Sugar High Friday: Go Nuts!

Did you know that there are only three types of nuts? Neither did I, until today. Technically, only acorns, chestnuts, and hazelnuts are "true" nuts. Most botanists maintain that walnuts, pecans, and cashews belong in the nut category as well. This is because the latter fruits (yep, you read that right) are included in the "drupe" category, despite the fact that they lack the characteristic outer husk that true nuts have. What about almonds? Well, they're seeds. Go Figure. Before you go...umm...crazy, check this out.

Now that all that business is out of the way, let's get down to the baking. I have been anxiously waiting for the day when I could participate in one of these communal food blog bake/cook-offs. Currently more suited for baking, I bypassed the IMBB?s and relegated myself to salivating bystander. When Sugar High Friday's came about, thanks to the Domestic Goddess, I couldn't wait to partake - finally I would be part of the group! Alas, busy with school, the first three dates whizzed by leaving me covered in flour. At last, in its fourth derivation, SHF: Let's Go Nuts!, I forced myself to at least make something simple to showcase. Although I may not be able to stand-up to many of my fellow more seasoned food bloggers (just you wait!), I had a yearning to enter. I chose the decadent and expensive macadamia nut as my weapon of choice. A little goes a long way with these guy, so unless you're making cookies, watch how much of these guys you throw in to the dish.

Introducing my first ever entry: White Chocolate Macadamia Brownies! [Recipe Courtesy of Epicurious] Seriously rich and satisfingly nutty, these brownies are different than any I've had before. For one, they look much more like blondies, but I won't quibble.

Initially, after they came out of the oven, I was a little wary: the amount of flour called for makes these brownies turn out pretty thin. After a taste test, believe me, you probably don't want them any thicker. Don't be afraid to increase the recipe some (while using the same pan) to get a denser result, but these suckers pack quite enough punch as they are. And although I won't post the recipe (you can grab it here), I did make some Espresso-Chocolate Macadamia Cookies. Exquisite; tasted much more sophisticated than a typical cookie, thanks mostly to the punch of espresso. The unsweetened chocolate, though, I probably would have optioned out.

Read on for the brownies recipe!

I.

Ingredients:

   A.

6 ounces fine-quality or premium white chocolate, chopped [With only Ghirardelli white chocolate chips floating around, they were the choice confection]
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
   B.

2 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
   C.

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
   D.

1/2 cup macadamia nuts, toasted lightly and chopped coarse [Pretty coarse, they are brownies]
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips [I just chopped some Hershey’s Special Dark Chocolate into pieces, although I’m usually a snob when it comes to ingredients, it actually tasted decent]
II. Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350°F. and butter and flour a 9-inch square baking pan, knocking out excess flour.

1) In a double boiler (metal bowl set over a saucepan...or go the simple route: microwave on 50% power until melting) of barely simmering water melt A, stirring until smooth (or in my case, until frustration sets-in) and remove top of double boiler or bowl from heat. Cool chocolate mixture to room temperature. Note: I found that the white chocolate chips were poor substitutes because they refused to liquefy.

2) In a large bowl with an electric mixer beat B until thickened and somewhat pale

3) Beat in A when cool.

4) Into a bowl sift together C and beat into chocolate mixture (B and C) just until batter is combined well. Stir in D until evenly spread throughout

5) Spread batter evenly in pan.

6) Bake brownies in middle of oven 30 to 35 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean. [Note: If experience is any indication, the “taster” method isn’t fool proof, the center of these brownies needs to be set – should have slightly brown top – before they come out]

7) Cool brownies completely before cutting into 16 squares (4 x 4). I recommend letting them sit for a few hours, even overnight, to get maximum flavor. The tough part is achingly watching them just sit there, so it’ll test your forbearance (I failed).

Comments

[Jennifer]

These brownies sound and look absolutely fantastic! I made white chocolate pecan blondies for a nanaimo bar base during the first (white chocolate) SHF...but these look even better! White chocolate goes so well with macadamia nuts...

Thanks so much for finally joining in on Sugar High Fridays and I hope to see you out next month (theme to be announced very soon!)!

[Emily]

i love macadamia nuts! and to bake two recipes including them sounds delectable. looks delectable, too!! thanks for sharing.