"Nem": Vietnamese Fresh Spring Rolls

The week leading up to Christmas my family spent in Vietnam, as I mentioned before. Three days in Hanoi, three days on a cruise in Ha Long Bay. The cruise was amazing--it was so peaceful to sit up on the deck of our boat and watch the rocky islands rise out of the mist and loom by. We had ample time to sit and enjoy as there were only a few activities planned: rowing around a floating fishing village, kayaking among the islands, touring a pearl farm, and making spring rolls.

The spring roll-making demonstration took place before dinner on both nights, and we learned how to assemble Vietnamese nem (spring rolls). We made fresh spring rolls, so that we could devour them immediately. My spring roll-making-skills definitely improved on the second night!

To make fresh nem, first you need rice paper. Handmade rice paper is best because it is easier to use. You simply lay it on a damp washcloth while preparing the spring roll so that it becomes more pliable. If the rice paper is handmade, it will have a pattern on it from the mold. Rice paper that is not handmade has to be soaked in warm water for about 20 seconds before using, which makes it stickier and more difficult to roll.

There are many things that can be put in fresh nem, but whatever ingredients chosen, it is best if they are in strips so that the spring rolls are not as bulky and have fewer air pockets. Any meats or eggs should, of course, be pre-cooked. We used carrots, lettuce, strips of scrambled eggs, shrimp, and special Vietnamese pork.

For a dipping sauce, they had a special homemade sauce which cannot be found in stores. They casually listed the ingredients while explaining the spring roll process, and I had to frantically write them down. So, since it is a simple list and I have not yet tried making it at home, I'm not sure of proportions. When I make it, I'll update it. However, you can experiment with it as you like! It may be worth trying because the sauce on the boat was really tasty and perfected the spring rolls, in my opinion.
Here are the ingredients, and let me know how it goes if you use them to make a sauce!

Spring Roll Dipping Sauce
2 parts water
1 part fish sauce
1 part rice vinegar
Garlic
Chilies
Lime juice
Sugar

To assemble the nem, you lay a piece of rice paper on a damp washcloth, then you make a small pile of ingredients near the base of the rice paper. You do not want to use too many ingredients!! We saw a lot of people load them to bursting, and lets just say that their spring rolls were, I'm sure, yummy but not pretty. Also, it is easiest to put all of the ingredients in a pile on the rice paper, not in a carpet across the paper. Once all of the ingredients are on the rice paper, start rolling it up very tightly. When rolled halfway, fold the edges into the center, and finish rolling. Then, rub a little water on the edge of the rice paper to glue it down. Or, you can lick it, and, as our guide explained, no one will steal your spring roll. Finally, dip your spring roll into the sauce for a few seconds so that the sauce seeps into your spring roll. If you do a quick dip, it won't have as much flavor and will be more difficult to take a bite of.

This is a really fresh and simple treat, and is fun to make. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Muffins

How was your Christmas?

Ours was wonderful. I'm in Taiwan with my family, but we took a week before Christmas to vacation in Vietnam. It was amazing! We tried a lot of ethnic food, which did some pretty sketchy things to our stomachs--fried corn, pho, fish stir fry at a restaurant which Obama ate at, and more seafood than I've ever eaten in my life. We're ok though, so no regrets. We spent a few days on a boat cruising through Ha Long Bay, one of the seven natural wonders of the world. The rocky islands rising out of the mist are surreal.

We came back to Taiwan on the 24th and three minutes after we stepped foot in the apartment, my mom and I were in the kitchen, making breadsticks, zuppa toscana, and peppermint ice cream for our Christmas Eve dinner.

Christmas Day was filled with monkey bread, cookies, steak, wrapping paper, and Christmas music.

Now it's Boxing Day, as they say in New Zealand. A day to relax, enjoy the new presents, and do a little more baking. Pumpkin muffins are an easy and tasty treat if you're looking for something to make today, like me. They're tender, not too crumbly, and just a little bit sweet. I love the seeds and the crumble because it gives them more yummy flavor and texture. The raisins too, except that we usually leave them out because SOME PEOPLE who shall not be named do not like them. *Ahem* But we devour these muffins at every opportunity--breakfast, second breakfast, lunch, snack, dessert, midnight snack... They're healthy enough that it's justified. Right?

