Deluxe Mexican Brownies... Recipe
Oh I suppose you could call these Cappuccino-Cream Cheese Brownies with Chocolate Glaze, which is the name Bon Appetit gave them...but then you'd have to eat them with your pinkie sticking out and use a napkin. If you just think of them as dressed up brownies there's no need for pinkies or napkins because there isn't time or need...you'll be too busy savoring every bite to even think about your pinkie and you'll want to lick your fingers clean instead of using a napkin...why waste one bit of this delicious dessert on a napkin?
Last week's garage sales were great - I came home with a cool mirror, a halloween vase, a cross-stitched baby quilt and a stack of Bon Appetit magazines dating from 1992 to 1997 and only a quarter a piece! (No mom, they didn't see me coming!) And in one of those magazines I found this recipe...it reminded me of a recipe I've had for about twenty years, called simply, Mexican Brownies, so I dug it out and compared the two, and they were very similar. Combining the recipes into one was the best decision I've made all month!
These take a bit of time to make - they're a three-step process. First you make the brownies, rich and fudgy with a crunch from whole toasted pecans. Then you let them cool completely with a big sign that says STAY OUT OR ELSE!! placed nearby so your boy doesn't come in and cut into them like my boy did! Step two is the cream cheese filling - powdered sugar, cinnamon and Mexican vanilla...oh my...it's divine. This filling would be so great in crepes, or in between chocolate chip cookies or straight out of the bowl! Step three is the chocolate ganache glaze that goes on top...milk chocolate, cream and butter...can I get an Amen?
IF you like chocolate fudge and cream cheese, and cinnamon (cinnamon and chocolate are classic Mexican ingredients, hence, the name for this brownie...don't you just love the word hence?" and milk-chocolate ganache then you're going to love these...five dangs my friends...five coma-inducing dangs...or, as I like to say, Roll me in Brownies and Put ME To Bed!
Deluxe Mexican Brownies - Adapted from Bon Appetit 1997 and My Sister's Brownies, 1988
- 8 oz. bittersweet chocolate
- 12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate (you can use chocolate chips)
- 22 tablespoons (2 3/4 sticks) butter, room temperature, divided
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 tablespoons instant espresso powder
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup whole pecans, toasted
- 2 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon Mexican vanilla, or good quality vanilla
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a 13x9x2-inch metal baking pan. In a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat, toast pecans until lightly browned and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Set aside. Chop 8 ounces of the chocolate into small pieces. Combine chocolate with 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) butter, 1/4 cup water and the espresso powder in a heavy, large saucepan. Stir constantly over medium-low heat until melted and smooth. Transfer to a large bowl. Cool five minutes. Whisk in 1 1/2 cups sugar, then eggs, one at a time. Mix in flour with a wooden spoon and salt, then pecans. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake until tester inserted into center comes out with some moist crumbs still attached, about 20 to 22 minutes. Cool completely in pan on rack.
Make filling: Beat cream cheese and 6 tablespoons butter in medium bowl until smooth. Add powdered sugar, cinnamon and vanilla and beat until well blended. Spread cheese mixture over completely cooled brownies as evenly as possible. Cover and refrigerate until cold, about two hours.
Make chocolate glaze: Chop remaining 12 ounces of semi-sweet chocolate (or chocolate chips). Mix chocolate with cream and 4 tablespoons butter in a heavy saucepan. Stir over medium heat until smooth. Cool glaze until barely lukewarm, about 15 minutes. Pour over cream cheese; spread gently to cover. Refrigerate for additional two hours until glaze sets. Using a warm knife (dipped in hot water and wiped dry), cut into 2-inch long, 1 1/2-inch-wide bars. Chill overnight. Makes about 36.
"I believe in an open mind - but not so open that your brains fall out!" ~ Arthur Sulzberger
One year ago: Rainbow Swap Blocks
Two years ago: Stracciatella Tortoni Cake With Espresso Fudge Sauce