Foodie Issues

Desserts have just not been doing it for me lately.  I want to like them.  Whether I mow it down or attempt to savor each bite, I am left with a palate in want.  Mint chocolate chip ice cream, a usual favorite, leaves me unsatisfied.  Pie, nah. The all time pinnacle of confectionery delight—Reese's Peanut Butter Cups? Nyeh...so, so.  But, now, what is this?  My wife, Merissa, is going to make something new from Bon Appetite? Something they claim to be the, "best brownie we have ever tasted,"?  Hmmm...I'm skeptical.

Bon Appetite has been leaving me high and dry of late.  For a season it seemed like they were coming up with tasty but practical recipes for food lovers.  In the past 6 months their concoctions have been more elaborate. With insane prep times and ingredients needing to be flown in from East Namib, I half expect to see, "1 tsp. ground horn of a unicorn," included among the glossy pages.  I glance over Mer's shoulder to peek at the list of rather unimpressive ingredients: butter, cocoa, eggs, sugar, and trace amounts of flour and vanilla extract.

"Harumph," I scowl. Nothing like a quick word of encouragement and thanks to make a cook/wife feel appreciated.

The aroma of butter being browned grabs my interest enough to draw me from the couch into the kitchen.  "Hmmm.  I don't think I've ever seen that before. Cool."  The butter foams and begins to roll back into itself off the polished metal sides of the saucepan she is using.  As it roils, deep brown burbles up from the center and the foam begins to subside.  The chemistry of cooking fascinates me.  Soon the butter is uniformly brown and the other ingredients added in their proper order.  Fudgey black tar-like goodness creeps lazily into the 8x8 glass dish and into the oven it goes.

Glory.

25min has never seemed longer—and I am never prone to exaggeration.

Somehow we manage to be good little monkeys and wait until our guests arrive and dinner complete before jumping right to dessert.  The main course? A formality. I really want to try those brownies.

Remember the movie, Ratatouille? There is a part where the main character (a rat) tries to describe how a mixture of flavors creates something greater than the sum of the parts.  I know now, more than ever before, exactly what he was driving at.  My first bite floors me.  Initially a hint of the burned butter, followed by deep chocolate, then a nutty undertone mixed with the other two. Mmmm.

If there were not young impressionable minds around—and our duty was not to fill those minds with light and goodness—I might have just grabbed a fork, pushed past our guests whilst using the fork as a weapon, and downed the whole razzin' frazzin' pan.

My taste buds blissfully sigh, lean against each other, and rest with complete satisfaction.

http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2011/02/cocoa_brownies_with_browned_butter_and_walnuts