This is a recipe that is always in our fall-winter recipe rotation. They're just so warm and comforting! I actually took these pictures a few years ago and have been meaning to share the recipe with you ever since, but that's neither here nor there. So, you'd better make up for lost time and get baking! Merry Christmas!

Pumpkin Crumble Muffins
Makes: 18 regular muffins

Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/8 tsp. ground allspice
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup canned pure pumpkin
1/4 cup well-shaken buttermilk*
2 large eggs
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup raisins
3 Tbs. raw green (hulled) pumpkin seeds (pepitas), divided

Crumble Topping, optional:
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 Tbs. butter, softened

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400ºF with rack in the middle. Butter muffin pan or use muffin papers.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices, and salt.
3. In a medium bowl, combine butter, brown sugar, pumpkin, buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla. Add to dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Do not overmix.
4. Gently stir in raisins and 2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds.
5. Evenly divide batter among prepared muffin cups and sprinkle with remaining pepitas.
6. Make crumble topping: Combine ingredients in small bowl. Cut butter in until crumbly. Sprinkle onto tops of muffins.
7. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cool in muffin tin for 5 minutes, then remove from muffin tin and cool on a wire rack.

*To make 1 cup of buttermilk substitute: 1 Tbs. vinegar or lemon juice + just enough milk to make 1 cup. Let sit for five minutes before using.

Homemade Poppyseed Chicken

You know when you have a TON of work to do, but you're so overwhelmed that you just sit there and scroll through instagram (or write a blog...ha...ha...ha.....)?

Yep, that's me right now.

The end of the semester is approaching way too quickly--I have tests, projects, and papers due soon, I've committed to going to four large events just this weekend (and more next weekend), and yet, I'm sitting here in my favorite comfy chair, writing a blog like I don't have grades to worry about.

I think that there's just so much to do that I can't face it right now, not after a full day of classes. The only thing keeping me sane is what's beyond all of the work--Thanksgiving break and then Christmas break! I'm beyond excited to fill my grandma's kitchen with yummy fall smells in a few short weeks. It's so close, yet so far...

In the meantime, I have some good ol' fashioned comfort food for you, perfect for these colder and shorter days.

Poppyseed chicken! My mom used to make this a few times a year, and it was always so good. Creamy, warm, flavorful. While she used a much simpler recipe, I wanted to eliminate the questionable cans of soup that the original recipe involved, and make it completely from scratch. And all I can say is, there were no leftovers! Probably helps that we hadn't had it in years, though, huh?

Homemade Poppyseed Chicken
Serves: 4-5
Total time: 30 min

Recipe from: http://www.lecremedelacrumb.com/2014/11/poppy-seed-chicken-casserole.html

Homemade Marshmallows

Three weeks. I've only been in school for three weeks, but it feels like both an eternity and the blink of an eye.

I've been reuniting with friends, decorating my new room, battling spiders, getting used to school food and all of the school work, and trying to create a new routine. It's exhausting, yo. It makes me want dessert.

Luckily, friends, family, and church potlucks have come to my rescue. I've eaten way more than my share of cookies and other yumminess. But despite all of that, I do wish I could be in the kitchen making something of my own choice (and licking the beater while I'm at it...). Something like these marshmallows...

I made these marshmallows during the precious last weeks of summer. Friends departing post had given us a box of gelatin, and as soon as I saw it my crazy baker's heart claimed it as mine, and mine alone for marshmallows (not that anyone else really wanted it...).

I did a lot of research to find the right marshmallow recipe. Usually, marshmallows are made with corn syrup. Well, let me tell you somethin'. Ain't no such thing as corn syrup in Taiwan, and after a bunch of reading, I was pretty convinced that substitutes (which weren't available either anyway) also wouldn't work. What to do? After some searching, I discovered that some recipes use evaporated milk, which we just happened to have a can of stashed away! And, bonus, evaporated milk is a bit healthier than corn syrup.

So, to the kitchen I went. There were a lot of steps, but I took them one at a time. I was a bit nervous about the mixture heating on the stove since it never got *quite* up to the right temperature, but it didn't seem to make a difference in the final product. Also, I made the wonderful decision to use Mexican vanilla in these, and the flavor out outstanding. Multiple people wondered aloud what that rich cinnamon-y, vanilla-y flavor was.

