one bowl chocolate, espresso, and white choc chunk brownies

Gosh I made these sooo long ago – and have been just too lazy to write them up – and I’m sorry because they are delicious.  Really really scrumptious, rich, moist, fudge-like, decadent and well – truly different from other brownies.  And oh, they freeze really well.  Crazy well.  I served them recently (from the freezer) and Stephanie said “wow, wow, this is crazy good” – I’m not sure she remembers that she said that last time but I do!   I know white chocolate turns many off – but again, if you use really good quality then you might be surprised.  Don’t buy chips here – buy a bar and chop it yourself.  So tasty.  It has been a while since I first served these treats, but I do remember someone (other than Stephanie) who ooohed and aaahed and said the best!  And I felt proud which is really silly because I only followed the recipe.  Anyway, make them.  Enjoy –

one-bowl chocolate, espresso, and white chocolate chunk brownies (from Simply Sensational Cookies by Nancy Bagett:

3/4 cup (1.5 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into chunks
3 1/2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, broken up or coarsely chopped
2 1/2 ounces 65-75 percent cacao bittersweet chocolate, broken up or coarsely chopped
1 2/3 cup sugar
generous 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
4 large eggs, room temp
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder dissolved in 2 tablespoons hot water
3/4 cup all purpose flour
8-10 ounces coarsely chopped good quality white chocolate

Place rack in middle of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees.

Line an 9 inch square baking pan with foil, letting the foil slightly overhang on each side.  Grease the foil or coat with spray.

In a heavy large saucepan, heat the butter and chocolates on the lowest heat and stir constantly until melted.  Remove from heat.  I usually opt to melt the butter and chocolate over a pot of simmering water.  That way I can let it sit and not worry about overheating or stirring.  So do what feels comfy to you.  The microwave works well too.

Stir the sugar and salt into the chocolate mixture until fully incorporated and the batter as cooled to warm.  Vigorously stir in the eggs, one at a time, and then the vanilla and espresso mixture.  Stir until the mixture is smooth and shiny.

Stir in the flour until just evenly combined.

Place half the batter into the prepared pan.  Sprinkle about a third of the white chocolate evenly over the top and cover with remaining batter.  Spread the rest of the white chocolate chunks all around.  Bang the pan on the counter to embed the pieces slightly.

Bake 25-35 minutes – until edges are just pulling away from the sides of the pan and a toothpick comes out almost clean (the bottom will should still be moist and gooey.)

While the brownies bake, fill a large shallow pan a 1/2 inch deep with ice cubes and water.  When brownies are done, place the pan into the shallow ice water to immediately stop continued cooking.  Let stand until completely cooled – 30-45 m.

Refrigerate the slab for 45 m so it will cut easily (or just cut messy!)  Invert onto a cutting board to carefully remove foil.  Then place ride side up.

Cut – and use a damp paper towel to wipe the blade in between cuts.

These are so good cold or room temp.

Enjoy!

white chocolate bittersweet choc

So these too were scrumptious.  Last Friday I went on a tear and decided to try some new things for My Sister’s Place.  The s’mores, these cake bars and oatmeal molasses cookies.  All three were hits.  This one especially!  Andy said “these are the BEST mom, they are sooo good with the biggest chunks of chocolate that I love.”  Collin too said these were his favorites.  A hit with the rest of us too.  I think the melted white chocolate in the batter fulfills my sweet needs and the big big chunks of bittersweet chocolate are a perfect foil to the sweet batter.  Rob thought so too.  Everyone expected a brownie texture but they are more cake-y than we expected but that was really OK.  I do hope the shelter enjoyed as well!  Enjoy –

white chocolate bittersweet chocolate brownies: (from Dede Wilson’s A Baker’s Field Guide to Chocolate Chip Cookies):

1 cup all purpose flour
1/3 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup (one stick) unsalted butter — softened to room temp
4 ounces white chocolate chopped fine (please use really good quality white chocolate or don’t bother with these)
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup (about 5 ounces) bittersweet chocolate chunks (1/2 inch chunks are yummy)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line 9 inch square baking pan with butter or foil (with overhang so you can simply pull out the dessert once cool).

