I acknowledge that this really isn’t in the ‘Mediterranean food’ category but I recently made this brownie for the boys to take on a fishing trip and I have had several requests since for me to put it on the blog, so here it is. This is a deliciously dense, rich and chewy brownie with shards of bitter chocolate, topped with hazelnuts and a hint of chilli – a man’s brownie!! Goes well with a shot of rum I’m told!!!
Spiced hazelnut-cacao brownie
250g butter, coarsely chopped
200g dark chocolate (65% cocoa solids) coarsely chopped
50g dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids), coarsely chopped
300g light muscovado sugar
4 eggs
180g plain flour
40g Dutch-process cocoa
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
Hazelnut-cacao crunch
50g dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids), coarsely chopped
50g roasted hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
40g cacao nibs
1/2 teaspoon dried chilli flakes
Preheat oven to 160C. Melt butter and both chocolates in a bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and heat, stirring occasionally, until smooth (2-3 minutes). Remove from heat, add muscovado, then mix in eggs one at a time. Sieve flour, cocoa, cinnamon and baking powder over mixture and stir to combine (but don’t overwork or the brownie will become cake-like).
Meanwhile, for hazelnut-cacao crunch, combine ingredients and 1/2 teaspoon sea salt flakes in a bowl.
Spread half the brownie mixture in a 22cm-square cake tin buttered and lined with baking paper. Scatter half the hazelnut-cacao crunch over, then spread remaining brownie mixture over and smooth top. Scatter with remaining hazelnut-cacao crunch and bake until set around the edges but still a little fudgy in the centre (45-50 minutes; a skewer inserted should withdraw with just a little mixture on it). Set aside to cool and store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
