Chocolate Mascarpone Brownies

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Ingredients

SERVINGS 16
Brownies
  • 1 cup unsalted butter
  • 3 ounces best-quality semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
  • 1 cup white sugar
  • 1⁄2 cup cocoa powder
  • 1⁄2 cup mascarpone cheese, softened
  • 3 large eggs, at room-temperature
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 1⁄2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1⁄4 teaspoon salt
Ganache
  • 6 ounces best-quality semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
  • 6 tablespoons whipping cream
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter

Instructions

1 _ Preheat oven to 325°F; have ready a buttered 8-inch square glass cake pan.

2 _ First, prepare the brownies.

3 _ In a small saucepan, melt the butter and bring it to just below a boil; have the chopped chocolate in a mixing bowl--pour the hot butter over the chocolate and let stand for 30 seconds.

4 _ Stir until chocolate is completely melted.

5 _ Sift in the sugar and cocoa powder (I do this through a sieve, not with a sifter).

6 _ With a wooden spoon, beat in the mascarpone, eggs (30 minutes on the counter brings them to room temperature) and vanilla, mixing until smooth.

7 _ Gently fold the flour and salt into the batter.

8 _ Pour batter into prepared pan and spread evenly--this is important since, if the batter isn't spread evenly, it won't bake evenly.


9 _ Place into preheated oven and bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean (45 minutes did it for me).

10 _ Place pan on a cooling rack and let brownies cool for 10-15 minutes, while you now make the ganache.

11 _ Place chopped chocolate in a mixing bowl; in a small saucepan, bring the cream and the butter to just below the boiling point, over medium heat.

12 _ Pour this hot cream-butter mixture over the chocolate and let stand for 30 seconds, then stir until smooth; ganache is now ready to use and can be spread over the brownies.

13 _ Should you wish to wait a bit, make sure the ganache is warm when you spread over the brownies, as it does firm up which makes spreading hard to do.

14 _ Don't cut into the brownies until ganache has firmed up; I find it best to put the brownies into the fridge to speed this along; once the ganache is firm the brownies do not need to be kept in the fridge, though.

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