Slutty Brownies

Makes 24-30 Brownies

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There was this trend back when I was a tween whereby you had to clasp your hands together, only leaving your index fingers free, the tips facing one another like a bull and his matador. Your friends would count down how long it took for the fingertips to touch one another - the only rule being, you couldn't consciously keep them apart. Fits of giggles and belly laughs would ensue when Josh couldn't keep his apart for more than a second. We would insist he flog the dead horse by repeatedly trying to keep them apart, because we couldn't quite believe he was that inept. Josh would alternate between grinning and fake exasperation for, little did we know, he was doing it on purpose; this was the most attention and enthusiasm he'd garnered all year.

As a child, Nigella Lawson, akin to Hannah Montana of course, was someone I religiously popped on television when I came home from school. I received all of her cookbooks at the tender age of eleven; cookbooks as gifts might have looked sexist, but I played footie, swam competitively, cut all of my hair off, and toyed with the thought of dating Megan Fox in Jennifer's Body enough for that to not be the case. Some time later I found myself attempting some of these recipes, much to my parents chagrin. I butchered lemon meringue cake, messed up cream, peas, and ham pasta, and wildly under-cooked a piece of chicken or two.

Eventually, I was good enough to make a simple brownie; the novelty of the name "Slutty Brownie" was enough however, for that to be my next mission . Some months down the line, I nailed the Slutty Brownie, brought it into school, watched as people flocked to me, begging for a morsel of my genius. Enjoying the laughter that inevitably followed the title of the baked good, I thought to myself. F*** you Josh, I've got 'em now.

PRO TIPS

• Make sure to pop these in the microwave for 20-30 seconds before eating them! It completely elevates them - they are fudgy and perfect.

• Invest in a set of weighing scales - when you weigh your ingredients, you are less likely to make a mistake.

• You can make a double batch of cookie dough and save it in the fridge or freezer for when you want to make the cookies.

• Store these out of the fridge and covered - I like to just use a large Tupperware box.

Recipe

Ingredients

Cookie Dough Layer

• 113 grams of softened unsalted butter

• 1/4 cup of packed brown sugar

• 3/4 cup of white sugar

• 1 egg

• 1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

• 170 grams of plain flour

• 1/2 teaspoon of salt

• 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda

• 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder

• 170 grams of chocolate chips

• 2 packs of oreos

Brownie Layer

• 115 grams of melted butter

• 1/2 cup of brown sugar

• 1/2 cup of white sugar

• 2 eggs

• 1 teaspoon of vanilla

• 1/4 cup and 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder

• 60 grams of plain flour

• 2 teaspoons of espresso powder

• 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder

• 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt (plus more for top)

• 100 grams of chocolate chips

Method

Cookie Dough Layer

1. Cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy (2-3 minutes).

2. Beat the egg and vanilla in until just combined. Set this aside.

3. In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, & baking powder.

4. Slowly beat the dry mixture into the wet mixture - do this in parts so as to not lose flour to the floor!

5. Fold the chocolate chips into the batter.

6. Line a 23x23 cm pan with foil. Spray or grease the pan.

7. Add the cookie mixture into the bottom of the pan and use your hands to press the dough down into a 3cm thick layer, making sure to cover the base evenly.

8. Place your oreos down on top of the cookie dough in one layer. Lightly press each one down. Set this aside.

Brownie Layer

1. Preheat your oven to 180℃.

2. Beat together the butter, sugars, eggs, and vanilla (make sure your butter has cooled so you don't risk curdling the eggs).

3. Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder, baking powder, and salt.

4. Pour. the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and stir to fully combine.

5. Fold in the chocolate chips.

6. Spoon dollops of the brownie mixture over the top of the oreos and use a levelling spatula (or butter knife) to spread the mixture out evenly and completely cover the oreos - it should look like you've only made brownies!

7. Bake in the oven for 32-38 minutes.

8. Sprinkle the hot brownies with sea salt, then leave to cool. Once cooled, you can pull the brownies out of the tin and peel the foil off.

9. Cut and enjoy!

Stay Salty,

Romy xx