Are brownies a suitable Christmas gift?
What about the greatest brownies ever made? AND a cute little tea towel? That might be what I'm working with as far as gifts go this year.
I have always been a terrible gift giver. Even when we weren't on such a tight budget. I think it's because I just want to buy everything for myself (THAT'S SO TERRIBLE).
I have always liked making gifts though, which is lame because when you see a homemade gift that isn't from a child you might be all UGGGH. When I was an unpaid intern, I made everyone in my family homemade gifts almost entirely out of buttons. My mom - button snowman ornaments (that I haven't seen in a while now that I think of it MOM). My sister - an arrangement of buttons in the shape of an M. My dad - a rendition of his beloved old truck in BUTTONS. I was so poor.
For someone who loves to cook, frequently used ingredients make a great gift like:
-big bag of local pecans (or cashews, almonds, hazelnuts, WHATEV)
-raw honey
-the expensive cheese
-homemade vanilla extract
-great quality coffee beans
-really good, dark chocolate
-organic olive, avocado, flax, grapeseed, coconut oil
-homemade almond butter
-BEER! or wine (duh)
This has been one of my favorite recipes since I started baking. If you follow me on Instagram, you know I made a batch of these the night I went into labor with Ruthie and reaaaaally wished I had stashed the pan in my hospital bag (didn’t even get the chance to eat ONE 😩). These are SO simple, there are 5 ingredients. But the flavor is insanely rich and chocolatey. Everyone likes their brownies a little different, I like mine melty and gooey and fudgey and these are where it’s at. The brown sugar gives them a chewy texture and amazing caramel flavor. Be careful not to bake longer than needed. I’ve over baked a few batches and they get a little fluffy and less dense. It’s also important to really cream the heck out of the butter and sugar (quick tutorial here).
You won’t find any oat flour or flax seed in this recipe unlike many of my others. Though I do usually try to get the most out of what I eat, sometimes that means just making something super delicious and enjoying the heck out of it.
Or sharing it with buddies!
Recipe clipped from an old (like, really old) box of C&H sugar.