My Favorite Fudgy Brownie Recipe

Thank you King Arthur Flour for publishing this awesome fudgy brownie recipe. I have made it time and time again and it has never failed. Two words for those searching for an awesome brownie recipe - MAKE IT.

King Arthur's Fudge Brownies

*1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
*2 1/4 cups sugar
*4 large eggs
*1 1/4 cups Dutch-process cocoa
*1 teaspoon salt
*1 teaspoon baking powder
*1 teaspoon espresso powder, optional
*1 tablespoon vanilla extract
*1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
*2 cups chocolate chips

1.Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9" x 13" pan.

2. In a medium-sized microwave-safe bowl, or in a saucepan set over low heat, melt the butter, then add the sugar and stir to combine. Return the mixture to the heat (or microwave) briefly, just until it's hot (about 110°F to 120°F), but not bubbling; it'll become shiny looking as you stir it. Heating this mixture a second time will dissolve more of the sugar, which will yield a shiny top crust on your brownies.

3. While the sugar heats a second time, crack the 4 eggs into a bowl, and beat them with the cocoa, salt, baking powder, espresso powder, and vanilla till smooth.

4. Add the hot butter/sugar mixture, stirring until smooth.

5. Add the flour and chips, again stirring until smooth. Note: If you want the chips to remain intact in the baked brownies, rather than melting in, let the batter cool in the bowl for about 20 minutes before stirring in the chips.

6. Spoon the batter into a lightly greased 9" x 13" pan.

7. Bake the brownies for about 30 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, or with just a few moist crumbs clinging to it. The brownies should feel set on the edges, and the center should look very moist, but not uncooked. Remove them from the oven and cool on a rack before cutting and serving.

A very sinful Chocolate Pie

I had a hankering for a rich, chocolatey pie that was truly sinful. I searched and found many recipes for chocolate pies but this one seemed to be a winner. Once I made it, it proved that it was - a keeper.

Bev's Chocolate Pie

Ingredients

2 cups white sugar

5 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 (12 fluid ounce) can evaporated milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 egg yolks

1/4 cup butter

1 recipe pastry for a 9 inch single crust pie

4 egg whites

1/4 cup white sugar

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2.	In a saucepan, whisk together 2 cups sugar, cocoa and flour. Blend in evaporated milk and vanilla. Beat egg yolks, and stir into pan. Add the butter or margarine. Heat, stirring constantly just until butter is melted. Pour filling into unbaked pie shell.
3.	Bake in preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until pie is not "wobbly" when shaken.
4.	Beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually add 1/4 cup sugar, beating constantly, until stiff peaks form. Spread meringue on pie.
5.	Return pie to oven, and bake until meringue is golden

Mexican Chicken

Hubby was getting burned out from the grilled Mesquite Chicken salad that he was having day after day for about a couple of weeks. One night, he suggested I stirfry the chicken breast strips with taco seasoning and veggies. This is the recipe I came up with.

Ingredients:


3 chicken breasts, cut into strips

4 bell-peppers, cut into strips

2 onions, you know what to do ;-)

1 tablespoon Lawry's Seasoned salt

3 to 4 tablespoon taco seasoning

2 tablespoon cooking oil

1. I stir fried the chicken breast strips with Lawry's Seasoned salt. Once the chicken wasn't pink anymore I added the veggies.

2. First, I added the bell peppers and after ten minutes of stri-fryingI dumped the onion slices.

3. When the onion was cooked translucent, I added a whole lot of taco seasoning and a cup of water. I let it simmer until almost all the sauce has evaporated.

Serve with Crispy Fries.

What to do with leftover roast beef

If you are lucky enough to have leftover roast beef (like what happened to me after a sumptuous Father's Day dinner), here's an easy Beef Stew Recipe.

Easy Beef Stew

About 3 cups of leftover roast beef, cubed
1 cup of diced cooked carrots (the ones cooked with the roast beef in the crockpot)
2 cups cubed celery
1 large white onion, diced
3 medium potatoes, cubed
1 cup leftover gravy
2 beef bouillon cubes
2 tablespoons cornstarch miexd with 1/2 cup water


1.In a large wok, saute onions and celery in the oil for 5-7 minutes until they are soft and browned on the edges.
2. Add about 4 cups of water, the beef cubes and bring to a boil.
3.Add the beef cubes and potatoes next. Simmer until the potatoes are almost done. Add the cup of gravy, diced cooked carrots and simmer for a minute or more.
4. Then add the cornstarch slurry to make it the sauce thick. Salt and pepper according to your taste.