148. Eggless Brownies

August 15, 2012mayurisjikoni

Happy birthday Prina dear!

I know Prina’s birthday was on 11th of August and I also know she doesn’t like cakes. Its amazing how she will always insist on having a cake for her birthday but she wouldn’t eat any. However there a still a lot of things she is finicky about eating or even trying and some of her favourite things neither will I taste or make them…. chicken being one of them. Where vegetarian meals are concerned her favourite is suva or palak bhaji nu shaak and rotli. Perhaps at some stage will even blog her favourite shaak so that all her young cousins and aunts will learn how to make it. So as I had mentioned earlier, we still celebrate important occasions with something sweet so on Prina’s birthday I tried out an eggless brownie recipe which had actually been collecting cobwebs! I did find it on the internet but unfortunately didn’t write down from which blog or whose recipe it is. It is so simple to make and it is not sickly sweet at all.

EGGLESS BROWNIES
9 to 12 pieces

1 cup plain flour
½ cup cocoa powder
¾ to 1 cup powdered sugar
¼ tsp salt
1 tsp soda bicarbonate (baking soda)
5 tbsps oil
1 cup milk
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar or 1 tsp vinegar
2 tsps instant coffee powder
2 tbsps grated dark chocolate
¼ tsp vanilla extract
12 walnuts chopped

Mix milk and vinegar and leave it on the side for 5 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 180°C.
Grease a 8X8 inch square tin with butter. Line it with a greaseproof paper or dust the pan with flour.
Sieve flour, cocoa, baking soda, sugar and salt together into a bowl. Mix in the chopped walnuts.
Melt the chocolate over hot water. To melt the chocolate heat some water in a pan. Place chocolate in a smaller pan that will fit over the pan of heated water. Stir the chocolate till it melts.
Mix the melted chocolate, oil, vanilla extract and vinegar milk mixture well.
Add the liquid to the flour mixture. Mix till the flour becomes wet.
Pour the batter into the prepared tin.
Bake in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes.
Pierce the middle of the cake with a toothpick or fork. If it comes out clean then the cake is done.
Take the pan out of the oven and leave the cake in it for 10 minutes.
Slowly remove the cake from the pan and let it cool on a wire rack.

Tips :

To remove the cake from the pan, take a spatula and gently ease off the cake from the edges. Place the wire rack on top of the pan. Hold the pan and wire rack together with your hands.Turn it over. The wire rack should be at the bottom and the pan on top. Place it on the worktop. Gently tap the bottom of the pan and lift the pan.
To dust a pan, grease it with butter. Add a heaped tablespoon of flour to the greased pan. Shake the pan, turning it around so that the flour coats the pan. Turn the pan upside down and tap out the excess flour.
For a less sweeter cake use ¾ cup of powdered sugar.
Can top the cake with melted chocolate and chopped nuts. Spread the melted chocolate when the cake is a bit cool.
I found that 12 walnuts were too little for the cake. Would definitely use some more next time.
Use hazelnuts, almonds or cashew nuts instead of walnuts.

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