Mia Bakes: Stout Brownies

Fellow beer lovers, fall in!
Oh well, actually it's not really beer, but stout. Believe it or not, despite me being a huge beer/cider lover, I've never ever tried stout before, as everyone around me told me that it's a lot more bitter than beer. So when's a better time to make use of this bitterness, other than to couple it with a decadent, rich chocolate and get some brownies, right? 

So let's get over with the ingredients, so we can get started!

For 9 - 16 squares (9' x 9' square tin):

1 can (323 ml) of Extra Stout 

(I used ABC, but you can always use Guinness)

100g unsalted butter

75g plain yogurt (greek yogurt or strained)

150g finely chopped dark chocolate (I used 60% cacao)

120g castor sugar 

100g plain flour

50g unsweetened cocoa powder

2 eggs

1/4 tsp salt

45 - 50g walnuts, lightly crushed

3/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp vanilla essence

1/4 tsp chocolate essence optional

a handful of crushed oreo biscuits as topping, optional

recipe adapted from The MeatMen

First up, empty the entire can of extra stout into a pot and allow the foam to dissipate. Then, place the pot over medium heat and allow it to boil for 10 to 15 minutes until you're left with roughly 250ml of the dark liquid. Then, pour the reduced stout into a bowl and allow to cool. 

Into the same pot, add in your butter and let it melt fully before adding in the chopped dark chocolate. Stir constantly to allow the chocolate to melt and fully combine, and also to prevent burning. You can also do this in a microwave or over a bain marie. Once the chocolate has fully melted, remove the pot from the heat and add in the sugar, mixing until the sugar has fully incorporated. Add in the greek yogurt/strained yogurt (click HERE to find out how to strain your normal plain yogurt!) and give it a good mix to bring down the temperature of the mixture. 

Allow the mixure to cool to a point where it will not cook your eggs, before cracking them in, one by one, making sure to whisk until the mixture is fully incorporated before adding in the second egg. Then, pour in your cooled, reduced stout and mix until well combined. 

Sift in the dry ingredients (flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking powder and baking soda) and fold with a spatula until almost combined (just a few streaks of flour here and there), before adding in the crushed walnuts and folding until just combined.

Pour the batter into your prepared tin (lined with parchment paper and sprayed with non-stick cooking spray), give the tin a few light taps to allow any air bubbles to come up, before sprinkling a handful of crushed oreo biscuits over the top. Then, bake in your oven that's pre-heated to 170 degrees Celsius for about 23 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle come out relatively clean with just a few moist crumbs. 

Leave it to cool completely before cutting into squares!

There you have it! 

Moist, fudgy, rich and chocolatey brownie with a slight hint of the stout flavour to give the brownie a "dark chocolate" flavour. Replacing part of the butter with yogurt not only helped to reduce the calories, but also added on to the fudginess and made the brownie more moist. I'll say you do not try to reduce the sugar anymore, because this is already a less-sweet recipe. Instead, if you'll prefer a sweeter brownie, go ahead to add more sugar, or throw in a couple handfuls of chocolate chips to oomph up the sweetness. If you're a chocolate/brownie fan, do give this a try, even if you're not a fan of stout!

Till then,

Mia Foo