Brownies and everything you need to know about them

Brownies are probably the most popular dessert on Earth, and with good reason: they''re easy to make and almost everyone loves them. You''ve probably heard of brownies but wondered what they are.

Brownies? What is it?

Brownies are pastries with a dense texture and a chocolate flavour. Traditionally, brownies are served in small square-shaped pieces. Brownies often contain ingredients such as nuts or other ingredients that give them a special flavour to take the edge off the full chocolate taste. They are a pastry where the golden rule applies: they are ideally crisp on the outside and soft on the inside.

2. Where was the first brownie made?

The first brownies were prepared by chefs at the Palmer Hotel in Chicago in 1893. The World''s Columbian Exposition was held in Chicago that year and the people running it asked the chefs to create a brand new recipe for a well-baked brownie to include in the boxed lunches sold at the fair.

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Specifically, hotel chefs were asked to prepare something small that you could pick up and eat without a fork, but of course would still taste great. The first brownies were made with walnuts and apricot glaze.

3. Why is a brownie called a brownie?

The first brownies were not actually called that at the time. The name came shortly afterwards, but from an unknown source. Apparently because ''brown'' means brown and this crispy pastry with a soft centre is actually brown. However, since it is always necessary to follow a trend, they followed it then too. The trend of adding ''ie'' to the end of the word took the lead and that is how the brownies we know today got their name . The name refers to a small, cute version of the word ''brown''.

4. How do I prepare brownies?

To make brownies really crispy pastry with a soft interior, care must be taken to choose the right ingredients. Adding airy ingredients such as flour and baking soda to the recipe will cause the brownies to rise too much and instead of a low chocolate pastry, you will end up with a sponge cake that can be used as a cake. Using butter and chocolate instead of these ingredients will give the brownies a smooth and dense texture.

Then comes the mixing. The more you stir the prepared mixture, the more air pockets are created. If you want a dense and not so airy texture, you only need to stir the brownie mixture enough to bring the ingredients together.

Use only the egg yolks to make the mixture - separate the yolks from the whites and discard the whites. Add the melted butter - once it cools, melted butter will be super sticky. Cool the brownies well after baking. When you take them out of the oven, chill them in the fridge for an hour to firm them up.

5. Looking for the best brownie recipe ?

To start with, I suggest that you don''t go hungry looking for chocolate brownie recipes .

We have not added baking powder or baking soda to the chocolate brownie recipe. Just follow the advice above to create chocolate brownies that are as dense and luscious as if you were just eating chocolate. We have used BAM dark chocolate, which adds just the right bitter cocoa flavour to the chocolate brownies. Recipe waiting here.

BAM tip: chocolate brownies take about 30 minutes to bake. As soon as you smell chocolate in your kitchen, use a toothpick to check if the brownies are already baked, even though they will only have been in the oven for 25 minutes at that point. If you find a few brownie pieces on the toothpick , they are baked. In this case, you do not want the toothpick to be completely dry, as the brownies will not be as juicy. If you find wet brownie pieces still on the toothpick, put it back in the oven and bake for a while longer.