Winter Warmth...in the way of food.

To be honest, I know I should really keep up to date on what is going on in the world around me. However, I usually get depressed, or bored, and something and end up closing out the article or giving up trying to catch up altogether. However, there is one section I always find interesting and usually leaves me feeling hungry. That is the dining and wine section of the NY times. When I saw this pop up I immediately did a run though in my head about what ingredients I had and what I would need to throw these together. So much for staying informed, at least I have a new recipe!


WHEN it comes to dessert, my husband is a man of simple tastes, perfectly content as long as chocolate features prominently, and preferably in the form of chewy, dark brownies.
Related Recipe

Olive Oil and Coconut Brownies (February 9, 2011)
This works out well for both of us since I’d rather make brownies than go to the trouble of baking a torte or frosting a cake. And brownies pack more flavor into a tiny square than most chocolate desserts do in their entirety, making them very gratifying to bake.

With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, I’ve been tinkering with a new recipe. It’s not that there is anything wrong with my old, dependable recipe, but I do have a quibble with the texture. It is more velvety, but I prefer pudding-like, the way supermarket mixes come out. (That’s the only thing I like about them; I can’t stand the chemical aftertaste.)

Then, at a friend’s house, I tasted a homemade brownie with that perfect processed texture. It turns out she took her cue from those mixes, using vegetable oil instead of butter. A simple substitution, yet it never occurred to me.

After extracting the recipe from her, I ran home to bake it, with one significant change: Instead of vegetable oil, I used olive oil, giving the brownies a toehold on the savory side. I’d once tried an olive oil and chocolate bruschetta, and adored the rich layers of bitter, sweet and salty flavors that built on one another.

I baked a test batch, and they were as gooey as my friend’s, but with a subtle tangy flavor from the mild olive oil I chose, and a salty crunch from the sea salt I sprinkled on top.

They were nearly ready for their big unveiling, but there was one more tweak I wanted to try: adding shredded coconut for a little crunch. And indeed, my second batch had a lovely crisp top above the moist interior, but they were less savory than the plain olive oil ones. I briefly debated which to serve, then settled on the coconut version.

On Valentine’s Day, sweeter is just where you want to