Gingerbread Brownie

It’s that time of year when everyone’s run out of money, deadlines are looming and you just need something a little Christmassy to see you through.

I wanted to use up ingredients that I had lying about and I wanted something that tasted ‘like Christmas’. I suppose adding nuts and fruit would make this more festive, but you know sometimes you just can’t be bothered with that nonsense.

So this is a recipe that I completely made up. As a result it’s a bit…weird. It’s sort of cakey in texture, but not, and not really like a brownie at all. It does taste like gingerbread though so hey ho that’s something. We poor people don’t judge, as long as it vaguely resembles a cake-type thing.

Ingredients

200g butter

150g milk chocolate

50g white chocolate

300g dark brown soft sugar

3 eggs

200g plain flour

1 tsp cocoa powder

½ tsp cinnamon

½ tsp mixed spice

½ tsp ground nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 170⁰C/gas mark 4. Butter and line a rectangular tin with baking parchment.

Melt the butter in a saucepan over a gentle heat and cook for around 5 minutes until it turns golden brown. Cool for a few minutes before adding half of the milk chocolate. Leave it to melt for a bit before stirring until smooth. Leave to cool to the side.

Use an electric whisk to mix the brown sugar and eggs for about 3 minutes in a large mixing bowl.

Add the flour, cocoa and spices and fold in gently using a spatula.

Pour in the cooled chocolate butter.

Coarsely chop the rest of the milk chocolate and milk chocolate and stir into the mixture.

Pour into the tin then bake for 40-45 minutes until dark brown on top.

Leave to cool in the tin for a bit then transfer it to a wire rack. I haven’t actually tried this but I reckon a square would go down a treat with some hot custard.