The Best Brownies

A delectable, wickedly chocolatey, fudgy brownie. 

Ingredients:

6 1/2 oz unsalted butter

6 1/2 oz best dark chocolate

3 1/2 oz plain flour

1 1/2 oz cocoa powder

2 oz white chocolate

2 oz milk chocolate

3 large eggs

10 oz caster sugar

Method:

  Cut the butter into smallish cubes and tip into a medium bowl.  Break the dark chocolate into small pieces and drop into the bowl.  Cover the bowl loosely with cling film and put in the microwave for 2 minutes on High.  Leave the melted mixture to cool to room temperature.

  While you wait for the chocolate to cool, position a shelf in the middle of your oven and turn on to fan 160C/conventional 180C/gas 4.  Using a shallow 8 inch square tin, grease and line with baking parchment; having the paper come up above the edge for easy removal after baking.  Now tip the flour and cocoa powder into a sieve held over a medium bowl and tap and shake the sieve so they run through together and you get rid of any lumps.

  With a large sharp knife, chop the white and milk chocolate in to chunks on a board.

  Break the eggs into a large bowl and tip in the sugar.  With an electric mixer on maximum speed, whisk the eggs and sugar until they look thick and creamy, like a milk shake.  This can take 3-8 minutes, depending on the power of your mixer.  When the mixture becomes really pale and about double its original volume and  leaves a trail on the surface of the mixture for a few seconds when drizzled from the beaters; then it's ready!

  Pour the cooled chocolate mixture over the eggy mousse, then gently fold together with a rubber spatula.  Plunge the spatula in at one side, take it underneath and bring it up the opposite side and in again at the middle.  Continue going under and over in a figure of eight, swivelling the bowl round after each folding so you can get at it from all sides, until the two mixtures are one and the colour is a mottled dark brown.  The idea is to marry them without knocking out the air, so be aas gentle and slow as you like - you don't want to undo all the work you did in beating.

  Hold the sieve over the eggy chocolate mixture and resift the cocoa and flour mixture, shaking the sieve from side to side, to cover the top evenly.  Gently fold in this powder using the same action as before.  The mixture will look dry and dusty at first and a bit unpromising, but keep going very gently and patiently, it will end up looking gungy and fudgy.  Stop just before you feel you should, as again you don't want to overdo it.  Finally, stir in white and milk chocolate chunks until they're dotted throughout.

  Pour the mixture into the prepared tin, scraping every bit out of the bowl with the spatula.  Gently ease into the corners of the tin and level the surface.  Bake for 25 minutes; then check by giving the tin a gently shake.  If the brownie wobbles in the middle, it's not quite done.  Bake for a further 5 minutes until top has a shiny, papery crust and the sides are just beginning to come away from the tin.  Be careful not to overcook though; the brownie shouldn't be at all dry under the crust but solidly gooey.  The brownie will firm up as it cools but will still be moist and fudgy.  

  Leave the whole thing until completely cold, then lift out with the paper.  Cut into 16 squares as they are very rich!  They will keep in an airtight container for a good two weeks and in the freezer for up to a month.