Marshmallows are fantastic for a number of reasons. They are SO versatile. Switch out vanilla for another extract, add food coloring, add mix-ins, cut into shapes. For next time, I'm thinking maybe some white chocolate chip pumpkin spice marshmallows for fall, or pink peppermint chocolate chip marshmallows for Christmas, or what about dark chocolate dipped almond marshmallows?? *Swoon*

Now, you may be thinking "These sound fantastic! I'll make a double batch!!" But do not listen to that tiny voice in your head! At least not the first time you make these, because this recipe makes A LOT of marshmallows. I gave away at least 4 bags with 10 small marshmallows each, and we had about 20 more marshmallows for ourselves. However, if you must give in, these marshmallows are supposed to freeze well (though I haven't tried it myself).

In case you need inspiration on how to eat these little nuggets of delight:

-Make s'mores (but let the marshmallows dry out in the open air for a few days previously so that the outsides don't melt away when exposed to heat).
-Plop a giant handful into your hot chocolate. They melt quite nicely!
-Give away in cute gift bags. I did this, and people LOVED it! It's a unique gift, and when you tell your friends that they're homemade, their eyes will pop!
-Serve for dessert. Dip them in chocolate if you wish, but these really are good enough to stand alone as dessert.

Excuse all of the pictures, I got a little snap-happy! These marshmallows are pillowy soft and sweetly delicious. Don't wait to make them!

Homemade Marshmallows
Makes: 50 small or 30 medium

A few notes about this recipe:
-The vanilla makes the marshmallows a little bit tan-colored. Use clear vanilla or another type of extract for a purer white color, or cover up the color with food coloring.
-You will want a candy thermometer to make these. There's just no other sure way to tell when they're ready to come off the stove.
-If you want to toast them, let dry in the open air for a few days beforehand so that the outsides dry a little bit and don't melt immediately.

Recipe from: http://www.asweetpeachef.com/sweets/homemade-marshmallow-recipe/

Homemade Thin Mints

So, yesterday I was making dinner and stepped on a turtle.

Wait, let me rewind.

We have this adorable little triscuit-sized turtle (named Triscuit, hehe) which swims around in a fancy-shmancy bowl that we keep outside, away from the saber toothed-cat that likes to play with the turtle. But Sunday night, the turtle was inside after a bowl cleaning.

We went to bed, forgetting about Triscuit, and in the morning, realized our grave mistake.

Sometime during the night, monster-cat Mao flipped Triscuit out of his peaceful home and onto the floor, and we went crazy trying to find him before work. Alas, he was lost in the (relative) vastness of our apartment.
Fast forward to when I returned home and started making dinner, listening to my siblings trying to find Triscuit. "Tristcuit, you get back here right now!" my sister declared.
As if by magic, a few seconds later, my piggy toe landed on something hard and unusual. My subconsciousness knew what it was, and as I looked down, I shrieked. Triscuit.

So, the lost was found, but my piggy toe is still a little freaked out. Look, don't touch, is my policy when it comes to turtles.

Which leads me to what else is triscuit-sized but doesn't freak me out. Thin mints! The wonderful chocolate-mint girl scout cookie that is always there for you. Actually...no they're not. They're only sold at rare, magical times throughout the year. BUT, they can always be there for you if you know this recipe! 'Cause it's pretty dang close to the real thing--in fact, better.

So apparently it's a thing to keep thin mints in your freezer. I have never tried it, but I have tried keeping these homemade thin mints in the fridge, and they were fantastic--so crisp and minty, with an indulgent coat of chocolate. So I definitely suggest cooling them. Definitely.

A few notes about the recipe before you get baking. I didn't include the original recipe here because Sally's post is so comprehensive. She's amazing, yo. But, here are a few things that I learned while making them.
You CAN use chocolate chips instead of bars of semi-sweet chocolate. They don't melt as well, but just mix them often while melting, and do not burn them. Trust me, not pretty.
I used a fork to dip my cookies into the chocolate, as suggested. However, the tapping part did not go so well since the chocolate chips melted into a pretty thick liquid. What did work was after dipping a cookie, I smoothed the chocolate over the cookie with my finger while balancing the cookie on a fork. Messy, but they ended up with a rustic charm.
As I finished chocolate coating a few cookies, I popped them into the freezer for a few minutes to harden up before stacking them all together in the fridge. Didn't want that chocolate to smudge!

