Brownie: A Saga

I grew up with something we adoringly referred to as "Shabbos Cake." Shabbos cake was a brownie, baked in a huuuuuuge pan, cut into two rows, sliced in half, then swathed with heartless layers of non-dairy whip, and deliciously stored in the freezer. 

It was heaven. As can be seen by the name, reserved only for Shabbos. My siblings and I yearned for Shabbos morning with all of our beings. 

Then, we learned that non-dairy whip is naaaaaasty. Like, epically bad for you. It's pure trans fat, the kind that the body doesn't know how to metabolize so it sticks around, clogging arteries and padding thighs. So that went out the window. But the brownie recipe remained as I attempted to find other alternatives (like cashew cream). 

We were going to be hosting guests for a meal a number of years ago, and Ma didn't want to make her usual brownie in the huuuuuuge pan. She asked me to find a recipe for a smaller cake. 

On my first search, I found the below (the original link no longer exists): 

Whole Wheat Brownies (Vered DeLeeuw)
 

•    4 large eggs, lightly beaten
•    1½ cups sugar
•    ½ cup oil
•    1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
•    ½ cup white whole wheat flour
•    1 cup high-quality unsweetened cocoa powder

•    ½ teaspoon kosher salt

1.    Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray an 8-inch square pan with nonstick spray.
2.    Lightly whisk together the eggs and the sugar, just until incorporated. Whisk in the oil and vanilla, again whisking just to incorporate - you don't want too much air in the batter or it will be cake-like and not dense and chewy as a brownie should be.
3.    In another bowl, use a fine-mesh strainer to sift together the flour, cocoa and salt. Gradually add to the egg mixture, whisking to combine. Batter will be thick.
4.    Pour the batter into the prepared pan, using a wide spatula to get it all out of the bowl.
5.    Bake 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in center comes out not wet and not completely dry, but with a few moist crumbs, keeping in mind that when it comes to brownies, it's always better to err on the side of a little under-baked (moist and chewy) than a little over-baked (dry).
6.    Cool about 30 minutes, in pan, on a wire rack before cutting and serving - brownies are best at room temperature.

It was a HIT. "That's it, then," Ma decreed. "This is our brownie of choice from now on."  

This recipe is also very tolerant. To make it gluten-free for family members, I replaced the flour with half oat flour and half ground teff. Dope. I've even fiddled with it for Pesach, but that's another post. 

Then one day recently, I comprehended that this recipe sort of has a staggering amount of sugar for its size, so I experimented with cutting back. If cutting back on the sugar, then the cocoa has to be cut back too, or else it'll come out bitter. So I tried reducing the sugar by a third, and then the cocoa by the same. To make up for the missing bulk, I added an additional quarter cup of flour. 

SO: 

4 large eggs 

1 cup of sugar
1/2 cup oil (you can replace half with unsweetened applesauce) 
1 tablespoon vanilla extract 

3/4 cup white whole wheat flour (or other. I use whole wheat pastry flour, but any flour will do) 
2/3 cup cocoa
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 

It came out quite lovely too. Grownups seem to dig it. Although kids will probably demand the sweeter version.

I top mine with walnuts, simply because Han likes nuts. Chocolate chips are another option, if so desired. 

This baby is stored in the freezer. That's how we like it.