Served at the 2016 Chocolate Wine Trail
Brownie:
- 12oz dark chocolate, chopped (try to spring for the best quality chocolate you can afford)
- 1 cup butter, cut into pieces
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- ¼ cup hazelnut liqueur (you can also use almond liqueur, orange liqueur, or plain coffee)
- 4 large eggs
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Ganache:
- 9oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped
- ¾ cup cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- Optional – ¼ to ½ cup red wine per batch Preheat oven to 300 F
Make the brownie base. Line an 8×8 baking dish with foil and butter.
In a saucepan over low heat, combine chocolate and butter, stirring constantly until completely melted. Stir in the cocoa powder until smooth. Remove from heat and stir in hazelnut liqueur (or any liqueur you chose)
In a medium bowl, beat eggs and sugar together until thickened. Stir in vanilla extract. Fold in egg mixture into chocolate mixture in four batches, gently mixing until fully incorporated. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes until edges start to get firm and slightly pull away from the pan (the center will appear under-baked). Cool completely in pan on wire rack.
To make the ganache. Place bittersweet chocolate in a medium bowl. In a saucepan over medium heat, bring cream to right before boiling point. (you can also make ganache in the microwave, by heating the cream for two minutes.) pour over chocolate and let stand for a minute to allow the chocolate to melt. Add the vanilla extract and salt, stir until smooth and glossy. Let the ganache stand for 10 minutes before pouring on top of brownie pan.
Refrigerate for at least four hours before slicing, or freeze for at least two hours.
Best served chilled with fresh berries, and Dierberg Star Lane Pinot Noir.