Whisk together the salt and flour.

Fill a saucepan with about an inch of water and bring to a boil – then switch to low simmer.  Place butter and chopped white chocolate in a metal bowl and set over the simmering water.  Melt gently.  Watch and remove once melted.  Let cool slightly.

With the whisk attachment of your mixer (or hand held beaters) beat together the sugar, eggs, and vanilla until light and fluffy.  5-6 minutes.

Gently fold in the white choc/butter mixture into this and then fold flour into batter until just combined.  Fold in chocolate chunks.

Pour into pan and bake until edges begin to turn golden and pull away from sides of the pan.  30-35 minutes.  Toothpick should come out with some moist crumbs…don’t over bake!

Let cool – cut and serve with a smile…

And enjoy –

s’mores cookie bar

So these are for me.  100 percent completely over the top sweet, gooey and just packed with chips and deliciousness.  I realized I was muttering to myself the other day as I was sampling another piece…I heard someone saying this is ridiculous, ridiculous – and realized it was me!  Matt really loved these too – said awesome Lisi!  I also heard from my contact from My Sister’s Place and she said that they were a hit.  Oh, and Beth, if you are reading this, you come to mind because I know you share this kind of sweet tooth.  Unfortunately, these are NOT for everyone.  Rob said he would like them if I used dark chocolate instead of milk and I bet many other people would prefer that as well – especially adults.  Nuts too might cut the sweetness factor.  I happen to love toasted marshmallows so that too just hit the spot for me.  I will say that these are very hard to cut.  And when you do cut them, make sure you cut them into bite sized pieces because they are so rich and sweet you will feel ill if you eat too much (trust me, I know!)  Enjoy –

BTW – delicious in vanilla ice cram.

Also these are super easy.

s’mores cookie bar from Dedi Wilson’s A Baker’s Field Guide to Chocolate Chip Cookies (only change I made was the addition of salt):

1/2 cup (one stick) unsalted butter, melted
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 and 1/2 cups milk chocolate chips
one – 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
2 cups mini marshmallows
2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
pinch or two of sea salt (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Combine graham crumbs, butter and salt and then press into a 9 inch square pan.

Sprinkle milk chocolate chips evenly over the rust, then drizzle the condensed milk over the chips.

Bake until golden brown and bubbly, about 30-35 m.

Place pan on rack to cool slightly while you get the broiler going (adjust the rack).

Sprinkle marshmallows evenly over the top and broil until they are lightly browned (about 2 minutes – but may take longer or shorter depending on many things – so check!)  When I broiled mine, I burnt the marshmallows, but realized i could just scoop them off and start again (well, that was Sylvie’s idea!)

Once marshmallows are nice and golden, remove and then sprinkle the semi-sweet chips on top of that!  Sprinkle a tad of flaky salt on top if you like that sweet salty thing.  I do.

Cool at least 15 m.  Then (try to) cut and enjoy!

momofukus butter cake bars

OK, so these bars were interestingly good which I know can be a shaky description.  But read on.  Karen LOVED LOVED LOVED them.  Effusive.  Rob liked them saying if you like custard they are right up your alley.  Someone also said that the inside looked like snot which is not so nice…but gave us a laugh and I guess if your snot is yellow and custard-y then so be it.  Did I mention that Karen LOVED these?  The crackly top and oozing custard was my fave.  The bottom of the cake was my only issue.  I rarely use a box cake mix but this recipe called for it so I gave it a whirl.  The taste isn’t for me so I ate the top off.  Anyway, if you look at all the comments from Tastspotting.com and from Some Kitchen Stories (who posted these on Tastespotting) you will see many a fabulous comment.  We all got the recipe from Gilt Taste when they featured the bars and the recipe from Momofuku.  Enjoy –

momofukus butter cake bars:

Find the recipe at Tastspotting.com

Only tip I have is to maybe use a 9×9 cake pan — as these are super gooey and easy to under bake.  Enjoy!!

