sleep deprived: fat witch brownies

It's been one of those weeks that should leave me chained to my bed with a fever. One of those utterly exhausting weeks when you live for your bed at night and fight the urge to stay nestled deep inside when morning comes. One of those weeks where even baking is exhausting, despite the discovery of a great recipe. A week when I actually fell asleep on the couch waiting for my brownies to bake and woke up at 1:30am to a brownie brick in the oven.

But I made it to today and today is my Friday (!). I'm heading home to western Pennsylvania tomorrow morning and couldn't be happier with a long Columbus Day weekend in the 'Burgh. I'll be sleeping in. And eating out of my parents pantry. And grilling on their grill. And doing laundry in their washer/dryer. And probably buying (or baking with) a pumpkin and drinking apple cider at some point. Autumn, I love you.

For those of you who've had the opportunity to wander into Chelsea Market and let your noses guide you to Fat Witch, you'll appreciate this (and for the rest of you, you're in for a treat). Fat Witch makes some of the best brownies I've ever had and now (the Fat Witch cookbook was just released), I know why. GLORIOUS BUTTER. Was there ever really a doubt in my mind? I may have tried convincing myself it was the high-quality chocolate they used or the finest sugars available but let's face it, butter makes it better (despite what my thighs try to tell me).

I stumbled across the Original Witch recipe on Monday night after some impromptu carousing and in my particular state of mind decided that baking brownies at 10pm was a must. Obviously.

Like I said, my result was more brick-like than gooey brownie-like but that's my own fault. I cut out the middle of the pan to rescue a taste and that was it - these are EXACTLY like the little individually wrapped witches sold on 9th Avenue. And I bet they'd be much better minus the 6-7 glasses of red wine I had that night. Plus a glass of Prosecco.

These ARE decadent, but they're divine (and SO simple). Try them out! Apparently brownies are my thing lately.

[Sadly no photo since it was 1:30am and I was half-asleep by the time they finally came out of the oven, but you get the idea]

Fat Witch Brownies

via CakeSpy.com

1 3/4 sticks unsalted butter

1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp. bittersweet chocolate chips (I used semi-sweet)

1 1/4 cups granulated sugar

4 large eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp. unbleached flour

pinch of salt

Grease a 9-inch baking pan with butter. Dust with flour and tap out the excess. Preheat oven to 350 F.

Melt the butter and chocolate in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring frequently. Set aside to cool while you prepare the next step.

Cream the sugar, eggs, and vanilla together. Add the cooled chocolate mixture and mix until well blended.

Measure the flour and salt and then sift together directly into the chocolate mixture. Mix the batter gently until well combined and no trace of the dry ingredients remains.

Stir in nuts or any extras.

Spread the batter evenly in the prepared baking pan and bake 33 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean or with crumbs but not batter.

Remove from the oven and let cool on rack for 1 hour (do not fall asleep on your couch). Cut just before serving. Makes 12-16 brownies.