In honor of Valentine’s Day, I am featuring a brownie that marries two of most people’s loves, “chocolate” and “coffee.” I am not a fan of plain coffee unless it is diluted with milk or chocolate. I do, however, love anything “mocha,” and thus was compelled to bake these brownies. The recipe is a bit fussy with the use of a double boiler, but trust me, the result is worth it; the aroma alone, makes it all worthwhile! They are incredibly delicious and they disappeared before I could cut them into bite sized pieces. Yale took the entire pan back to his house at USC for his roommates to enjoy. I love that!

THE BROWNIE

Ingredients

6 Tbsp unsalted butter
4 oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped
2 tsp instant coffee powder
½ cup all purpose flour
½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ Tbsp kosher salt
2 large eggs
1 ½ cups firmly packed light brown sugar
1 cup walnut pieces, lightly roasted
3 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350F. Butter a 9 inch square pan. Butter the paper and dust with flour, shaking out the excess.

In a saucepan, melt 6 tbsp of the butter, the 4oz unsweetened chocolate, and 2 tsp of the coffee powder over low heat, stirring until smooth. Set aside to cool slightly.

Sift the flour, ½ tsp of the cinnamon, and the salt into a bowl. In another bowl, whisk the eggs with the brown sugar, then whisk the chocolate mixture. Stir in the dry ingredients just until blended. Fold in the walnuts. Spread the batter in the prepared pan.

Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, about 40 minutes. Let cool completely in the pan on a wire rack.

THE GLAZE

Ingredients

3 oz semi sweet chocolate
6 Tbsp butter
1 tsp coffee powder
½ tsp cinnamon

Directions:
Place all above ingredients in the top of a double boiler and stir often until melted and smooth. Chill the glaze stirring occasionally, until just spreadable but not set, about 15 minutes. Spread the glaze on the brownies, stand until set.

With the end of summer comes the time of year when I start to think about the Jewish holidays and all of the baking that lies ahead. Taking my cue from my mother, I begin to bake and freeze desserts that I will need to pull out for entertaining or for taking to people’s homes to which we will inevitably be invited. One such item is my mother’s famous Chocolate Chip Pecan Slice, so simple to make and so perfect to freeze. It lasts for weeks, even months in the freezer and when it is half thawed, we slice it into squares and then place in pretty dainty cups.