Go Back
Print

Mexican Chocolate Brownies

I am reasonably sure that I got this recipe from the now-defunct Gourmet magazine; I just found the identical recipe on Epicurious.com with no source given, so I guess it has now passed into the zeitgeist. These are surprisingly low in sugar, weighing in at 3 teaspoons per bar, or about 12 grams. So, in theory. you could eat two! (But I didn't try to determine the sugar content of the bittersweet chocolate, which would be quite low, or the semisweet chocolate, which would be somewhat higher.)
Course Dessert
Servings 16 squares

Ingredients

  • 3/4 stick butter
  • 3 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate Bittersweet is better.
  • 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate Or you can substitute 6 tablespoons cocoa powder and 2 tablespoons oil
  • 1 cup sugar
  • ½ cup whole almonds toasted until golden and cooled. The original recipe calls for blanched almonds, but I always just buy the natural almonds with the skins. It's harder to see if they're toasted or not if they have the skins on, but about 5 minutes at 350 is probably fine.
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 F. and butter and cocoa powder a 9-inch square baking pan, knocking out excess cocoa. (As noted in an earlier recipe, using flour for a chocolate item leaves a white residue; much better to use cocoa. Plus, you get an extra layer of chocolate! Hard to beat.)

  2. Melt butter and chocolate in the microwave, starting with 2 minutes on 50% power. Use the mixing bowl you're going to use to mix up the batter. If you're using the oil and cocoa instead of the unsweetened chocolate, stir that in after the bittersweet chocolate is melted. Set aside to cool while you proceed.

  3. In a food processor process sugar and almonds until ground fine. Stir almond mixture into chocolate mixture and add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well until mixture is glossy and smooth. Stir in flour, salt, and cinnamon until just combined.

  4. Spread batter evenly in pan and bake in middle of oven 20 minutes, or until a tester comes out with crumbs adhering to it. You may need another 5 minutes or so. Cool brownies completely in pan on a rack before cutting into 16 squares. 

Recipe Notes

These are seriously rich, dark, and fudgy. The ground almonds add a nice texture.