Classic Chocolate Brownies

This past week I was feeling a little down because my baby (a.k.a. Kitty, my 12 year-old cat) is not doing well with his arthritis. So I was feeling a little down, anxious and craving for chocolate. All I could think was...BROWNIES! Some people may be on the quest to find the perfect recipe for chocolate chip cookies (which I think I've found, I'll tell you later) but I prefer brownies. Brownies are the perfect delight. For this brownies I used a recipe I found on the Ghirardelli site (you can also find it on their Baking Bar) and the results were great. These came out beautifully, heavenly...I couldn't stop eating them. Here is the recipe:

Classic Chocolate Brownies (adapted from Ghirardelli)

Yield: 16 brownies

• 1/2 cup(s) Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
• 4 ounce(s) Semi-Sweet Chocolate Baking Bar
• 1/2 cup(s) (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 1 cup(s) firmly packed light or dark brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon(s) pure vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 3/4 cup(s) plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon(s) baking powder
• 3/8 teaspoon(s) salt

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter and flour an 8-inch square baking pan. Chop the 4 ounces of semi sweet chocolate bars into i-inch pieces. In the top of a double boiler or in a heatproof bowl over barely simmering water, melt the 4 chopped chocolate and butter, stirring occasionally until smooth. Remove the pan from the heat and let cool to room temperature. Stir the brown sugar and vanilla into the chocolate mixture. Add the eggs and mix well. In a bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Slowly fold the flour mixture into the chocolate mixture, mixing well until blended. Stir in the chocolate chips and pour the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until a tester comes out clean.

Remove from the oven and cool for at least 10 minutes before cutting into 2-inch squares.

Tip: They do come out a little thick, so if you don't like the so thick try a bigger baking pan.