Favorite recipes.
They can years to find, but are irreplaceable. Your go-to time and time again. They never disappoint, only continue to impress…
The tricky thing about favorite recipes is that they can also keep you from enjoying new ones. I recently discovered this. You see, for a long time I was all about this brownie recipe. It’s like I rejected the notion of baking anything resembling brownies, unless they were indeed the favorite recipe. Now, those brownies are still are one of my favorites, and I’ll make them again, most definitely.
But I’ve discovered another favorite.
In my quest for cranberry uses, I thought why not dump some into brownie batter? This recipe from King Arthur Flour looked pretty good, and easy. It only uses cocoa powder, not any type of chocolate, so I figured if it came out weird, then it wouldn’t be a loss.
These came out more than weird- they were amazing! The brownies are fudgy, chewy, almost black, and the perfect amount of chocolate. If would be difficult for anyone in your family to find them too rich or too bland. They are the best compromise- something we all strive for as we approach the 2014 holiday season.
So while they are certainly scrumptious plain, imagine them dotted with red, plump cranberries. The cranberries deliver little pockets of tartness here and there, intermingled with fudgy chocolateness.
I hope you enjoy this recipe as well as my past favorite brownie recipes. They are all keepers and even better, they bake beautifully at high altitude!
How to make this high altitude adjusted recipe:
Cranberry Fudge Brownies
Adapted from King Arthur Flour
- 4 eggs
- 1¼ cups cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
- 2¼ cups sugar
- 1¼ cups + 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 cup fresh cranberries
- Preheat your oven to 350 F.
- Line a 9 x 13" pan with heavy duty foil and coat generously with baking spray.
- Whisk the eggs, cocoa powder, salt, baking powder, and vanilla together until smooth.
- Melt the butter in a pan over medium heat.
- Add the sugar, and continue to heat and stir until the butter is hot, but not bubbling. As you stir, it will become shiny. The hot butter dissolves some of the sugar and lends a shiny top crust to your brownies.
- Add the butter and sugar mixture to the egg mixture, and stir until smooth.
- Add the flour and cranberries, and stir until smooth.
- Pour into your prepared baking dish.
- Bake for about 25-30 minutes. The edges should be set, and the center will look moist, but not uncooked. A knife or cake tester inserted in the center will come out clean or with just a few crumbs sticking to it.
Note: This recipe was adapted for high altitude baking. To make this recipe at sea level, increase the baking powder to 1 teaspoon, and the flour to 1 1/2 cups. Baking times may vary slightly.