Toll House kookie brittle

Yummy!!!  Crunchy, buttery, chocolaty, salty and nutty – well, that says it all!  A shortbread version of a Toll House Cookie.  Without eggs and a bit less sweet this is a great alternative to the classic cookie.  So VERY easy to make, and pretty to look at – another great choice for a cookie platter or a hostess gift.  My Aunt Suzi shared this recipe because she loves it.  When I was little she used to bring us canisters of Toll House cookies and boy did I love that (and her!)  Also the way she cut my steak into tiny little pieces without a speck of fat (my mom didn’t get this) – but I digress.  Moving back to the cookie, make them and enjoy!  Might be nice for the Superbowl.

Oh, and so so so good in vanilla ice cream.  Seriously delicious.

toll house kookie brittle (from my Aunt Suzi):

I doubled this – goes fast!

1 cup butter (2 sticks), softened (not melted)
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla,
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup sugar
2 cups flour
12 oz package of Toll House chocolate chips
3/4 cup finely chopped salted pecans

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Combine the butter, vanilla, sugar and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer (or hand held) and blend well with the paddle attachment.  Fully incorporate the sugar into the butter.  I think my aunt may not use a mixer at all…

On the lowest speed or by hand (and I mean with your actual hand) add the flour and chocolate chips.

Press batter onto a parchment lined sheet pan and press so that the dough is about a half inch thick.  Alternately, Press evenly into a 15x10x1 inch baking pan.

Sprinkle the pecans over the dough and press them in so they stick.  If your pecans are unsalted, sprinkle a little sea salt on top of the pecans.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until nicely golden

Cool and cut into pieces.  Enjoy!

seven-layer bars

Serious scrumptiousness.  Rich, sweet and addictive.  Seven layers of delight. I can’t stop picking at them.  I keep talking to myself, oh, I’ll just have a nibble even though it is 10 AM, then oh, what’s another little sliver at noon (before lunch is big for me), then another sliver around 4 and before I realize it I’m full and slightly nauseated from the days tastings.  I don’t even love coconut but managed to gobble these up.  Judy summed it up nicely stating very simply, “this is the perfect food.”  Karen echoed that with lots of mmmms and then added my usual line,”this would be perfect with vanilla ice cream!” (girl after my own heart).  (Happy birthday BTW.)  And Chrissi nodded, smiled, and said quietly, “really good Lisi.”  Cooks County Magazine’s Diane Unger really perfected this recipe.  No more butterscotch chips (I’m not a fan) and added little goodies here and there that make an even more delicious bar than the Hello Dolly bars (or Magic bars) of yore.  She worked hard fiddling with Heath Bars and Rice Krispies and really the only change I made was to add a touch of salt to the crust and a tad of sea salt to the top.  I can’t resist the sweet salty thing and neither will you (well, I think!)

You can prep a few of the ingredients in advance so that baking day is even simpler.

seven-layer bars (from Diane Ungers recipe in The Cooks County Magazine):

1 cup toffee bits (Heath or Skor Bars)
2 cups minus 2 tablespoons graham cracker crumbs
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
8 ounces milk chocolate – chopped into smallish chunks.  (I used Ghirardelli milk chocolate chips.  Or use a block chocolate.)
1 cup Rice Krispies cereal
1 cup pecans, toasted and chopped
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup sweetened flaked coconut, toasted
2 (14 oz) cans sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated milk)
1 tablespoon real vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line a 9×13 pan with foil and make sure there is excess foil that hangs over the edges.  Grease the foil with butter or spray – and don’t forget the sides.

As mentioned above, you can prep the 3 ingredients below a day or 2 or 3 in advance.  This will make life easier on baking day.

1. Toast the nuts in the oven at 350 degrees for about 7-10 minutes or until fragrant.  Cool and chop coarsely.

2. Toast the coconut for a bit longer.  I’m forgetting what I did – but some of it should turn a nice golden brown and it should dry out a bit.  Stir it up every now and then as you toast it.

