I will admit to being a brownie snob-and in the worst way.  Ask me if I want a brownie and of course I do, but let it slip that they’re homemade and, well, I just might hesitate.  It’s not that you didn’t buy the most expensive chocolate for them.  It’s not that you used two sticks of butter and six eggs.  I know they will be crazy rich and chocolaty.  It’s the texture I just can’t handle.  Yes, I am one of those: typical boxed mixed brownie texture snob.

I have been experimenting with brownie recipes for awhile, trying to find a homemade version with a suitably firm chew.  Most have been only okay, there was even a recipe we threw out (gasp!), I really liked these, but overall this recipe seemed to provide the best flavor and texture.  Somewhere between chewy and fudgy, they are rich and chocolaty as well.

One of the things I have noticed if you like chewy brownies is that the longer you let them sit, the better the texture.  Unfortunately I don’t even mean hours, but days.  Of course I can know that and still be digging freshly baked brownies out of the pan within minutes of pulling the pan from the oven.  Seriously, if you can wait til the next day or even a couple of days the texture gets better and better. Good luck with that.

Brownies

• 1/3 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder or dark cocoa powder
• 1 tsp instant espresso (optional)
• 5 oz boiling water
• 2 oz unsweetened chocolate (like Ghirardelli, two squares)
• 4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted or chopped
• 5 oz vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• 2 egg yolks
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 3/4 cups bread flour or all purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup bittersweet chocolate chips (like Harshey’s special dark)

1. Preheat oven to 350°.  Grease a 13 x 9 pan.
2. Measure water into a glass measure cup and microwave for three minutes.  Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk together cocoa powder and espresso.
3. Once water boils, pour over cocoa powder and whisk until smooth.
4. Add unsweetened chocolate, butter, oil, eggs, egg yolks, vanilla, and sugar, one at a time, whisking until each is smoothly incorporated.
5. Switch to a rubber spatula or wooden spoon and stir in flour and salt until combined.  Stir in bittersweet chocolate chips.
6. Bake 30-35 minutes or until tester in center comes out clean.  Take care if using glass or dark pans to adjust the cooking time.
7. Cool brownies in the pan as long as humanly possible.  At my house that’s about 10-15 minutes.

My mother-in-law makes a quick, easy onion dip using Lipton onion soup mix, sour cream and cream cheese that has been a party staple in our house.  It’s a good dip to make when you are out of time and need to bring something to the party.  If you have a little more time (and this dip gets beter and better the longer it sits) this from scratch version is really flavorful and impressive.

French Onion Dip

• 1 tbsp oil
• 1 tbsp butter
• 2 onions, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp beef base or 1 cube beef bouillon
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 tsp Worchestershire Sauce
• 16 oz sour cream
• 3 oz cream cheese

1. Heat butter and oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.
2. Cook onions and garlic until soft and browned.
3. Add beef base or boullion and water and continue to cook until mixture is combined.
4. Season with Worchestershire sauce and salt and pepper to taste.  Can be made in advance, cool and refrigerate onion mixture until ready to use.
5. Using a hand held mixer (if necessary), combine sour cream, cream cheese, and onion mixture.
6. Chill dip at least 30 minutes or up to several days.  Taste and adjust seasonings as desired before serving.

You really have to let the flavors develop in this dip.  If you try to serve it right away it will be bland and possibly even a little overly sweet from the caramelized onions.  I suggest making the dip at least a day ahead and letting it chill until serving time (if you can stay out of it that long!).

Weekends are wonderful: sleeping in, knowing that a whole day of relaxation stretches ahead of you, lazy breakfasts, and quality time spent with the ones you see too little of during fast-paced weekdays.  This weekend, embrace your lazy day and start it with a fortifying breakfast.

Blueberry Pancakes

• 4 tbsp butter
• 2 cups buttermilk (or milk plus 2 tbsp lemon juice)
• 2 eggs, separated
• 2 cups pancake mix
• 2 cups blueberries (or chocolate chips!)

