A Spontaneous Monday Night Baking Adventure

The new Bon Appétit came today, and sure enough (because Valentine’s Day is coming up) on the cover is a picture of brownies. “Best Ever Brownies,” it says, atop a stack of four perfectly walnut studded fudgy brownies.

Zach took one look and promptly asked if I’d make them. On a work night! “If we have walnuts,” I replied. There was some rummaging through the cabinets. And then there was a trip to the grocery store. And then just as they were coming out of the oven there was even a brother who stopped by after seeing a FB post mentioning brownies.

Cocoa Brownies with Browned Butter and Walnuts.

I just noticed that the total time listed for the recipe is 4 hours 50 minutes. Yea, right. Like anyone can really wait that long to let brownies cool before digging in. Not in this house.

The best part of these brownies to me was actually making them (gasp, I know). There are very few things I enjoy making more than I enjoy eating. Brownies is one of them, though. I like a good brownie, don’t get me wrong, but I love the shiny batter that brownies produce more. I love hot, melted chocolate. I mixing the batter by hand. I love that you only add in a few really good ingredients. I love pouring out the batter and spreading it evenly in the pan.

And these had an extra kicker because they involved browning butter. Making browned butter is…pretty great. You watch the butter melt slowly, you patiently watch it brown while stirring occasionally, and then it happens—the smell changes. Nuttiness takes over. I actually made Zach come smell the browned butter tonight over the stove.

I think we three waited about 10 minutes tops before we cut into them. First impressions? Good. Ooey, gooey, and I think I could actually taste the browned butter. I’m withholding full critique until I actually taste them after they have cooled. But for now, I’d say they’re a safe bet.

Page 91, if you’re interested.