3. Process the toffee bits (I broke up Heath Bars) in a food processor to a fine powder.  You need one cup total.

Ok, now time to assemble.

Mix together the graham cracker crumbs and the fine toffee crumbs and add 2 pinches of kosher salt.  Add the melted butter and mix well to incorporate.  Press the mixture into your prepped pan and try to press it out evenly – the corners too.

Bake for about 8 – 10 minutes – it should just start to brown.

Once out of the oven, immediately sprinkle the chocolate chunks over the crust.  Let sit about 2 minutes – allowing the chocolate to soften, and then spread and smooth it into and even layer.  Use the back of a spoon or an off set spatula if you have one (makes it easier).

Next, place the Rice Krispies on top of the melted chocolate layer.  Try to do this evenly and then gently press them into the chocolate.

Add layers of chopped pecans, chocolate chips and toasted coconut (in that order) and press each layer to adhere.

Whisk together the condensed milk and the vanilla.  Pour evenly over the coconut.

Sprinkle a little bit of sea salt (I love Maldon) to the top (this is optional but adds a great nuance).

Place in oven and bake until golden brown – for about 25-30 minutes.  I had to place mine on the top rack towards the end in order for it to brown nicely.  Didn’t want it to bake extra.  See how your oven does and do what you need to do.

Let the bars cool for 2 hours.  Then simply pull the foil up with the uncut bars and place on counter.  Pull the foil free from the sides.  Cut and serve gooey that day (and pop into that ice cream) or loosely wrap with foil and let the bars harden (I like it like this) and cut the next day.

Enjoy-

gingerbread and white chocolate chunk blondies

Soft moist gingerbread with sweet chunks of white chocolate throughout make these a little different and extra special.  Please don’t discount these based on the white chocolate because I love them!  I really love them.  Sylvie is right on board with me. Rob’s brother Eric  said “delicious!”  and Kathy and Thomas agreed.  They speak to us.  If you use high quality white chocolate (a must) I promise that even you white chocolate haters will enjoy.  Rob is one of those haters – and guess what, he likes them a lot!  (OK, he did pull out some of the white chunks, but kept some in too.)  Linda and Patrick were super reluctant to try but after much prompting they did, and they thought waay better than expected.  Of course they mentioned that dark chocolate would be fabulous next time.  But I really enjoy the sweet creamy white chocolate combined with the warm winter spices.  Next time I might add cranberries to pucker the flavor a bit.  Perfect for holiday celebrations as they are very easy to make and a great addition to a festive holiday cookie platter.  Oh, and they freeze well too.  Enjoy-

This recipe makes two 8×8 pans.

gingerbread and white chocolate chunk blondies (originally from Martha Stewart Living, December 2007 – but found on one of my favorite blogs, Technicolor Kitchen)

2 3/4 plus 1 tablespoon flour (395 grams)
1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, room temp
1 1/4 packed light-brown sugar (218 grams)
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar (124 grams)
2 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/3 cup unsulfured molasses
9 ounces good quality white chocolate chopped (I like both big and small pieces throughout).  Or white choc chips.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line two 8×8 square pans with foil so that it hangs over the edges.  Look toward the bottom of  baking tips for a visual.  Lightly butter the foil.

Whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves.  Set aside.

Beat the butter and brown and white sugars with the paddle attachment of you mixer.  Beat on medium high speed until paler and fluffy – about 5 minutes.  Scrape the bowl down every now and then.

Add the eggs, and yolk, one at a time – beat well after each addition and again, scrape down bowl.  Beat in the vanilla and molasses .  On the lowest speed, add the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.  Do not over-mix.  Fold or mix in the white chocolate chunks.

Spread the batter evenly between the two pans.  Bake until a toothpick comes out just clean and the edges are golden.  About 32-37 minutes.

Let cool and then pull out from pans with the foil overhang.  Cut into squares when completely cool.  Serve.  Delicious.

They last for about a week in an airtight container and they freeze well too.