So, with that, get baking!

P.S. Watch where you step in the kitchen. I don't make this stuff up ^^

Find the recipe at: http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2016/03/09/homemade-thin-mint-cookies/

Food in Hong Kong

Over Independence Day weekend, our family took a short trip to Hong Kong. Mainly we went to markets and enjoyed a light show on the river. I, of course, was eager to try the local food. Here are just a few of the things we tried!

Egg Puffs, or Eggettes

They are named for their egg carton shape, but they taste like waffles. Fresh out of the press, they are crunchy on the outside and soft--almost custard-like--on the inside.

Hong Kong-Style Milk Tea

This milk tea contains black tea and either sweetened condensed milk or evaporated milk. We went to the restaurant Fan Long Yuen, and they handed it to us in little plastic bottles. It was a little sketchy, what with the bottles unsealed and the tea dripping down the sides. It was obviously homemade, which made it all the better. I took one sip and was in love--it was so delicious, with a strong tea flavor. However, most of my family didn't like it, so I ended up drinking two bottles in a row. I felt like I was on a sugar/caffeine high for hours afterwards!

Dim Sum

Everything I read about Hong Kong food strongly recommended trying Dim Sum, so we went to Tim Ho Wan, one of the cheapest Michelin stars in the world, to get what I read was the best experience. Before eating, I thought Dim Sum was a type of dumpling, but it turned out to be a style of eating. Basically, it is Hong Kong's version of Spanish tapas. We ordered an assortment of small foods and nibbled away. On our table were various types of dumplings: fried dumplings, dumplings with rice, and steamed dumplings, as well as spare ribs and...chicken feet (I passed on that one).

If you get the chance to go to Hong Kong, it is a great place to shop and eat--and don't forget to tell me about what you try!

Brown Sugar Buttered Salmon

You'd think, Taiwan being an island, there'd be a lot more seafood around here.

And by seafood, I mean seafood that I actually want to eat.

And by that, I mean fish.

And, let's be honest, I just want salmon. Lots of salmon.

Salmon has always been my favorite fish. It has a naturally rich and slightly buttery flavor and a tender, flaky texture. And, as if it couldn't get any better, salmon is a nutrient-packed powerfood which magically erases all of the effects of the sugar and butter piled on top of it...oh, wait, it doesn't do that? Well, no matter — the amazing flavor of the sugar + butter + seasoning + salmon is definitely worth it.

Oh, and I forgot to mention, this salmon takes under 30 minutes to make! Take that, weeknights.

Brown Sugar Buttered Salmon
Prep: 10 minutes          Bake: 10-15 minutes

Ingredients:
Lawry's Seasoned Salt
Butter, softened
Brown sugar
Salmon fillets or steaks

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 450ºF. Line a baking sheet with tinfoil.
2. Lay salmon on prepared baking sheet.
3. Sprinkle salmon with Lawry's Seasoned Salt to taste (we like it pretty thick).
4. Using an offset spatula, spread butter thickly over the top of the salmon, covering all of it. Don't worry if the Lawry's gets a little moved around.
5. Sprinkle brown sugar thickly over the butter.
6. Bake for 4-6 minutes for each half-inch thickness. Check for doneness using a fork to pull a small section apart. Salmon is done when flaky.

Fluffy Trilogy Cinnamon Rolls

"Fluffy" does not even begin to convey how giant, pillowy soft, light, and airy these cinnamon rolls are.

For starters, the dough rose above and beyond expectations. Literally. It began as one of the softest, most pliable, most delightful-to-knead doughs I have ever handled, and then had a growth spurt worthy of being recorded in the book of Guinness World Records.

Upon punching down the dough and assembling the rolls, I put them in the pan...and a few minutes later they had expanded again before my eyes.

Taking our first bites of the rolls the next morning, my family exploded with comments about how fluffy they were. "And that would be the whopping two tablespoons of yeast at work" was my reply. More yeast than I've ever seen in a cinnamon roll recipe, but it definitely works.