1. In a glass measuring cup, melt butter in the microwave (about 30 seconds) and allow to cool to room temperature.  Heat a griddle over medium heat.
2. Measure buttermilk and pour into a large bowl.
3. Holding one hand over the bowl, crack an egg into your hand and allow the white to run between your fingers and into the bowl.  Drop the egg yolk into the butter and whisk quickly to combine.  Repeat with the second egg.
4. Whisk buttermilk and egg whites until combined.  Add melted butter and egg yolks and stir to combine.
5. In another bowl, place pancake mix.  Add liquid to flour and fold together gently.
6. Stop stirring when batter is combined but lumpy.
7. Grease the hot griddle lightly with butter or oil.  Wipe away excess with a paper towel.
8. Using a 1/4 cup measure pour batter onto greased griddle.  Pour as many or as few as you can manage.
9. Sprinkle the uncooked pancakes with blueberries (or chocolate chips!) and cook until the top bubbles and the bottom is golden brown.
10. Flip pancakes and cook until bottom is set.

I made Alton’s Instant Pancake mix and though I like the concept, the recipe doesn’t make an even six cups so you are throwing away about 1/4 cup of pancake mix.  The recipe is below and does make excellent pancakes if you want to try it, however you could follow this same process with any pancake recipe or mix.

Instant Pancakes

• 6 cups flour
• 1/2 tbsp baking soda
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1 tbsp sugar

1. Combine all ingredients in a large, seal-able container or plastic bag.

I used to make the BEST dirty rice.  When mrChaos and I were just a couple of kids (are we not still?) I used to make a big batch of dirty rice to last us a couple of days and it was wonderful!  So what if it came out of the box with the trumpet player on it.  Well, it has been a long time since we’ve had the boxed dirty rice-I have a hard time paying for things I can make myself- and I have never actually attempted dirty rice from scratch, although I’ve long been curious about whether it would be as wonderful.  So I can’t say I am the best judge as to whether or not this risotto tastes like dirty rice.  To me, it kind of tastes like Supreme Pizza Risotto.  And I’ll tell you: there is nothing wrong with that at all.

This risotto is hearty and full of sausage and peppers and mushrooms, pair it with a salad and some garlic bread and you have a wonderful, filling meal.  The recipe has been popular.  I first saw it when Passion Foodie posted about it, and she saw it on Brown Eyed Baker, but I changed a few things to try to make it a bit “dirtier.”

Dirty Risotto

• 5-6 cups chicken stock
• 2 tbsp butter
• 6 oz. hot Italian sausage, removed from casing (about 3 small links)
• 4 oz. pancetta or bacon, roughly chopped
• 1 small onion, minced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 2 jalapenos, de-seeded, minced
• 6 oz. mushrooms, roughly chopped
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 1/2 cups rice, Arborio or Long-grain
• 3/4 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• 2 tbsp minced fresh parsley

1. In a small pot, heat chicken stock to a simmer and turn down to keep warm.
2. Melt butter in a large, deep skillet or stock pot.
3. Brown sausage and pancetta in butter over medium-high heat, breaking sausage up into chunks.
4. Add vegetables, onion through mushrooms, to browned meat and cook until softened.
5. Taste vegetables and season with salt and pepper.
6. Stir in rice and allow to brown lightly.
7. Pour in wine and stir until almost absorbed.  Turn heat down to medium.
8. Using a measuring cup add hot chicken stock to rice mixture a little at a time, stirring, until almost absorbed.
9. Once rice is tender, turn off heat and stir in cheese and parsley.
10. Taste again and season with salt as needed.  Serve.

This one was a real knock-out.  I will definitely be making it again and I hope you give it a try!  If you are intimidated by risotto, don’t be.  It is much more forgiving than you think.  You really don’t have to stir forever and you can even use your usual long-grain rice if you can’t find the Arborio rice.