Enjoy-

nutella fudge mini-cupcakes

Splendid little nuggets of goodness.  I mean ri-dic-u-lous!  If you are a Nutella fan then these are for you!!  Sylvie and I ate these right up.  I’m hoping Nutella fan Cousin Daniel did too (sent him a package).  If you are Nutella lover, try this recipe!  Nutella, eggs, flour and salt make Nutella flavored magic.  I paired these with caramelized bananas and some delicious ice cream and wow!!!  I don’t have much else to say about these.  They take only about 5 minutes to prepare, 10 minutes to cook and you’ve got a delicious treat.  No mess, no fuss…these are truly a winner.  Enjoy –

I doubled the batter to make 24 mini cupcakes.  Below is just for 12.  I imagine that they freeze well.  Do not over bake!  Oh, and if you do over bake, follow my friend Nora’s advice – she frosted the slightly overcooked cupcake with Nutella to add a little extra wetness and sprinkled with confectioners’ sugar.  Pretty and a good idea regardless…

nutella fudge mini-cupcakes (barely adapted from Fine Cooking Cookies 2010 Magazine):

1/2 cup Nutella spread
1 large egg
5 tablespoons all purpose flour (look at baking tips for flour measuring)
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt, or a pinch
1/8th – 1/4 cup toasted hazelnuts (optional)

Nutella – to frost (optional)

*again, this makes only 12 mini muffins.  double the batter to make 24.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and place the rack in the center of the oven.  Line mini-muffin pans with paper liners.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the Nutella and the egg until smooth.  Add the the flour and salt and mix until blended.

Spoon the batter into the prepped pans about 3/4’s full and then sprinkle with the toasted nuts if you are using.

Bake until a toothpick comes out with crumbs (wet and a little gooey) – about 8-12 minutes.  Really try not to over bake.  The beauty is in their wetness which will dry out if overcooked.

Let cool in pan for 5 minutes then remove and let cool on a rack.  These are great served warm or room temp later on in the day.

Enjoy-

heartland turtle bars (amazing)

The best reviews so far!  True love.  Crazy love. Rob said really good.  Then about 5 minutes later turned to me and said “I really like those bars.”  (And this means that he was thinking about them for 5 whole minutes.)  Sylvie said OMG I love these!  Alisa followed my lead and mixed them with ice cream and caramelized bananas, commenting “the best ever.”  Greg’s friends Matt said  “unbelievable” trying to sum it up in one word.  And Jamie explained, “I really like the mixture of sweetness and crunch” while Sam added “so good like a cookie and a brownie mixed but better.”  Sylvie’s friend Abigail smiled and said, “so good – I love that it is creamy and crunchy.”  Ali said these were on her all time fave list and that Danika thought they should be called yum bars.  Jodi and Mike loved these too.  I brought some to them as they cooked for us, but I must admit that I didn’t share with anyone else. Sorry adult tasters, too good.  Too too good.  These are buttery and rich and so very flavorful – so cut them into small bites but seriously, the nuts, caramel, oats, salt and chocolate – well, these cannot be beat.  Can’t wait for my treat tonight!  Enjoy –

heartland turtle bars (only adapted a tiny tiny bit from Baked Explorations by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito):

base and topping –

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 3/4 cup rolled oats (old fashioned)
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter – melted
1 cup toasted pecans – chopped coarsely
1 3/4 cup chocolate chips

caramel filling –

1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
10 tablespoons butter (1 1/4 stick) – room temp and cut into pieces
2 tablespoons heavy cream
pinch kosher salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and first toast and cool pecans.  Chop.  Keep oven on.

Butter the sides and bottom of a 9×13 glass or light colored metal baking pan.  You can line this with parchment or foil (as seen in baking tips) if you also want the ease of pulling these out of the pan easily.  In this case I didn’t line and found the bars fairly easy to cut and remove from the pan.

In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, salt and baking soda.  Add the brown sugar and use your hands to rub and crumble it in until somewhat smooth.  Stir in the oats and mix until evenly combined.  Make a well in the center and add the melted butter and mix again, until wet and combined.

