Thursday, March 1, 2012

Full House for the Chocolate Festival!

The Butttonwood Inn was full this weekend mainly for the Chocolate Festival and snowshoers.  The rest of our guests had fun on the slopes downhill skiing.  In fact, we had a group stay with us for the full week.  At the end of their adventurous skiing or snowshoeing activities, they enjoyed our hot tub to recuperate and relax their muscles.

Getting back to the Chocolate Festival, many local businesses participated giving out their special chocolate treats to cross-country skiers, snowshoers, and folks who traveled by car.  Check out our Chocolate Festival package and you can reserve with us any time or call 1-800-258-2625 for this special fun-filled event.

Here's the recipe for our Diner Brownies, which I could not stop tasting to ensure their quality (a chef's guilty pleasure).

Diner Brownies

1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
2-1/2 cups light brown sugar
1 cup water
6 ounces chopped unsweetened chocolate
5 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and butter a 9" by 13" baking pan.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, salt, and baking powder and set aside.  In a saucepan, bring the butter, brown sugar, and water to a simmer.  Off the heat, whisk in the chopped unsweetened chocolate until dissolved and well combined; cool slightly.  Whisk in eggs, one at a time, and then the vanilla.  Stir in the flour mixture.  Spread the batter in the prepared pan and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Frosting:

1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
1-1/4 cups confectioners' sugar
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Beat all ingredients together for about 5 minutes until light and fluffy.  Then frost slightly cooled brownies.  The warmth from the brownies will melt the frosting slightly and coat it to a glossy finish.  Let cool completely before serving.

NOTE:  To make a gluten-free version, just substitute gluten-free all-purpose flour for the all-purpose flour.

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