Brownies

Ingredients

• 225g butter
• 200g chocolate (100g dark, 100g milk)
• 325g sugar (250g white caster, 75g soft brown)
• 4 eggs
• 80g flour
• 80g cocoa powder
• 7g salt
• 20g vanilla bean paste
• 10g Espresso powder
• 1 batch of caramel

Method

1. Melt 225g butter in a saucepan and cook until water has evaporated
2. Turn off heat, add 100g dark chocolate (50% cocoa) and 100g milk chocolate (20% cocoa) into the melted butter, stir to melt chocolate
3. Whip 4 large eggs, 250g white caster sugar (or toasted sugar), and 75g brown sugar, 7g fine salt (not low-sodium salt) in a stand mixer on a medium-fast speed for 5-8 minutes until thick (mixing bowl must be absolutely clean before starting, including in-between making multiple batches)
4. Add 30g vanilla bean paste and 10g espresso powder to mixer
5. Reduce mixer to slowest setting and stream the chocolate/butter mixture in to mix, then turn mixer off (leave mixer running for as little time possible)
6. Sift 80g cocoa powder and 80g plain flour together, add to stand mixer batter and mix in on a slow speed (pulse, scrape, pulse, scrape)
7. Line a small square baking tin (i.e 15cm x 15cm x 5cm) with foil (optionally grease with butter and dust with cocoa powder)
8. Pour mixture in, adding a lot of caramel to the top layer (trying to almost cover in a thin layer of caramel)
9. Bake at 180C for 30 minutes (might need to adjust time depending on how deep the mixture is) - a brown paper layer should have formed on top by the time it is done, but a cake tester will still come out covered in molton chocolate
10. Cool on side for 1 hour, then put in the refrigerator overnight before slicing