the comfort of brownies

lately i've been looking for comfort in any form i can get it. ben has needed this too, with his seemingly unending bout of the flu. my ailment however is of the heart, the missing piece that has become so much more pronounced this month. this is not to say the pain is not always present from losing my sister jenni, but with the anniversary this tuesday i seem to be reliving the events that took place last year. and that has been, in a word, painful.

so, yesterday we were stuck at home with ben in recovery and me taking care of him. i decided we could both use a dose of comfort, and upon realizing this discovered that i had all of the ingredients for this perfect brownie recipe i had stumbled across on the internet some time ago. in turkey there is no such thing as betty crocker, let alone her brownie mix, so i was happy to have found this very easy recipe for making them from scratch. the result was pure perfection, the chewiest most chocolaty brownies you've ever tasted... enough to lift the spirits, if only for a little while. try it & you won't be disappointed.

Cocoa Brownies
Makes 16 larger or 25 smaller brownies

10 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups sugar
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (natural or Dutch-process)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs, cold
1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1. Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 325°F. Line the bottom and sides of an 8×8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper or foil, leaving an overhang on two opposite sides.

2. Combine the butter, sugar, cocoa, and salt in a medium heatproof bowl and set the bowl in a wide skillet of barely simmering water. Stir from time to time until the butter is melted and the mixture is smooth and hot enough that you want to remove your finger fairly quickly after dipping it in to test. Remove the bowl from the skillet and set aside briefly until the mixture is only warm, not hot.

3. Stir in the vanilla with a wooden spoon. Add the eggs one at a time, stirring vigorously after each one. When the batter looks thick, shiny, and well blended, add the flour and stir until you cannot see it any longer, then beat vigorously for 40 strokes with the wooden spoon or a rubber spatula. Spread evenly in the lined pan.

4. Bake until a toothpick plunged into the center emerges slightly moist with batter, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool completely on a rack. (Deb suggests putting the cooled pan in the fridge or freezer for a while, which helps if you want clean lines when cutting the brownies.)

5. Lift up the ends of the parchment or foil liner, and transfer the brownies to a cutting board. Cut into 16 or 25 squares.