Spread about 2/3’s of the dough into the pan and press it to cover any holes.  Bake for about 12 minutes.  Remove the pan to let cool, but keep the oven on.

Sprinkle the the toasted pecans and chocolate chips over the slightly cooled crust.  Then make the caramel.

caramel –

In a medium sized saucepan over medium-high heat, melt the butter and the brown sugar and bring to a boil.  Let boil for about a minute to 90 seconds – stirring constantly – the caramel will begin to darken at this point.

Remove the pan from the heat and now carefully add the heavy cream – stirring with a long wooden spoon and step away from the saucepan as you do this as this is VERY hot and can sputter  up a bit.  Mix in.

Being careful (this stuff burns) evenly pour the caramel over the chocolate and pecan layer.  Sprinkle the remaining 1/3 of the dough (the base and top oat dough) on top of the caramel.

Bake for about 14-18 minutes or until the top is golden brown.

Let the bars cool for a bit – 15 min or so.  These are sooooo good warm and fresh out of the oven – but messy and do fall apart – but good!  Oh, with ice cream!  You can also let them set up for a few hours and cut later.  If you want to speed up the cooling process – place in fridge after about 20 minutes and cool for about an hour – they will firm up faster.

They last nicely at room temp for 3-4 days.

Enjoy-

double fudge frosted brownies

Wow.  Really really good.  Really delicious! Everyone LOVED these.  I know, I know, I really do know, another brownie!  I couldn’t help it.  I can’t.  I needed a special treat for a family in need – and decided that the double fudge frosted brownies from my new book, Diner Desserts, looked like a match.  My parents planned a visit that weekend as well, so I made double so we could all enjoy and sample.  And we did!  My dad who is a big chocolate guy loved these, and my mom who really doesn’t indulge in sweets too often kept taking tiny slices throughout the weekend exclaiming…”I really love these Lisi!”  Sometimes I think she can’t believe that I can actually bake.  She’s the best – but I’m getting close.  Once I master her pie crust, well, then I might actually be a contender.  Anyway – kids – friends – parents, all agreed that these were scrumptious.  I will say that Rob would have preferred a dark chocolate glaze-like frosting instead of this fluffier sweet chocolate one.  And I do get that, but these hit the mark with most.  Store them in the fridge – but take out and let warm to room temp before eating (although I happen to like them cold).  Enjoy –

double fudge frosted brownies (from Diner Desserts by Tish Boyle):

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temp
1/2 cup lightly packed light brown sugar
6 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1/4 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/3 teaspoon kosher salt
chocolate chips and or toasted nuts (to taste, optional)

frosting–

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, but into tablespoons
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate
1 ounce milk chocolate
1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line a square 8×8 baking pan with tin foil so that it extends beyond the pan (look at baking tips for help with this).

Place the chocolates and butter in a medium bowl over a pot with an inch of  simmering water (or double boiler).  Once melted, remove from heat and stir in the sugar and then the eggs, one at a time.  Mix in the vanilla.  Add the flour and salt and mix vigorously until the mixture is shiny and smooth (normally we don’t want to over mix but this recipe is different).

Add the chocolate chips if using (or nuts) and pour into the prepped pan and smooth top.  Bake for about 35-40 minutes – or until toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs.  Try not to over bake!

Let brownies cool on a rack for a bit (at least 3o min) – then remove by pulling up the foil ends and place on rack to cool completely.

For the frosting…place the butter and both types of chocolate in a medium saucepan and heat over verrrry low heat (or again in a double boiler).  Stir constantly – you want to melt this – not cook or burn it.

Transfer the melted chocolate and butter to the bowl of an electric mixer and add half the confectioners’s sugar, the salt and half the cream.  Beat with the paddle at low speed, then add the remaining confectioners’ sugar, cream an then the vanilla.  Beat on medium speed until the frosting is nice and smooth and shiny.

Spread the frosting over the cool uncut brownies.

Cut as you wish and serve at room temp.  Store uneaten brownies in the fridge…but be sure to pull up to room temp before you serve next (although I do like them cold and in ice cream :))

Enjoy-