These rolls are the closest I've ever come to my ideal cinnamon roll: easy to make but sweet and beyond soft. I'd rather eat no cinnamon roll than a dense one with a hard crust on top. The best cinnamon roll I ever ate was while we were camping a few years ago. From a Mennonite shop, they were ginormous, pillowy soft, and so sweet. They were perfect in every way except that, upon looking at the package, I saw that they were made of a potato dough, which does not meet the "easy to make" criteria. So, now the search is over; I cannot imagine finding a better recipe than this one.

Not only is the dough practically perfect, but so is the frosting (in my opinion). It is not your average cinnamon roll frosting--what with all the almond extract, nuts, and cream--but it is absolutely divine.

That said, my brother and dad said that the only thing that could make these rolls better was a plain buttercream or cream cheese frosting. Sigh. But as long as I do the baking, I get to control the flavoring, amiright?

You may be wondering about the "Trilogy" part of the title. I was too, at first. These are the cinnamon rolls that are served on the Trilogy cruise ships. They have posted their original recipe on their website, but the recipe I used from Crazy for Crust is a bit easier, but is based closely off Trilogy's recipe.

By the way, apologies for the pictures. They do not do justice to these rolls! I had to use my iPhone because of camera problems.

I am dying to try my own versions of these rolls. Think of all the filling options: chocolate, lemon, strawberry, blueberry and cinnamon, mocha, maple, apple pie... Can't wait to start!

Fluffy Trilogy Cinnamon Rolls

Makes: about 24-27 rolls

Ingredients:

Dough:

1 1/2 cups warm water (~100-110ºF)

2 Tbs. active dry yeast

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 tsp. salt

2 large eggs

3/4 cup vegetable oil

5 cups all-purpose flour

Filling:

6 Tbs. unsalted butter, melted

2/3 cup brown sugar

2-4 tsp. ground cinnamon

Icing:

1/2 cup finely chopped Macadamia nuts (or your favorite nut)

6 Tbs. unsalted butter, softened

2 cups powdered sugar

1/4 tsp. lemon extract

1/4 tsp. almond extract

1/4 tsp. salt

3 Tbs. heavy whipping cream

Make the dough:

1. In the large bowl of a stand mixer with the dough hook attached, put warm water and sprinkle yeast, sugar, and salt over it. Give it a quick mix with a wooden spoon, then let sit for 5 minutes until frothy.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together eggs and oil. Add egg mixture and 1 cup of flour to the yeast mixture. Stir with dough hook while slowly adding the remaining 4 cups of flour.

3. Mix with dough hook for 5-10 more minutes until dough is elastic. It will be soft and a bit sticky. Remove to a lightly floured surface, and knead a few times until dough is no longer sticky. Place dough in an oiled bowl covered tightly with plastic wrap, and let rest in a warm place until doubled in size.

4. Grease three 9"x9" pans or two 9"x13" pans.

5. Punch down dough and split into two balls. On a lightly floured surface, roll each ball into a 12"x15" rectangle.
6. Spread each rectangle with melted butter, and sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon to taste. Alternatively, mix sugar and cinnamon into melted butter and spread on with a spoon.
7. Roll dough lengthwise, as tightly as possible. Pinch edges to seal.
8. Cut rolls into 1-inch pieces and place in pan so that they are just touching.
9. Either: Let rise for 20-30 minutes, until doubled in size, then bake. OR Cover tightly with plastic wrap and store in refrigerator overnight. Let come to room temperature before baking.
10. Bake at 350ºF for 20-25 minutes.

Make the icing:
1. In a small bowl with a hand mixer, beat butter and powdered sugar until combined. Add extracts, salt, and whipping cream, beating until smooth.
2. Sprinkle nuts on baked cinnamon rolls, then spread on icing. Serve.
3. Store in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

Unbaked, unfrosted rolls can be frozen for up to 3 months.

Recipe from: http://www.crazyforcrust.com/2016/06/famous-trilogy-cinnamon-rolls/

Original Trilogy recipe: http://www.www.sailtrilogy.com/pages/recipes.php

Funfetti Cupcakes

Did anyone else completely forget about leap day until, well, leap day? Story of my life.

Luckily, though, this week is spring break, so forgetting that February 29 was a thing this year didn't affect me in any huge way. So far break has been pretty laid back (except taxes, *sad face*), as I'm spending it with my crazy-but-awesome cousins. It's always fun to take a break from school and catch up with all of these special people that I missed out on while I've lived overseas, and now at college. They actually got a snow day today, which is pretty exciting--I haven't had one of those in years! So today there is extra time to spend together.

