Cafe Lula

I have spent the past few days feeling very sorry for myself. I have picked up some sort of mutant flu (or a bad cold) and my head hurts too much to do anything. Fortunately, before I was struck down with this horrible flu (or bad cold), I made these amazing caramel brownies and so I have been consoling myself by stuffing my face with them.

They are from my new favourite book, which I told you about in this post, and all I want to do all day long is bake things from it. Which I shall, as soon as I am better. Stupid cold. I mean flu. Stupid flu.

Caramel brownies

Adapted from Fabulous Brownies by Annie Rigg

Makes 16-25, depending on how big you cut them

Ingredients:

For the brownies:

225g/8 oz dark (bittersweet) chocolate, broken into chunks (I used 72% cocoa solids)

150g/1 stick plus 2 tbsp butter, cut into chunks

225g/1 cup caster (superfine) sugar

4 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

125g/1 cup plain (all-purpose) flour

For the caramel:

50g/0.25 cups caster (superfine) sugar

50g/0.25 cups light muscovado (brown) sugar

2 tbsp butter (about 30g)

75ml/1/3 cup double (heavy) cream

First make the caramel. Put the caster/superfine sugar and 2 tbsp water in a small saucepan set over a low heat. Cook until the sugar has dissolved completely and then bring to the boil, cooking until the mixture turns amber coloured but it still runny. Remove the pan from the heat and add the other ingredients, stirring together quickly. Return the pan to a low heat and simmer for 3-4 minutes until the caramel thickens to coat the back of a wooden spoon. Remove the pan from the heat and set aside to cool.

Preheat the oven to 170C (340F)/160C (320F) fan oven and grease and line a 23cm/9 inch square cake tin.

Put the chocolate and butter in a bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and melt together, stirring until smooth. Set aside.

In another bowl, whisk together the sugar, eggs and vanilla. Pour this into the chocolate mixture and stir in, then sift in the flour and fold in until well combined.

Pour half the brownie mixture into the cake tin, then cover with the caramel, then add the rest of the brownie mixture. Use a skewer to swirl the mixture slightly. Bake for 20-25 minutes (mine took 20 minutes in a 160C fan oven).

Remove from the oven and cool in the tin on a wire rack for half an hour to an hour, then put in the fridge to cool completely. Once cooled, remove from the fridge. Serve cold or hot with ice cream.