A Healer’s Geste

brownies

I am have a couple baking quests that I periodically pursue: the perfect gooey-yet-baked-through extra-spiced cinnamon roll and the perfect extra-chunky extra-fudgy (again, yet-baked-through) brownie. Needless to say, my husband is highly in favor of these pursuits and the inevitable trial-and-error this involves.

I think I have arrived at brownie perfection, however. I have tried numerous recipes from scratch. I thought I was onto a good thing with a cake-mix variety, but I eventually tired of it — it had an odd texture that was pleasantly different for awhile, but then not-so-good. Then, one day a couple months ago I had a chocolate craving, a few dollars in cash, and WinCo had brownie mixes on sale. Yes, though it pains me to admit it, I do believe that the best brownie comes from a box.

I have now taken note for a few months, and WinCo seems to put this particular mix on sale with frequency. It is the basic Duncan Hines “fudgy brownie” mix — nothing fancy, nothing special. Its regular price is $1.28 and it is frequently on sale for $.98. When it is, I buy one. It is a comfort to know I have an emergency, quick-and-at-hand dessert to whip up if we decide to have people over last minute.

Now, straight-from-the-box is not the perfect brownie. No, I must add chunkiness, and this is my own concoction: 1/2 c. white chocolate chips, 1/2 c. milk chocolate chips, 3/4 c. chopped walnuts. At WinCo, I can buy only these amounts in the bulk section and preparation at home is even simpler. This makes an ultra-rich brownie that I would even prefer over fudge.

My only regret is that caramel is not worked into it somehow — the perfect brownie should have caramel, I believe…. so, perhaps more experimentation is called for….