Mocha Brownies

A little bit of coffee and a whole lotta butter – this IS what makes a great brownie!
This recipe comes from The Pioneer Women Cooks a wonderful cookbook that I received for Christmas. The best part of this cookbook is all the wonderful step by step photos that show you exactly what to do. The worst part of this cookbook is comparing my finished product to the photo of PW’s finished product. It might not look the same, but the taste is all that matters and these brownies tasted fabulous. The ladies at Bible study tonight didn’t care about the calorie content of this dessert, they were actually a little disappointed that I cut the icing recipe in half. So, indulge! Grab a pound of butter and enjoy these brownies!

Brownies

Four 1-ounce squares unsweetened chocolate
½ pound (two sticks) butter
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs
3 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 ¼ cups all purpose flour

To make the brownies – preheat oven to 325 degrees, spray an 8-inch square baking pan with nonstick baking spray.
In a microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate in 30 increments, being careful not to let it burn. Set aside to cool slightly.
In a medium mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Beat in eggs.
With the mixer on low, drizzle in the melted chocolate. Add the vanilla and mix.
Add the flour and mix, just until combined. Do not over mix.
Pour the batter into the baking dish. Spread to even out the surface. Bake for 40-45 minutes until the center is no longer soft.
Set the brownies aside to cool completely before icing.

Mae’s Mocha Icing

½ pound (2 sticks) butter
5 cups powdered sugar
¼ cup cocoa powder
¼ teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
½ to ¾ cup brewed coffee, cooled to room temperature

In a large mixing bowl, combine the butter and powdered sugar, cocoa powder, salt and vanilla.
Mix until slightly combined, then add ½ cup coffee. Whip until icing is desired consistency, if the icing is overly thick, add more coffee. It should be very light and fluffy.
Spread the icing thick. Refrigerate until the icing is firm, then slice into squares. Makes 16 brownies.