Today’s recipe comes courteous Deb at Smitten Kitchen, who has taken much fancier photos than anything I snapped mid-preparation. That’s one thing I’ll need to get better at if I’m gonna keep this up.
In times of trouble or joy or, well, boredom, I’ve wandered down the boxed baked goods aisle at the local grocer and perused the various “quick” fix options from Duncan Hines or Betty Crocker to throw together at home. I’ve never found any of the options to be unacceptable or even unappetizing, but given the greater abundance of free time of late, I figured I’d try to make some from scratch. Plus, I got a good deal on some nice 86% cacao chocolate and figured I’d see how it goes.
Any excuse to use a double boiler is a good one, so I got to bust out the Cuisinart set I’ve had for a bit. The exact set doesn’t seem to be available any longer but this one is close and has all the same benefits (quality full-width cores, works with induction, sturdy enough to bang around a bit):
(Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. So if you buy some pots and pans, they kick me a couple bucks. That I’ll probably spend on more groceries to cook. We all win!)
Melted down the chocolate and butter (so much butter) into a saucy consistency, then let it cool a little so the next step didn’t cook the eggs. Something about chocolate scrambled eggs doesn’t appeal to me. Not that I’m here to judge.
Mixed in the eggs and sugar, then the vanilla and salt. Finally, stirred in the flour with a spatula, to avoid over-mixing. I’m not going to turn this thing into one long sales pitch, but if you don’t have a few full silicone spatulas (not those silicone tops fitted to a plastic bottom that come loose or trap water or, ugh, worse), I’d recommend picking some up. Wirecutter’s got good recommendations.
25 minutes at 350º and we’re in business.
BTW, you can use parchment paper or butter or non-stick spray to coat the pan beforehand, but this is the stuff I stand by for any baking application:
Overall, came out real well. Kicked the tail of the last boxed mix I had and, honestly, didn’t take all that much longer between dishes and preparation.
Next time you find yourself in the candy aisle, take a peek at the fancy chocolate and grab yourself a bar. The rest of what you’ll need is already hanging out in your kitchen.