On the Plate: Reaching for the chocolate – and blonde brownies – again

It’s been so chilly I find myself reaching for a mug of hot chocolate again as we slide into winter. And what better way to enjoy with my steaming cup of hot chocolate in the afternoon – than with a brownie!

I’ve always been amused by the seemingly weird term – blonde brownies. When can a blonde be a “brownie”? This is right up there with fondly calling folks with red hair “blood nut”. Tim Minchin nailed it for me in his song Prejudice with the lyrics stating “Only a Ginger can call another Ginger”. You see, I was born strawberry blonde, as they say – now I’m silver!
Enough about hair colour types and back to the cooking. I’ll begin with a brownie that is indeed chocolate, definitely brown, and can be made in the microwave oven. I figure this could be handy as you may be at the coast or in the high country in rental digs, or indeed just giving the caravan an airing in the backyard after all those weeks of being in lockdown?
It’s a curious term, “brownie” – apparently devised by a chef at a leading hotel in Chicago to meet a customer’s request for a small piece of cake, easily eaten from a “boxed lunch” repast at a fair for ladies.
The earliest recipe appeared in a book in 1904, but a revised recipe of 1907 added an extra egg and more chocolate – known as the Bangor Brownie – possibly because they were made from a lady in Bangor, Maine. Brownies are a cross between a cake and (I have to use the term here) cookie – as they are dense, rich, fudgy, cake-like but with a crispy crust. I’ve added my own variation here by chopping a small Cherry Ripe confection into the batter, and some walnuts. This creates a nice surprise to bite into the cherry-coconut chunks!
So, no need to preheat the microwave here – simply grease a 20cm square oven-proof dish and line with baking paper. Cream 125g butter together with 1 ½ cups brown sugar. Add 2 teaspoons vanilla essence and 3 eggs: mix well. Melt 200g good quality chocolate in a bowl 2-3 mins on setting 500W/medium/50 per cent. Stir into butter mix. Fold in ¼ cup plain flour, pinch of salt, 150g walnuts (or the Cherry Ripe confection if using). Spread mixture into dish – place on a rack and cook 10 mins 500W/Med/50 per cent. Carefully remove from oven and scatter 100g each chopped milk and dark chocolate bits and 100g walnuts over brownie and cook a further 5-6 mins at same heat setting. Allow to cool in dish – preferably overnight – can be served warm with ice-cream or a chocolate sauce for a total overload of reaching for the chocolate!
I’m always yearning for all things chocolatey, and dipping into my recently ‘clipped’ recipes from the daily papers, I was inspired to try out a new recipe by Helen Goh for a blonde brownie. With the addition of the berries, this is a really delicious sweetie to enjoy with a cup of tea – or hot chocolate!

Lemon Blonde Brownies with Berries

INGREDIENTS
200g plain flour
½ teaspn baking powder
½ teaspn bi-carb soda
¼ teaspn salt
250g butter, cut into large dice
300g caster sugar
1 tbpn lemon zest
100ml lemon juice
3 small eggs, lightly beaten
120g mixed frozen berries (or fresh berries, raspberries, blueberries, strawberries – which are a little expensive at the moment).
Icing sugar to dust on top

METHOD
Preheat oven to 190C (170C fan forced). Line a 20cm square cake tin with baking paper, allowing the paper to hang up & over the sides. Sift flour, baking powder, bi-carb soda and salt into a bowl. Gently melt the butter in a small saucepan, then add the sugar and lemon zest – stir to combine. Continue to cook and stir until the mixture is quite hot – about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat, and using a whisk beat in the lemon juice and then the eggs. Pour this mixture into the flour etc – whisk slightly until just combined. Pour into cake tin and scatter the berries over the top. Place on middle shelf in the oven and bake 35-40 minutes until golden brown, and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out ‘clean’ of batter. Remove from oven and place cake tin on wire rack – allow to cool completely before lifting the brownie out of the tin. Use a small sieve to dust the top with icing sugar and cut into small squares. Makes 10-12 pieces.