Flourless Banana Nut Brownies

Roommates are good for lots of things; keeping you company while you bake, lending you their camera so you can photograph the experience and then, of course, helping you eat the product.  Recently I found myself alone for an evening, baking brownies.  The result?  No company (fortunately she has a record player I hijacked for the evening to fill the void of silence), no pictures of the brownies, and last but not least, a stomach crammed full of "testers" usually divided between at least two of us.  Oh well, one recipe won't kill me and there were leftovers enough for testing the next day, and the next.  That's not to say these aren't delicious, they are just so decadent even I have difficulty eating more than a couple per day.  And I like me some hardcore chocolate.

I based my recipe on a foolproof epicurious recipe for flourless chocolate cake from a 1997 issue of Gourmet.  Made as directed by Gourmet, it is superb (though I always add vanilla and salt).  The perfect easy-but-astounding dessert for any crowd, from adult guests at my mother's dinner parties to tipsy teenagers at a university potluck.  In the spirit of using my impulse-buy groceries I threw in a couple browning bananas and a handful of toasted walnuts lurking in the cupboard, and adapted the other ingredients to make up for added moisture and sweetness.  I think I did a pretty darn good job and if you are partial to a rich fudgey brownie with lots of flavour, you'll agree!



Flourless Banana Nut Brownies
makes 1 8 inch round pan (12 decadent slices of cake)
or 1 8 inch square pan (16-36 small but intense brownie bites)

175 g semi sweet chocolate, chopped fine
150 g salted butter, cubed (1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp)
125 g sugar (a touch less than 2/3 cup)
3 eggs, lightly beaten
2 brown bananas
1 tsp vanilla
75 g cocoa, sifted (3/4 cup)
1/4 tsp salt
100 g walnuts, toasted and chopped as fine as you like (about 3/4 cup)

1  Preheat the oven to 375 F, butter your pan and line with parchment paper leaving a bit of overhang (for easy removal later), then butter the parchment paper
2  Melt the chocolate and butter in a glass bowl set over a pot of lightly boiling water, or microwave slowly until just melted
3  Whisk the sugar into the chocolate until well incorporated, then whisk in the eggs one at a time until smooth
4  Mash the banana with the vanilla in a small bowl (or just mash it in the chocolate if you don't mind a bit chunkier pieces) then add to the chocolate and stir
5  Sift together the salt and cocoa powder, then stir quickly into the chocolate mixture
6  Stir in the walnuts last, just until they're evenly distributed, then pour into your prepared pan
7  Bake for 25-35 minutes, depending on your oven, or until the center is set and doesn't jiggle.  A toothpick will also come out relatively clean.  As long as the eggs are cooked, it is safe to eat and may just be more delicate and moist, overcooked will yield slightly crisper edges.  Honestly, it's hard to fudge this recipe.
8  Let it cool in the pan for a while (15 minutes to half an hour) then remove with the help of the parchment and let it sit at room temperature until cool before slicing.

This cake can be served warm with a scoop of ice cream or dollop of whipped cream (nothing from a can please), but I find the banana and toasted walnut flavours benefit from an overnight rest.  I definitely recommend serving it with napkins however, since even if you overbake it a bit, it is extremely soft and messy, what with all that butter and chocolate!  Please enjoy with caution and do not be tempted (as I was) to hide it from your roommate when they return so you can have it all to yourself.  As much as I'd all like to think I can eat that much chocolate, the following tummy ache reminds me otherwise.