggie Mackenzie for Fairtrade Fortnight. This year, The Fairtrade Foundation is calling on the British public to choose products on their shopping list that change lives. Take the quick personality test at fairtrade.org.uk/fortnight, say what matters most to you and see how Fairtrade is changing lives in those areas.
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