The Best Brownies... EVER

i found this divine brownie recipe from King Arthur's website.  it seriously is THE BEST brownie recipe i have ever tried.  i know that i've tried over at least 10 different brownie recipes.  

i don't know that i could have described what i was looking for before, but one bite into one of these brownies and i knew i found it.  it's not too cakey and not to fudgey.  it's just pure perfection.  so perfect that last night was the 2nd time i've made them in the last week and a half.  

the first time i made them i took them into work with me.  everyone gobbled them up.  at the end of the day a co-worker came out of his office looking for them and was bummed to find that they were all gone.  last night i made a 2nd batch that i'm going to take to a friend's house.  thank goodness i know that they have a place to go or else i'd eat the whole pan.  i love them that much.

a couple of times when i tried to go back to the recipe, i had a hard time getting there so here's the recipe for your convenience.  :o)

King Arthur's Brownie Recipe:

1 C unsalted butter

2 1/4 C sugar

4 large eggs

1 1/4 cups double-dutch dark cocoa or dutch-process cocoa  (i used the cocoa that i picked up from Henry's bulk bins and it worked great)

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp espresso powder (optional)  i made one batch with and one without.  they were equally great.

1 TB vanilla extract

1 1/2 C unbleached all-purpose flour

2 C chocolate chips

Directions:

1) Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9" x 13" pan

2) In a medium-sized microwave-safe bowl, or in a saucepan set over low heat, melt the butter, then add the sugar and stir to combine. Return the mixture to the heat (or microwave) briefly, just until it's hot (about 110°F to 120°F), but not bubbling; it'll become shiny looking as you stir it. Heating this mixture a second time will dissolve more of the sugar, which will yield a shiny top crust on your brownies.

3) While the sugar heats a second time, crack the 4 eggs into a bowl, and beat them with the cocoa, salt, baking powder, espresso powder, and vanilla till smooth.

4) Add the hot butter/sugar mixture, stirring until smooth.

5) Add the flour and chips, again stirring until smooth. Note: If you want the chips to remain intact in the baked brownies, rather than melting in, let the batter cool in the bowl for about 20 minutes before stirring in the chips.

6) Spoon the batter into a lightly greased 9" x 13" pan.

7) Bake the brownies for about 30 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, or with just a few moist crumbs clinging to it. The brownies should feel set on the edges, and the center should look very moist, but not uncooked. Remove them from the oven and cool on a rack before cutting and serving.