These easy-to-make brownies are not too sweet and have a marked dark chocolate presence with a jolt of espresso.
Moosewood kids, siblings, nieces, nephews, and, for some time now, grandchildren have developed deep attachments to Moosewood. Back in the early ’70s, partner Joanie Adler’s much younger sister, Melanie, spent a lot of her middle school and high school breaks with her big sister in the Moosewood kitchen. After each shift, with no parent in sight, Joanie would indulge her with a big brownie à la mode. This recipe is dedicated to Mel, who has never stopped eating brownies, and has gone on to become an accomplished baker specializing in all things chocolate—and who even served chocolate milk at her wedding!
Yields 16 squares
Prep time: 20 minutes
Baking time: 25 to 30 minutes
½ cup (1 stick) butter, plus more for the pan
⅔ cup unbleached white all-purpose flour, plus more for the pan
3½ ounces dark chocolate (72% or 85% cacao)
3 large eggs
¾ cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons instant espresso powder
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
½ teaspoon salt
⅔ cup chocolate chips
Preheat the oven to 325°F. Butter an 8-inch square baking pan and dust with cocoa or flour.
In a small saucepan, melt the butter. Turn off the heat and add the dark chocolate.
Meanwhile, in a bowl, whisk together the eggs and brown sugar. Stir in the espresso powder, cinnamon, vanilla, and salt. Stir in the flour until the batter is evenly colored. Stir the melted butter and chocolate to combine, and then stir it into the batter.
Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan and bake for 25 to 30 minutes until firm and pulling away slightly from the sides of the pan. As with other brownies, if you like your brownies moist and fudgy, remove from the oven while the center is still shiny, and if you like drier cakey brownies, give it a few more minutes in the oven, until a knife inserted into the center really does come out not gooey.
Sprinkle the chocolate chips evenly over the top of the hot brownies. Place the pan on a wire rack to cool. After about 5 minutes, using a spatula or the back of a spoon, spread the melted chocolate chips over the top. When cool, cut into 16 squares.
Turkish Coffee Brownies are a fine dessert after a Middle Eastern meal, such as Smoky Split Pea Soup, Quinoa Tabouli with Pomegranates and Pistachios, or Middle Eastern Grain Bowl. Or, these intense chocolate and coffee treats are perfect at the end of an adult pizza party, after Pizza with Roasted Eggplant and Plum Tomatoes and Pizza with Greens.