My personal challenge: baking my way through "How to Bake". This post is my experience baking and learning new skills from tackling each recipe in Paul Hollywood's, "How to Bake". I will also document any recipe changes that I made - mainly as a result of not having the ingredients on hand (i.e., we never have regular sugar in the house) - and how the recipe fared. I will not be providing the recipes that are in his book. Now, lets get to Paul Hollywood's brownies.
For the ninth recipe that I made, I decided to surprise my husband with "How to Bake" Chocolate Brownies with Dried Cranberries. I love making vegan brownies with what one would consider obscure ingredients like black beans, avocados, and chickpea water (also known as aquafaba). But, the beautifully crinkly brownie tops that traditional brownies achieve are not always possible with vegan ingredients, except the last ingredient aquafaba has had success but with a chickpea after flavor. Even more, I have had a lot of flop vegan brownie recipes from online bloggers that resulted in too dense, too gluey, flavorless, etc. brownies. You get the picture. So, this recipe I wanted to go back to the one bowl brownies I made as a kid and truly enjoy the ooey gooey chocolate and crinkly top.
Side note: I don't usually temper my chocolate. Call me lazy or a rebel. Because I have never had a glass bowl except a 1 cup Pyrex, I have always had to improvise with melting chocolate for receipes. This might make a bigger difference with more intricate desserts and a true ganache, but for this recipe, I don't think it made a bit of a difference. Though, I guess one could argue a sort-of ganache is what I was doing with melting butter and chocolate together, but alas, I did it the lazy way. Maybe next time I will elevate my game and get a glass bowl.
Here are some of the lessons that I learned:
Traditional vs. Vegan. For this bake, I made two brownie versions. I made one of my vegan recipes and I made Paul Hollywood's brownies. Every time that I experiement with a recipe, the version that is fresh and in front of my husband's mouth is usually the winner and I hardly receive the constructive feedback that I desire. This time, I made sure that he had two versions side-by-side for the ultimate comparison. However, my plan backfired and he said his typical response, "they are so different to compare. It's like comparing an apple and an orange, while both fruit, one is citrus and the other an apple. So, one is vegan and one is not. It's not doable." In my opinion, Paul Hollywood's brownies were far better than the vegan brownie recipe I pulled from a popular blog for both taste and texture. For the vegan recipe, I chose a brownie recipe that used flax seed as an egg replacer and also used butter and water as the wet ingredients with only cacao powder. The result was dense, gluely and grainy from the flax seed. Read below for tips on how to combat this in vegan baking.
Tips for that Crinkly Top. Now, I did not quite achieve the perfect crinkly brownie top that I desired and since then, I have read nurmerous blogs about that fact. The main tip is to ensure that the sugar dissolves FULLY in your brownie recipe. I have learned that this is one of the main keys to achieve that shiny, glossy, crinkly brownie top. Now, sugar dissolves best in water over fat and that is why you will see recipes that include a simple syrup in some brownie recipes, but there is alwso water content in egg whites and butter. However, just like humidity can effect meringue, too much moisture in brownies can result in too dense or even too cakey and dry. Read below from some tips on achieving that perfectly crinkly brownie top!
Chocolate and Chocolate Chips. Chocolate matters. I did not have Bournville chocolate for this recipe. For me, I would have to order online and wait for it to be delivered to test out this recipe. To save time and energy tracking down choclate, I used random chocolate bars that I had on hand in varying richness - most 72% and vegan, but one had slivered almonds. I would say that not all chocolate is created equal in the baking world, even if it's high quality. I say, wait for that ultimate baking chocolate and then give this recipe a go. Additionally, please note that there is a dark side to chocolate and it's best to find chocolate this is 1. Sustainable - Fair Trade, Rainforest Alliance and Organic to ensure that it's ethical and 2. Quality - small batch, specialty, and bean-to-bar companies.
How to Achieve that Perfect Brownie Crinkle Top:
Wisk the Egg and Sugar. In "How to Bake", Paul Hollywood mentions to wisk the egg and sugar until the mixture is able to "hold a trail" when the beaters are lifted. Now, if you are anything like me, you may not fully understand what this means. I know that I didn't. The best way that I can relate this step is to meringue. You'll want to wisk the eggs and sugar so much that the water content in the eggs is released to then dissolve the sugar into the mixture. This mixture will start to foam and hold shape. It'll take about 8-10 minutes depending on the power of your mixer.
Melt the Butter and Dissolve the Sugar. Another trick is to add sugar to hot, melted butter. Now, I know that I mentioned that sugar dissolves best in water than fat, but butter is 20% water, and when it is melted, the water is released. Just like above, you'll want to make sure that the sugar is fully incorporated and there is no grainy texture. Rub between your fingers to check for a smooth texture and no sugar granules remain.
Use Powedered Sugar. This is a quick and easy step. If you are running out of time, this is a good option. But I would make your own powered sugar out of caster sugar, if you can. This will ensure the taste is similar to what you are used to in your brownies.
Vegan Brownie Tips:
Fat. Stick to vegan butter. Nut butters tend to be overpowering and take over any other flavors. And, avoid oil. Depending on the oil that you use, it can overpower the flavor and even result in an oily texture and separate from the brownie batter, which is not tasty. Also, they can result in a flatter brownie and tacky texture. Lastly, I do not reccomend using a milk substitute because it can lead to a drier brownie - stick to a fat.
Water Content. Be weary of brownie recipes that call for too much water-based ingredients. Just like humidity can effect the perfect meringue, mositure can cause the crinkly top of the brownie to go missing. If you use flax-eggs, make sure that the other ingredients listed aren't also watery. It not only ruins the crinkly top, but it can also make the brownie taste supremely dense and almost like play-doh.
Don't Forget Salt. If you forget salt, your bake may result in a flat flavor. It's all about chemistry, too. Salt in bread can help strengthen the effect on the gluten. In pastry, salt can encourage browning and cut the oils from the butter. And as you may know, salt can balance the sweetness of a recipe. But, leave the baking soda out. While a salt, this is meant to make your bake light and fluffy, which for me, is not what a brownie is about.
Melted and Chocolate and Cacao Powder. Like Paul Hollywood uses for his brownies, a mixture of melted chocolate and cocao powder yields the best brownie. I reccomend this for a vegan version, as well. The cacao will add a deeper, richer chocolatey flavor and the melted chocolate will lend itself to a fudgey texture. A win-win, in my opinion.
Have you tried Paul Hollywood's brownie recipe yet? What did you think? How did the baking go? Tell me! I hope you enjoy all the chocolate things.
On that note, I hope that you find a recipe book you enjoy, or this one, that I am currently baking my way through. Either way, enjoy baking and nourishing yourself and your family.
All my light and all my love. Namaste.
Jordan
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