Two-Bite Brownies

We just got home a couple of weeks ago from our summer holiday, which consisted of 30 glorious, rain-free days in beautiful San Diego. We rented a house that had a swimming pool, a hot tub, an outdoor jungle gym, a trampoline and a sports court. We visited Disneyland, Seaworld, Legoland, the Wild Animal Safari Park and the beach. Our days were full of sunshine, and the perfect balance of activity and poolside relaxation. And when we got home, I asked my three-year-old son what his favorite part of our holiday was, and do you know what he said? Target! True story.

I'm not sure what that says about him. Moreover, I'm not sure what that says about me, as his mother, and what I've taught him in his 3 short years on this planet.

But I digress. This post is long-overdue. Well, not this post in particular, I just made these brownies like 5 minutes ago - but a post in general. My blog has been collecting dust as I'm just finding my way back to the kitchen after a 2 month hiatus.

These brownies are brought to you courtesy of the mother of my son's first crush. We were invited over for a play date last week and my friend served us these delicious Two-Bite Brownies. Of course I asked for the recipe, they were delicious and adorable. Perfect for portion control - if you can stop yourself from eating more than one - which, unfortunately, was not the case with me. But for those of you who may or may not be sporting a post-summer-holiday-muffin-top (like me) these are relatively harmless, as far as brownies go at 85 calories and 2.3 grams of fat per serving. But that's not the only reason you should make them. They're delicious and so very fast and easy to throw together. (I didn't even bother pulling out my mixer!!)


Two-Bite Brownies
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 1/4 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. instant espresso
1 cup flour
1/2 cup cocoa
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until well-mixed. Add eggs, vanilla and instant coffee and stir until well-blended. In a separate bowl combine flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt. Add to egg mixture and stir by hand until just combined. Spray mini muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray. Spoon batter into muffin pan. Bake for about 12 minutes or until just puffed but still soft to touch. Do not over-bake! Cool in pan on wire rack for 5 minutes before removing brownies from pan and allowing to cool completely on wire rack. Yield: 24 brownies.

Fudgy Brownies (Low Fat!!)

I haven't made brownies in a long time...huge oversight on my part since they are one of my absolute favorite things. The other day, while perusing the cooking magazines at the store, I stumbled across the magazine Light and Healthy 2010 by America's Test Kitchen. Intrigued, I flipped through the pages and found this recipe. I've never tried a light version of brownies before but I figured if I was ever going to, this would be the one. The magazine promises a fudgy texture with bold chocolate flavor. They delivered. They were delicious and if someone had served me this brownie, I would never have known they were light. (I even pulled out my handy Weight Watchers calculator and these are only 2 points per brownie!!)

You are supposed to use an 8 inch square pan and I only had a 9 inch pan, making them slightly thinner than they would have been otherwise. You create a foil "sling" in the pan, which makes pulling the brownies out and cutting them super easy.

Yes, these brownies are worth the extra effort - and I'll definitely be making them again. And probably soon too because between me and my kids, half the pan was eaten last night. 

Recipe for Fudgy Brownies

Source: Light & Healthy 2010 by America's Test Kitchen

Vegetable oil spray

3/4 c. (3 3/4 ounces) unbleached all purpose flour

1/3 c. (1 ounce) cocoa powder

1/2 t. baking powder

1/4 t. salt

2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

2 T. unsalted butter

1 c. (7 ounces) sugar

2 T. low fat (but not fat free) sour cream

1 T. chocolate syrup

1 large egg plus one large egg white

2 t. vanilla extract

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Fold 2 long sheets of foil to be as wide as the pan. Lay the sheets in the pan, perpendicular to one another, with the extra foil hanging over the edges. Push the foil into the corners and up the sides, smoothing any wrinkles in the foil. Spray the sides and bottoms with vegetable spray. Set aside.

Whisk the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Melt the bittersweet chocolate and butter together in a large bowl in the microwave; stirring often, 1 to 3 minutes. Let the mixture cool slightly.

Whisk the sugar, sour cream, chocolate syrup, egg, egg white, and vanilla into the chocolate mixture. Fold in the the flour mixture with a rubber spatula in 3 additions, until just incorporated.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake until a toothpick comes out with a few crumbs attached 20 to 25 minutes. (I baked for 16 - because I used a larger pan.)

Let brownies cool. Cut into 16 squares.