Cooking For Engineers

[Michael Chu]

[manda]

Hi guys,
My brownies just finished baking a minute ago. But the top of the brownies cracked like a chocolate cake would. Anybody knows why? i followed the recipe I got from www.community.livejournal.com/bakebakebake-few ppl tried it and their brownies looked so awesome, and baked at 180degreeC Ive no idea why my brownies always crack Its happened a few times alrd, Ill try to tuen the temp down when it cracks bt im afraid low temp would not produce a moist brownie, bt a dry one

[sherri]

[justinpaluch]

[jada]

thanks so much for sharing your recipe with everybody!!

mine are currently in the oven and smell great. I live in the UK and used green and blacks cocoa 75% dark chocolate. ( I noticed that one of the posters mentioned it was hard to get the right chocolate here) Its also fair trade which is obviously a bonus.

Does the 160°C stated apply to fan assisted ovens too? or is that for normal ovens?? If the later , this may explain why some people needed to cook for less time and why others experienced the crack....

thanks again xx

[Michael Chu]

[Guest]

Just discovered this web site, by accident really, and it is fantastic, what a brilliant way to set out recipes! Brownies are in the oven and this is the first stress free cooking I have done in ages!
Thank you!

[Jozi Cook]

These were great brownies! I had to bake them a little extra but they were gobbled down by a troop of hungry boys!

I added the coffee to one of two batches and could taste the difference. It really does intensify the chocolate flavour.

Thanks a stack!

[irtx]

The recipe makes a good brownie but I think is improved by the use of UNSWEETENED chocolate VS. semi-sweet (AKA "bittersweet"). Just a little bit more of on the chocolate side of the balance versus the sugar side.
Right on on the website. I love the fact that it assumes that the practitioner is starting from "scratch" ...that is we menfolk frequently do not have the basics folded in to our cosmology at our parent's knees.

[cmg54]

And the result was ... excellent. I made these for my son's birthday. I only substituted dark-brown sugar and only added 1 cup of it, instead of the 1.5. They were a hit with my sons, their friends and my husband. I am not a big fan of chocolate in general and brownies in particular, but even I thought they were pretty smooth and tasty.

Thanks for the presentation of your recipes. Very analytical indeed.

[pulseft]

About the cracked tops of brownies, I just had this happen to me and was wondering why it did. Perhaps it has to do with the oven air being dry and drying out the brownies top, combined with perhaps allowing the mixture to sit a little bit after adding flour, which may give time to rise? I know that in baking breads in the oven, after preheating and right after the dough is in the oven, you toss in about 1/2 cup of water and it prevents the surface from hardening/cracking too soon. I will try this technique next time I cook brownies.

[Guest]

I have had this recipe in my collection for awhile and haven't had a chance to try it until recently. All I can say is that is is the absolute best brownie recipe I have ever had. I have never commented on a recipe before but I knew I had to when I tasted these. They were so moist and chewy and they were even simple. My girlfriend and her whole family loved them so much we made another batch the next day. There is a special place in my heart for these brownies.

[katoodles]

Before I discovered I have a sensitivity to gluten I made these brownies and they were the best brownies I'd ever had! When I found out I needed to cut out all purpose flour I was unable to say good bye to these brownies. I have replaced the flour with 100% almond flour and I have to say they are now EVEN BETTER!!

Thank you!

-K

[Anonymous1]

Just to add two cents to the discussion. In American brownies, those that choose to put nuts in the recipe, the traditional nut to use is walnuts, not pecans. Although I love pecans and have lived in the southern US for decades, walnuts are the better choice for brownies. Secondly, cinnamon & chile added to chocolate is a Mexican recipe (originally Mayan). Some people like it others don't. It's done in chocolate, truffles, and hot chocolate, but not usually in brownies (as brownies aren't part of the Mexican repertoire). Nonetheless, try it if you feel adventurous. Just remember, the chocolate isn't intended to be overly spicy, it just brings out different flavors.

[Guest]

As the recipe contains water in some form or another, the internal temperature of the brownie is limited to the boiling point of water. Of course, the skin dries out, and can see excursions higher than the boiling point. If one cooks the brownie in a bain marie, will the lower temperature, better heat transfer and higher humidity reduce this hard skin effect?

Someone mentioned chipotle in a brownie, which is of course a smoked jalapeno. Beyond nuts or chilis, another thing which goes well into chocolate is bacon. I'm unsure about black pepper in chocolate, but a nice smoked bacon would work. So would a number of the sausages (probably avoiding the ones with black pepper). Citrus zest will go into chocolate nicely. It would be interesting to try a chiffinade (sp?) of peppermint or spearmint leaves. Especially if the bain marie idea works.

But, a nice website. Thanks for sharing.