Chocolate Mascarpone Brownies

 
It's much too tough to write something after stuffing your face with the silkiest brownies ever, isn't it? You must really try it sometime. 

Getting to these brownies. Using a whole cup of butter, three eggs and a scant half cup flour, I knew they're going to be gooey and fudgy; I just didn't think they're going to be this amazing. I was almost sure I had underbaked them, but since they tasted so darn good, I didn't bother fretting about it for too long. Since Baby Stovetop doesn't seem to be too excited for over-the-top chocolateyness, and I'd put in an extra shot of cocoa powder; I decided to give it a white chocolate vanilla glaze. And trust me, you do not want to taste them before you give it a glaze, since you might not get around to making the glaze at all then.

Chocolate Mascarpone Brownies
adapted from recipezaar.com and NSHP

1 cup unsalted butter
3.5 ounces/100 grams dark chocolate, chopped (I used 72%)
1 1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup + 1 tbsp dutch processed cocoa powder (Try Valrhona for a lifelong addiction)
1/2 cup mascarpone cheese, softened 
3 large eggs, at room-temperature
3 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup all-purpose flour, sifted
1/4 teaspoon salt 

Butter or spray an 8" square pan.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium low heat. Once melted add the chocolate to the sauce pan and take the pan off the heat. Let it stand for a minute then whisk until smooth. While you let it stand, preheat oven to 350°F.  

Carefully, sift the cocoa powder into the chocolate mixture. Add the sugar and salt, mix well and set aside. 

In your stand mixer, beat the mascarpone cheese, stopping once to scrape from the bottom using a rubber spatula. Beat in the eggs, one at a time and vanilla on medium speed until smooth. Pour the butter and chocolate mixture into the mixing bowl and mix well. 

Remove the bowl from your mixer and gently fold the flour into the batter. Pour the batter into your prepared pan and spread evenly, so that the brownies bake uniformly. 

Bake for 45-50 minutes at 325°F, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean (The reason I preheat the oven at a higher temperature is because when we open the oven door, the temperature falls considerably; more so in our centrally air-conditioned Dubai homes).

Place the pan on a wire rack and allow to cool completely. Once cool you can top with the glaze.

White chocolate vanilla glaze

3.5 ounces/100 grams white chocolate, chopped

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

1/2 cup cream

Boil the cream over low heat. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the cream before tossing the bean into it as well. Once the cream comes to a boil, turn off the heat and leave the pot on the stove. Add the chocolate and allow the mixture to infuse for 3-5 minutes. Take the mixture off the stove, fish out the beans and whisk the mix to help the chocolate melt into the cream. 

Once the brownies have cooled, pour the glaze on top. Slide the pan to allow the glaze to spread, going over the corners with a knife. Allow the glaze to set (I left it out overnight, but a couple of hours should be good) and cut the brownies into 16 serving sizes. If you're pregnant, 4 is good too.