COOKIES AND CREAM FUDGE BROWNIES

Cookies and Cream Fudge Brownies image

When I was eight, chocolate brownies were my life. I scoured the local stores on my Raleigh bike, looking for gainful employment to support my chocolate brownie habit. The wife of the hardware dealer took pity on me and offered me a job paying $1 an hour to iron their smalls and sheets. After two hours I had enough cash to buy a couple of brownies, plus change for some sherbet lemons on the way home. It was worth every crease!

Provided by Lorraine Pascale

Categories dessert

Time 45m

Yield 16 brownies

Number Of Ingredients 12

Ingredients

11 3/4 tbsp/5 1/2 oz/165g butter, plus extra for greasing
7 squares/7oz/200g dark chocolate, grated or finely chopped
3 eggs
2 egg yolks
Seeds of 1 vanilla bean or 2 tsp vanilla extract
Generous 3/4 cup/5 1/2 oz/165g soft light brown sugar, solidly packed
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa
Pinch of salt
5oz/154g package of Oreo cookies (about 13 cookies), broken into quarters
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting
Special equipment: 8in (20cm) square baking pan

Steps:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) with the middle shelf ready. Grease the baking pan, then line with parchment paper with the paper overlapping the sides a little.
Melt the butter in a pan over medium heat. When the butter has melted, remove the pan from the heat and add the grated chocolate. Let stand for a few minutes until the chocolate goes soft, then stir together. Alternatively, you can put the chocolate and butter in bowl and melt in the microwave in 25-second blasts, stirring well each time.
Whisk the eggs, egg yolks, and vanilla together in a large bowl until they begin to get light and fluffy. Add the sugar in two additions, whisking between each. Pour it around the side of the egg mix so as not to knock out the air that has been whisked in to it. Keep whisking until the mixture becomes stiffer. Once the egg mixture is ready, pour the chocolate into it, again around the sides so as not to knock the air out.
Sift the cocoa into a large bowl and add the flour, salt, and a third of the Oreos. Stir until fully combined, then pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Scatter the remaining Oreos over the top, pressing them in slightly. Bake in the oven for 25 to 30 minutes. The middle should be very so slightly gooey.
Let the brownies cool in the pan. The top will sink and crack a little. Pull the brownies out using the overlapping paper and cut the brownies into squares. Dust with confectioners' sugar.
Cook's Note: Substitute Oreos for toasted walnuts or pecans or sprinkle the brownies with honeycomb.