Nutella Brownies

Oh yes. You read that right. Nutella. And brownies. In the same sentence. In the same recipe. I must admit that I'd never really tried Nutella, though I've heard great things about it, especially from Italian chefs who cook with hazelnuts. Then one day I was scrolling through my Facebook newsfeed and saw one of those short recipe videos start to play: Three-Ingredient Nutella Brownies. I do like to keep things short and sweet, though I tend to get a bit skeptical of recipes with very few ingredients. Is it really possible to turn just three things into brownies? And awesomely delicious brownies at that? I had to experiment to find out.

When the time came to host a girls' movie night with my friends, I knew I had to make some kind of delicious dessert. I knew it had to be easy--I wouldn't have much time after work to prepare--and it had to be chocolate (Hey, what else would you pair with popcorn and wine?). What a perfect time to test out Nutella Brownies! I bought a jar of Nutella two days before the event and decided to bake the brownies the night before just in case it turned out that Nutella plus eggs plus flour did not equal delicious.

I didn't need to be worried.

Ingredients:

1 and 1/4 cups Nutella (chocolate-hazelnut spread. I used a whole 13 oz jar)
2 eggs
1/2 cup flour (as per usual, I used whole wheat pastry flour)

Directions:

1.) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Pour the entire jar of Nutella into a mixing bowl. Add the eggs and flour (sifted in if possible) and stir until all ingredients are combined. Caution: it will be thick.

2.) Pour the brownie batter into a square brownie pan that's been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray (the recipe from the video used a 9x13-inch cake pan, but I prefer squares for brownies and didn't think I had enough batter to fill a rectangle anyway).

3.) Bake for about 15 minutes. Remove the brownies from the oven to cool before cutting (you can also refrigerate them overnight and cut the next day).

These brownies may be a little low (no baking powder or soda to help them rise). They may be a little gooey (but that's personally my favorite kind). They will definitely be delicious.

So the main question that remains is, why wasn't I introduced to this delicious flavor of chocolate and hazelnut before?? I'm not a big chocolate person, but I am a big nut-butter person. Nutella seems to be the best of both worlds (I definitely licked my spoon after emptying the jar, and pretty much scraped the jar clean...). The brownies were a hit at movie night and I plan to repeat any recipes that are this easy to put together (so long as I keep my pantry stocked with Nutella. Shouldn't be hard).

Experiment success!

Go-To Banana Muffins!

I officially have a go to banana muffin recipe!  After many attempts to find the perfect combination, I realized that I could adapt my Spring Banana Bread recipe into muffin form and have since made Go-To Banana Muffins several times for parties, work events, and even gave the recipe as a bridal shower present. All I had to do was change brown sugar to white sugar, cut the baking time back, and add in chocolate chips or nuts as needed.

Ingredients:

2-3 very ripe bananas
1/3 cup melted butter
1 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 and 1/2 cups of whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup chocolate chips (or combination of chocolate chips and pecans, etc.)

Directions:

1.) Preheat the oven to 350 degree and line a muffin tin with paper (cupcake) liners. Spray lightly with cooking spray if the paper is strong enough.

2.) In a single bowl, mash the bananas with a fork, then stir in the melted butter, baking soda, and salt. Add the sugar, egg, and vanilla. Sift in your flour last, folding it slowly so that the flour fully incorporates into the mixture. Do the same for the chocolate chips, folding slowly until fully incorporated.

3.) Pour the batter into the muffin cups and bake for about 18 minutes (25 at the most, but 18 worked for me). Use a toothpick inserted into the center of a central muffin to check for doneness (if it comes out moist with crumbs on it, the muffins might need a little more time. If it comes out dry, you're good). Cool slightly, but serve warm. (Note: They also taste great cold since they're moist enough to not harden in the refrigerator, or they can be reheated in the microwave to maintain the original flavor).

I've received so many positive reviews for these muffins, and I absolutely love bananas, so I'll definitely be returning to this recipe over and over again!