Made-Over Deep Dish Brownies

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons canola or other neutral tasting oil
• 4 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
• 2 large eggs, cold
• 1 tablespoon cold brewed coffee
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda

Directions

Position rack in the lower third of the oven and heat oven to 325 degrees F. Use an 8 by 8 silicon baking pan or line a similar sized metal or glass baking dish with foil or parchment paper so it hangs over the edges by about 1 inch. Spray the prepared pan completely.

Put the butter, oil and chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl, and heat at 75 percent power for 2 minutes. Stir, and microwave again until completely melted, about 2 minutes more. (Alternatively put the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl. Bring a saucepan filled with 1 inch or so of water to a very slow simmer; set the bowl over, not touching, the water, and stir occasionally until melted and smooth.)

Stir the brown and white sugars, vanilla and salt into the chocolate mixture with a wooden spoon. Add the eggs and coffee and beat vigorously until fully incorporated and the batter is thick and glossy. Add the cocoa, flour and baking soda and stir just until it disappears.

Pour the batter into the pan and bake until the top is crispy and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out with a few crumbs, about 30 minutes (40 minutes if not using silicon).

Cool the brownies in the pan on the counter. Lift brownies out of the pan by the foil, if needed. Peel off the foil and cut into 2-inch squares. Serve. Store extra brownies in a tightly sealed container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Cooks Notes: These brownies started with our HTBW originals. First we made these healthier by cutting out over half of the butter. To keep their fudgy quality, we added in a little canola oil. Then we reduced both eggs and sugar by half. But we still needed the richness and liquid that they were giving us. So we switched from unsweetened chocolate to a combination of semisweet and cocoa powder. We reduced some flour, and added coffee and more vanilla extract for rich flavor. We were still missing the texture that the eggs had given us, so we added in a little baking soda to get a better rise. Lastly, we switched from a lined and buttered baking pan to a silicon baking pan that didn't require any extra butter or spray. We came up with something that is still rich and fudgy with a gorgeous crackle top, but we feel much better about eating these!