With the St Patrick’s Day coming up on Friday, decadent chocolate Guinness Brownies are on my Cooking with Heinen’s menu this week. The star ingredient in these moist, chocolaty, rich, brownies is Guinness Extra Stout beer. What is more synonymous with Saint Patrick’s Day than Guinness beer? Maybe corned beef and cabbage but, given the choice, I’m choosing the Guinness + chocolate.
This weekend was the official kick off for St. Patrick’s Day in Chicago with the parade and the annual dying of the Chicago River. It was COLD but crowds still packed the streets to celebrate. My Son and I went downtown to check it out and the river is definitely GREEN!
So, beer in brownies may seem a bit odd. I’ve used Stout instead of water in pie crust and it adds a full-bodied richness to the flavor. Here, the stout complements the chocolate, highlighting its rich flavor. You’ll just have to trust me and give it a go.
When you are shopping for chocolate at Heinen’s, step out of the baking aisle and check out the bulk chocolates they sell in the cheese department. It’s sold in block form and the quality is excellent. Simply chop it into small pieces before melting.
My recipe calls for melting the chocolate in a double boiler but I have no trouble slowly microwaving and stirring my chocolate in a heat proof glass pie plate. I start with 1 minute then stir every 15 seconds until melted. It will be thicker-than-usual melted chocolate because you are melting it with the white chocolate and butter. These fats will melt quickly so keep a close eye on it. Stir it well and don’t over heat it.
Another trick I like to use is cooking my brownies in parchment paper instead of simply greasing the pan. I can never seem to get brownies out of the pan with out making a mess. With the parchment paper, you simply lift the brownies right out of the pan then slice them. You’ll get a little odd shape at the corners but I’ve never received a complaint.
These brownies come out with a consistency that is almost like fudge!
Guinness Brownies
Ingredients:
- 1 cup flour
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 7 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
- 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate
- 4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate
- 3/4 cup white chocolate chips
- 4 eggs, room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 1/4 cups Guinness Extra Stout beer, room temperature, no foam
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- confectioners (powdered) sugar for serving optional
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Method:
- Grease and flour a 9×13 pan. Or use parchment.
- In a medium bowl, stir flour, cocoa powder, and salt until evenly combined.
- In a double boiler over low heat, melt butter, bittersweet and semi-sweet chocolate, and white chocolate chips, stirring frequently until completely melted and smooth.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs and sugar on high-speed until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes).
- Add a few spoonfuls of the egg mixture into the chocolate mixture to temper it. Stir until combined.
- Then pour all the chocolate mixture into the egg mixture and beat well.
- Add the flour mixture slowly into the egg mixture and stir until just combined.
- Fold in the beer, followed by the semi-sweet chocolate chips and mix until combined.
- Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick is inserted and comes out clean.
- Remove from oven, let cool and dust with confectioners sugar before serving.
ENJOY and Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
Want to enter our new Cooking with Heinen’s photo contest? Just enter your photo via this form for a chance to win. A winner will be chosen at random. That means the prize will not be given based on photo quality, so don’t be shy. Show us what you’re making! We’ll announce the winner next week and the gift card will arrive by mail. It’s as simple as that. Good luck!
Photographer Sally Roeckell specializes in contemporary lifestyle portraiture with an emphasis on food photography. She regularly shops at Heinen’s for the family dishes she features via Table and Dish on Instagram and on her website at TableAndDish.com.
Have you heard about Heinen’s Tasteful Rewards™ program? Sign up for free to receive exclusive weekly specials via email and earn Heinen’s rewards. As a Tasteful Rewards™ membership benefit, Heinen’s will donate up to 1% of your qualified purchases made between September and April to a local school of your choice through their Teaming Up for Education Program. CLICK HERE to sign up for Heinen’s Tasteful Rewards™ and, trust me, this is one email that will always please your palate!
Heinen’s Grocery is located at 500 N. Hough Street, between E. Main Street and Route 14 (next to Meatheads) in Barrington, Illinois. They’re open 7 days a week from 8:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. For more information, visit Heinens.com.
