Consider making butterscotch pretzel brownies to celebrate National Brownie Day
Mary Bilyeu, Contributor
What is a big deal, though, is that today is also National Brownie Day!
I'm going to be speaking at a fabulous event tonight at Temple Beth Emeth; my topic is "From Catholic School to Kugel: 40 Years of Wandering to Discover Jewish Food." And I've been told — much to my giddy delight! — that brownies will be served for dessert along with ice cream and fruit... sigh. I am so looking forward to the evening — to making new friends, to eating great food, to having fun! But if, unfortunately, you won't be attending the dinner, you can still celebrate this holiday with today's offering: Butterscotch Pretzel Brownies.
Yup — you read that right: butterscotch, pretzels and brownies all in one fabulous sweet, salty, rich, luscious, chocolatey treat! Some matches are just a matter of bashert [bah-SHAYRT], which means "destiny" in Hebrew.
I'm not sure that I can say anything more persuasive to encourage you to make these brownies. But really, do you need a reason?
Butterscotch. Pretzels. Brownies.
'Nuff said!
Butterscotch Pretzel Brownies
1/2 cup butter
1 ounce unsweetened chocolate, chopped
6 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 tablespoons oil
2 eggs
1-1/4 cups sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons brewed coffee
3/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 ounce pretzel twists, crumbled
1/3 cup butterscotch chips
1/3 cup chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9-inch square baking pan.
Place the butter and the unsweetened chocolate into a medium-sized microwave-safe bowl; heat until melted, and stir to combine. Stir in the cocoa powder, oil, eggs, sugar, vanilla, and coffee until blended. Stir in the flour, baking powder and salt. Pour into pan.
Sprinkle the pretzels and both chips over the top and press lightly, then bake for 20-25 minutes until a tester comes out with a few crumbs attached. Cool completely before cutting.
Cut 1/2 an inch from the edges, then cut into 16 brownies. The trimmings are great crumbled over vanilla or coffee ice cream, with a drizzle of caramel sauce over the top.
But wait - there are more cookies!
Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal Cookies
Mary Bilyeu has won or placed in more than 60 cooking contests and writes about her adventures in the kitchen. She was thrilled to have her post about Scottish Oatmeal Shortbread named as one of the daily "Best of the Blogs" by the prestigious Food News Journal.
Go visit Mary's blog — Food Floozie — on which she enthuses and effuses over all things food-related. Her newest feature is Frugal Floozie Friday, seeking fun and food for $5 or less ... really! Feel free to email her with questions or comments or suggestions: yentamary@gmail.com.
The phrase "You Should Only Be Happy" (written in Hebrew on the stone pictured in this post) comes from Deuteronomy 16:15 and is a wish for all her readers as they cook along with her ... may you always be happy here.
Comments
Nancy Szabo
Fri, Dec 9, 2011 : 12:09 p.m.
Mary, I thoroughly enjoyed your talk at TBE last night! Several friends at my table agreed that we'd really love to sit down with you in person for that cup of coffee! Anyways, two thoughts: 1. Food and memory -- I wanted to chime in last night with an early food memory --- and to say that I think that the SMELL of foods is what lingers...I remember my grandmother in her modest Brooklyn home, cooking liver and onions! Yum. I had no idea what that was, but the smell was intoxicating. And the memory of it makes me smile. The smell brings back all sorts of visual memories, cozy and warm. And it makes me miss my grandmother. 2. Your butterscotch brownie recipe reminds me of a huge family favorite -- they were called "chewies" and we had them during several summer visits to Martha's Vineyard. There was a little shack selling baked goods down by the bay in Menemsha. Our family loved these treats -- basically butterscotch brownies with chocolate chips. We tried for years to capture the taste and texture of chews and only rarely approximated its heavenly perfection. Nancy
Mary Bilyeu
Fri, Dec 9, 2011 : 5:04 p.m.
Nancy, you are such a sweetheart! I'll definitely take you and your friends up on that cup of coffee and chatting sometime - it would be such fun! Our senses can immediately take us back decades, can't they, when we smell or taste something? In reading about your grandmother and her wonderful food, and about the family favorite brownies, I'm remembering tastes and smells and people from my own past and I'm smiling right along with you. Isn't that what it's all about??? I firmly believe people bond over food, and that clearly happened last night at the Sisterhood dinner and again this morning as we're "chatting" ... :)
Sarah Rigg
Thu, Dec 8, 2011 : 2:51 p.m.
Even though you say it's no big deal - happy birthday!
Mary Bilyeu
Fri, Dec 9, 2011 : 2:50 p.m.
You're a sweetheart, Sarah - thank you! It was a fabulous day filled with loved ones and fabulous food!!!
M
Thu, Dec 8, 2011 : 2:01 p.m.
And I've been told - much to my giddy delight! - that brownies will be served for dessert along with ice cream and fruit ... sigh. I am looking so forward to the evening - to making new friends, to eating great food, to having fun! But if, unfortunately, you won't be attending the dinner, you can still celebrate this holiday with today's offering: Butterscotch Pretzel Brownies. Good lord, I counted 14 grammar errors in this snippet alone. That's incredible.