Usually when I visit, one of the girls bakes something with me. This time, Lydia picked to bake funfetti cupcakes. Funnily enough, funfetti perfectly describes her personality: filled with fun, colorful surprises, and always ready to put a smile on your face (case in point: she is shooting me with a fake machine gun as I type this).

Sadly, I don't get to bake cupcakes much anymore. Wait, scratch that, I don't get to bake much of anything anymore. Depressing, considering that baking is a large part of who I am. Want to know Maddie in a nutshell? Baking, and cats. Preferably together, please. Luckily this week I have gotten both, a sweet (haha) bonus to being with my family.

Funfetti cupcakes are perfect for birthday parties, but really, you don't need a special occasion to bake these cupcakes. They are fun, and that's all the reason you need! To be honest, I'm not really the biggest fan of "plain" flavors like vanilla, but I was pleasantly surprised when I bit into these sprinkle-loaded cupcakes and got a mouthful of cake that was sweet, moist, and lacking that telltale chemical-y flavor of box-mix funfetti cake. And as far as cupcakes go, these are pretty easy to make: a few basic ingredients + lotsa sprinkles + some time and love = funfetti cupcakes and happiness!

Make these cupcakes A.S.A.P. to brighten the gloomy end-of-winter days.

Funfetti Cupcakes
Makes: 16

Ingredients:

Cupcakes:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
1 1/4 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 Tbs. vanilla
3/4 cup buttermilk*
1/2 cup sprinkles (colorful, preferably jimmies or nonpareils)

Frosting:
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1/4 tsp. salt
5 cups powdered sugar
1 Tbs. vanilla
1-2 Tbs. heavy whipping cream*

Directions:

Cupcakes:
1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line cupcake tins with 15-16 liners.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
3. In a large bowl, put the melted butter, and mix in sugar with a hand or stand mixer for 30 seconds, until thick and combined.
4. To the butter mixture, add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Beat in vanilla.
5. Alternately mix in the flour mixture and the buttermilk, starting and ending with the flour; do not overmix.
6. Stir in sprinkles.
7. Fill cupcake liners about 2/3 full (~1/4 batter per liner). Bake for 15-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely on wire racks before frosting. Store in an airtight container.

Frosting:
1. In a large bowl, beat butter until creamy.
2. Beat in salt and powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time.
3. Beat in vanilla and 1 tablespoon whipping cream. Add more whipping cream if needed to obtain desired consistency.
4. Frost cupcakes using a pastry bag. This recipe makes plenty of frosting to pile it in high swirls.

*You can replace buttermilk by combining 3/4 cup milk + 1 tsp. white vinegar and letting sit for 5 minutes.
*You can replace heavy whipping cream for milk, but the consistency will not be as creamy.

Recipe from: http://www.crazyforcrust.com/2014/02/perfect-funfetti-cupcakes/

Fudgy Brownies

Dense or cakey?

Rich or mild?

Mix-ins or solid brownie?

Frosted or plain?

Chewy or crumbly?

Gooey or dry?

Warm or cool?

Fork or fingers?

Think. Carefully. Your answers could be life changing as they will determine whether or not you will like these brownies.

Dense, rich, gooey-chocolate-chippy, and oh-so-sweet, eat 'em with a fork or your fingers, they will melt in your mouth. Decide to make them, and they will satisfy every chocolate craving you have.
*sighs with delight*

It's been way too long since I made brownies. I mean, it's probably been years. *gasp* I know, too long. So, I decided to make the richest brownies I could find to make up for lost time.

Good decision, good decision.

Eaten a la mode with homemade cinnamon ice cream, I practically died. SO GOOD. They are exactly my idea of a perfect brownie (meaning they are as chocolatey as can be). So–long story short–this recipe is a keeper.

See ya when I wake up from dreaming about these brownies!

Fudgy Brownies
Makes: 12-16 brownies

Notes:
*Be very careful to measure the flour accurately.
*Use bittersweet chocolate for a darker flavor.
*Alternatively, you can bake the brownies in a 11x7" baking pan for 35-40 minutes.

Recipe from: http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2014/04/30/chewy-fudgy-homemade-brownies/