Pistachio Brownies

I really like making brownies, and given that I had some pistachios left over from the whoopie pies I thought I’d give a recipe for Pistachio Brownies a try. My first attempts at brownies a couple of years ago just ended up like really dry chocolate cakes, but recently I’ve somehow managed to transform them into rich, gooey brownies that are slightly crunchy on the outside and soft and squidgy in the middle. No idea how I’ve done that, but I’ll go with it! This one worked well, so instead of sharing my usual recipe I thought I’d share this one as the pistachios were a really successful addition.

Ingredients:
300g dark chocolate
180g unsalted butter
180g caster sugar
4 eggs, plus 1 egg yolk
115g ground almonds
Pinch of salt
115g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
100g pistachio nuts, shelled and chopped

Method:
Preheat the oven to 190 degrees Celsius (170 degrees Celsius in a fan oven), Gas Mark 5.

Grease a 20cm square tin with a little butter, and line the tin with baking parchment. Let the parchment hang over the edges of the tin as that’ll make it easier to remove the brownie when cooked.

Melt the chocolate and butter together, either in the microwave or in a bowl over a saucepan of simmering water.

Remove from the heat and add the sugar, stirring until well combined. Leave to cool for 5 minutes. Add the eggs and the yolk one by one, beating well. The mixture should become dark and glossy.

Add the ground almonds, salt, flour and baking powder.

Using a metal tablespoon fold in gently in a figure of 8 movement. Don’t over mix! Finally, fold in the pistachio nuts.

Pour the mixture into the tin and bake for 20-25 minutes.

The outside should be slightly crispy and the inside should still be gooey. If you inset a skewer into the middle it should come out fairly clean but with some moist crumbs sticking to it.

Leave it in the tin to cool slightly, then remove, cut into squares, sprinkle with caster sugar and serve.

Textbook brownie really! The pistachios were different but worked well, and next time I’m thinking of adding cranberries instead, or maybe a different type of nut. Any suggestions?