Time for a Pick-Up

No, not that type of pick-up. I am happily married woman after all. But after the last couple of posts, I feel a little "pick me up" is in order. The espresso in these brownies should do the trick.

Dark Chocolate Espresso Brownies
Source: Giada DeLaurentiis

You will need:

• Nonstick cooking spray
• 1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons water
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tablespoons plus two teaspoons espresso powder
• 1 box brownie mix (I usually use Duncan Hines dark chocolate mix)
• 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1-1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, at room temperature

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Spray a 9x13 inch metal baking pan with nonstick spray. Whisk together 1/3 cup of water, oil, eggs and 2 tablespoons of the espresso powder in a large bowl. Add the brownie mix and stir until well combined. Stir in the chocolate chips. Transfer the batter to the baking pan. Bake for approximately 35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. Cool completely.
3. To make the glaze, dissolve the remaining 2 teaspoons of espresso powder in the remaining 2 tablespoons of water in a medium bowl. Whisk in the vanilla. Add the powdered sugar and butter. Whisk until smooth. Pour the glaze over the brownies and refrigerate until set. Cut into bite-size pieces and serve.

In the original version of the recipe, Giada uses an instant espresso powder by Medaglia D'Oro. This most recent time, I was out of the instant stuff so I used 2 tablespoons of Illy ground espresso for the batter. For the glaze I brewed a shot of espresso and used 2 tablespoons of that in place of the instant mixed with cold water. It turned out just as good, if not better than the original version.