Dark chocolate and caramelized almond brownie, sweet madness

Total: 45 min Diners: 8

I think one of the easiest recipes in baking are brownies, those dense sponge cakes with lots of chocolate and little flour that should be juicy and are the temptation of all chocolate lovers. They are easy because they do not involve all the technical problems that sponge cakes can entail and, moreover, because in less than fifteen minutes we can have a brownie ready. All you need to do is melt, mix and bake, as it were. Without fear of trivializing the task, I can say that making a brownie at home can be a perfect task to undertake with the little ones and thus cook with children on those days when it rains or we have to be cooped up at home yes or yes.

The possibilities for making a brownie are endless, allowing us many variations and the use of many types of chocolate and, of course, make hybrids with other sweet recipes. The key to a perfect brownie is to get a balance in the ingredients and their amounts and give it the right amount of oven just enough, no more, no less.

After baking I always recommend that it cools completely before touching it because otherwise you run the risk that you can destroy everything completely. Normally, the brownie is usually made in a rectangular mold, but I also like to make it in a circular mold to make it easier to unmold a posteriori, something you should always keep in mind before you start making any cake, pie or sponge cake.

This brownie base can be used to make many variations such as, for example, add some white chocolate cubes, incorporate another type of nuts, add a little peanut butter or some cheese or even turn it into a brownie with red fruits. It turns out totally juicy, not dry at all… a wonderful bomb perfect to finish with a scoop of ice cream.

How to make a dark chocolate and almond brownie

Ingredients

. Dark chocolate for melting, 240 g Salted butter, 280 g Sugar, 320 g Eggs, 4 pcs Flour, 180 g Caramelized almonds, 120 g Extra chocolate chips, 60 g Pure cocoa powder, 40 g Salt, 1/2 teaspoon

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 190 ºC. Prepare a 24 cm circular springform pan by placing a sheet of baking paper on the base and greasing the entire edge with plenty of butter.

Step 2

Melt the butter with the chopped chocolate, I do it in the microwave little by little. It is best to do it 30 seconds at a time, stirring each time and always covered so that it does not explode (because there is a risk) or burn, which can also happen. The ideal is to stop just a little before it is completely melted because then it will finish melting just by the action of mixing everything very well.

Step 3

Incorporate then the salt, sugar and eggs and mix well, ideally with a whisk to integrate well but be careful not to get too much air in the mixture.

Step 4

Add then also the flour and cocoa powder and mix just enough to mix everything well but do not overdo it so that the gluten in the flour does not develop.

Step 5

Incorporate most of the chocolate chips and almonds and mix well. Then pour the mixture into the mold and spread well, it is not a liquid mixture so we will have to help with the spatula to cover the entire mold.

Let stand in the refrigerator for 15 minutes. Top with the rest of the caramelized almonds – or the nuts of your choice – and the chocolate pearls.

Step 6

Put in the preheated oven and cook for 28 minutes. Once it is ready, let it cool on a rack. If we see that it is very tender, put it in the refrigerator for a few minutes to make it more manageable, but always take it out at room temperature for at least 15 minutes before eating.