Chocolate and Cherry Brownies

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 25 minutes

Makes 28 brownies

Use 1 baking or roasting tin 13 x 10 inch and least 2¼ inch deep

300g unsalted butter

300g dark chocolate (min 60% cocoa solids and broken in pieces)

5 large eggs

450g gran sugar

1 tbs vanilla extract

200g plain flour

1 tsp salt

250g dried or glace cherries

                                                                                                                                   

Preheat oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4.  Line baking tin with paper.

Melt butter and chocolate together in heatproof bowl suspended over a saucepan of simmering water.  Beat eggs, sugar, vanilla extract together in bowl until mixture thick and creamy and coats back of spoon (important bit!!).  When butter and chocolate melted remove from heat and beat in egg mixture.  Sift flour and salt together add to mix.  Beat until smooth.  Stir in cherries.

Pour into tin ensuring mix evenly distributed.  Bake in oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until the whole of the top has formed a light brown crust  that has started to crack.  This giant brownie should not wobble, but should remain gooey on inside. (very important bit – if in doubt undercook – continues to cook out of oven and can get dry)

Leave to cool for 20 minutes before cutting (if you can wait that long to eat a bit!)  in to squares while still in pan.  If you cut it when hot is beautifully gooey inside (my favourite).  If you leave to cool before cutting then it becomes more solid all through, still soft and a bit gooey (easier to eat and looks more ‘proper’). 

Can make with out cherries or with nuts or other dried fruit.

The real trick is to use really good ingredients!  I use all organic stuff and 70% choc solids.

Taken from Green and Blacks Chocolate Recipes  Thank You!

ISBN 1-85626-489-0

More of my friends help me make brownies, thank you Isla and Max. 

Watch them in action!

And a year later  here she is making them for herself!